Messages

31

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Cheap Rigging-ish

« on: Jan 29, 2008, 06:05 pm »

If you don't wish to be fancy but cheap, I'd plan on being more versitile & flxable with the medici flats units on the deck, as suggested, rather than attached to a wall.
You can use fixed castors, with a central spigot, into a deck plate. Or even utalise tank traps [boom foot plates] to drop the unit onto. If your stage surface is smooth, you can use old deep pile carpet, glued stapled or scewed, underneath the unit. With the pile sitting on the deck, movement ican be as smooth as a babies backside. Also with just a drop in pivot spigot, the need for a tatt skirt around the bases edge is reduced.
In a number of pro & ameatre converted venues, the removal of the ceiling gyprock or plaster sheating, above the stage area. Will exspose a heap of roof viod space, that can be utalised for the grid. Especialy if it is an 'A' frame roof & the jiosts run across the stage.
However being a new building there may be a lot of objections to you venturing down that track.
In most cases you can achieve weird & wonderfull things, by thinking outside the box & employing the X factor, in creating that  wee bit extra space.
 

32

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Cheap Rigging-ish

« on: Jan 28, 2008, 08:56 pm »

G'donya Mathew I forgot to mention about the oilio [Oilieo - tumbler] being an effective method.
There is a number ways the this can be achieved easily that would assist Dru in his situation with drops.
The oilio or oleo depending on your location is a valueable resource, either as a cloth or scrim, is a simple solution to a lack of fly loft.
Either using two lines as a roll up or a single operating line as a tumbler. With the roll up can be done from the tail batten or as a roll down from the head batten.
The tumbler can be done, using a carpet inner roll tube or PVC sewerage pipe. Depending on the width required, an alluminium extruded pipe can be used, which comes in about 4 metre lenghts. The easies way is aquire a couple of bearings housing mounted, to suit the ali pipe at each end. With disks cut from ply to fit in the tumbler tube & around the pipe, to act as ribs. These can be fixed with tek screws to the pipe & tube. Two larger disks are needed to accomadate the rolled cloth, on each end of the tube, as a cloth baffle. Dead hang onto the bearing housings & fit a line haul fair lead pulley on one end of the pipe, attaching the operating line. The tumbler pulley has to be wide enough to take the amount line wrap lengh need to to roll the tumbler up. The tumbler line can be operated thru a deck pulley. You will have to do a bit of messing about to achieve the rope line length required, with the cloth being brought in & out, but well worth it.
If you wish to use scrim on the oilieo tumbler, have a look at this site ;-   
http://www.studio-productions-inc.com/ Vicki Franks there is very helpfull & a full bottler on oileo's.
 

33

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Cheap Rigging-ish

« on: Jan 28, 2008, 06:43 am »

G.day Dru
The rotating flats are called 'Periactoi' [Greek for Rotating] Also known as Medici flats.
These sites may help you;-

http://www.bscl.org/periactoi.htm

http://www1.appstate.edu/orgs/spectacle/Pages/16thscenechange.html
Simple hemp line fly systems can be achieved with pulleys & hauling line droppers, depending on the super structure above the stage area. It may be better if you have this checked out to it's suitability, by someone qualified in rigging first.
I would assume there is Boarders & Leg drops already in place &/or some form of provision for lighting being rigged ['X' position - overhead]?
What is the building structure in the cieling viod above the stage?
Making the medici flats is easy & cheap enough to achieve, the flying may take a bit of investigation with the buildings powers that be, which will afford you some protection of a steal plate, to wear in the seat of your pants.
This site animated knots site will help with your hemp fly stem ;-

http://www.animatedknots.com/indexboating.php?LogoImage=LogoGrog.jpg&Website=www.animatedknots.com

34

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Visual Cues--Who's Responsible?

« on: Jan 24, 2008, 04:18 am »

It may be as simple as to bring it to a head with the powers that be & suggesting running a cue to cue tech, with the Director. As it may be a problem with the logistic of his timing, calling &/or his perception of how cues are achieved.
Being Ameatre it may be he has little if any emperical knowledge & with the best of intentions has lumbered himself with the task. Or he is as thick as a brick & twice as dense? Which may manifest itself, one way or another, during a ghoast calling!
To me visual cues are just that, caused by visual restrictions on the part of the SM to call the Go. No matter what I will give all cues & stand by for a visual one. to ensure the op is mentaly tuned in.
I find leaving iy up to the techies can be a drama &/or a right old farce. As they can become easily too engrossed in the show, distracted with visual hapenings or walkabout of the mind. 

35

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: Student Stage Manager's Challenge #2

« on: Jan 15, 2008, 10:32 am »

Just a wee think, if the lighting has cut the mains power off. T ;)he 'Maintained' Emergency Lighting would switch on to back up batteries, which will give normally at least 90 minutes of illumination. However if the Mains power is still on, switch the mains off, this will activate the emergency Lighting automaticly.
With the Fire Indictor Panel [FIP] alarm system, the battery back up would have switched in. however if the venue is on a DBA [Direct Brigade alarm] a 'fault' signal would be activated at the local Fire Brigade Station & they would be contacting the venue direct anyway.
Anyhow just a thought!

36

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: Dropping Cards?

« on: Jan 11, 2008, 04:23 pm »

Your probably right Scott, however from the post I doubt Source3 would be refering to something like the Strand Patt 102 effects projector or similar, as the focusing lenses don't 'flip flop' as sugested. rather they slide on two rails protruding from the lamp. If this is what you were refering too?
From the pic that was posted, it is difficult to determine if the references was to a Fresnel or a profile.
Come to thing about it I last seen a Patt 102 used almost 50 years ago at the Goldersgreen Hippodrome. They were developed during the advent of rock 'n roll & were usualy well & truly cream crackered in a very short order, because of the open lens design & with commercial usage.
Also with fresnel beam masking this is another situation where local terms tend to differ.
Beam masking be it from a shutter or barndoor on a profile, flood or fresnel is reffered to as masking & shaping the beam, including light ray scatter masked by a snoot or whatever.
Upon rereading the initial post in question, I now realise I brushed over the term 'throw'. Being more concerned with the 'B' device question, thanks for picking up on that, of course this would have made a difference to my reply, but for that 'B' word?
G'donya!
 

37

Employment / Re: how long do you wait for a response?

« on: Jan 11, 2008, 04:30 am »

This may help or not, but it work for me, many years ago.
Rather than send resumes to prospective hirers, I just sent an adressed envelope with a return stamped adressed postcard inside.
The postcard with my adress on one side, I had listed my qualifications, skills, atributes & details on the other side.
Along with provision for the hirer to tick various boxes & to add apiontment, contact details &/or a not interested/hiring box as well!
All the hirer has to do is tick the boxes or add details, then pop it in the out tray [or the bin!)
The last time I did this I only sent about 7 & recieved 5 back. 2 with appiontments, 1 requesting a resume & 2 knock backs.
However I recieved 4 other calls from Theatre companies, that I never canvassed in the first place, but who were advised of my details by one of the hirers.
I ended up working for 2 of the callers & 1 canvassed hirers.
I was working with 7 days of mailing them & it only cost 14 postage stamps, besides the outlay for envelopes & printing of t50 postcards, which I used up some years latter.
The reason for the small number is, we are but a pimple on the backside of the theatre world here. But in a larger market I think the percentage of returns would be much the same & replies just as fast! 

   

38

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: Dropping Cards?

« on: Jan 11, 2008, 02:58 am »

This is the grid. There will be over 130 lights on this grid - all the lights the facility we're in has without getting into their old-skool lights (the square ones that have the lenses that can be flip-flopped to get different throw angles... I forget the name, but it starts with a B)

They are 'BARNDOORS' mate - used for masking on a Fresnel [Soft edge] lanterns!