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Messages - mkristinect

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16
I am resurrecting this decade-old thread (!!!) because I am encountering this as a major issue for the first time.  We are in the fairly early rehearsal stages of my current project and the director wants the format to be a bit fluid, allowing the actors to explore before solidifying blocking.  Sometimes (in my experience) this works, but this cast seems to crave structure and the director is loathed to make any concrete decisions.  So in the absence of leadership, the cast is taking it upon themselves.  There are some big personalities, and a few divas, but I really believe they would bow to the director's decisions if he would make any.  I suppose the root of my question is as follows:  do I allow this director to do his director thing in his own style even if it means chaos in the rehearsal room?  I can't force him to direct but if I tell the actors to cool it nothing will get done at all.  It seems to be partially an issue vision (or lack thereof) and partially an issue of personality--he's just a nice guy who doesn't want to step on toes.  I am also that way...but my rehearsal room is a figurative mess!  How far can I go before I cross the line of authority?

17
So at the risk of straying off topic, what sort of tactics do you use when trying to sell your stage management background to an outside-industry professional?  In general I feel like the skills I'm developing are the most valuable and most transferable of any job I've ever had, so naturally that's what I focus on in interviews.  But in a world where job title is paramount, sometimes I feel like they hear (read) "stage manager" and tune me right out simply because it's a foreign concept.

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Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / RUNNING: Deck Cues
« on: May 28, 2015, 06:27 pm »
Mod note: This post was made in response to the Deck Cues thread over in Uploaded Forms. We wanted to give it its own spotlight since there are some questions that merit more substantial discussion. - PSMK

Matthew, I love the format of your run book.  I may borrow....  :) 

Do you all find it valuable to track every actor entrance/exit that way?  And if so do you track every prop entrance/exit the same way?  I am in the middle of my first musical and, fair to say, most complex show to date.  The cast size is middling (small for a musical, large for a play) but there are lots of props, lots of cues, lots of coming and going and I have a backstage crew of one (not counting actors).  I just wonder if it would be more of a help or a hinderance to clutter the chart too much.

Edited to add topic tag- Maribeth

19
Uploaded Forms / Re: Sample Props Schedule
« on: May 22, 2015, 05:55 pm »
The first two columns are check boxes for rehearsal and final props.
"Location" refers to each prop's preset location backstage.
The "categories" of props (courtesy of Thurston James) are defined on the 2nd worksheet--click the tab at the bottom.

What does the column "source" refer to?
I'm a little late to this, but I imagine it would be for tracking borrowed props from other theaters or individuals.  That's how I would use it, anyway.  :)

20
Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: The Ultimate Decision
« on: May 14, 2015, 07:03 pm »
It was pretty accidental for me, too.  I was studying music (vocal performance) at university and our Director of Opera Studies asked if I would SM her production of Magic Flute.  She brought me in the week of tech.  It was a recipe for disaster:  first-time stage manager, cast full of opera divas, control-freak music director, massive unfamiliar venue, a high-tech Mozart opera.  In the end it turned out alright.  It was terrifying in ways performing on stage had never been for me but somehow it got under my skin.  Years later I still perform regularly but have also been privileged to SM professionally with a number of regional houses (although I have never done another opera).  And I still feel totally inadequate...but I can't seem to stop!

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Uploaded Forms / Invoice Template.xlsx
« on: Apr 10, 2015, 05:42 pm »
This is an invoice template that I created for my personal use as a freelance musician.  I saw someone was asking about using invoices as an SM some time back.  I have never used it for my SM gigs because I rarely get to set my own rate...I just accept or reject what they offer.  Nevertheless, I thought I would post it here in case it might be useful. 

Totals are all set up to calculate automatically.  I choose my base unit (hourly, weekly, etc.) and list that as the quanity, set the unit price, and it will calculate the total for each service plus the total for the project, minus any initial deposit.

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Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: Contracts?
« on: Dec 15, 2014, 05:54 pm »
Great info...thank you!  That's very helpful.  In that case though, as an SM, how do you handle (for example) actors leaving rehearsal or not showing up to rehearsal when the director/producer doesn't want to confront them?  I suppose this is a whole new thread topic.  But is it within our realm of responsibilty to call them on the carpet if they aren't under contract?

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Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: Contracts?
« on: Dec 12, 2014, 02:05 am »
That's true.  I've never had to do anything but distribute them in the past.  In this case I suppose I'm technically co-producer since the director, composer/sound designer and I are the only three on the production team.  Nevertheless, it seems like there must always be something to keep people accountable.  Apparently it's naive to expect them to pull their weight because of passion for the project, or even for pay!, if there aren't dire consequences.

24
Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: Contracts?
« on: Dec 11, 2014, 07:25 pm »
Hey everyone!  I've been digging through the archives and haven't really found a post that directly addresses my question.  So I'm going to commandeer this older thread so as not to clutter the forum too much.  :)

Since graduating from university I've freelanced as actor/stage manager for various community and professional houses.  The production I'm currently working on is my first independent production, where a friend had adapted a script and decided to put it on himself using a crowdsourcing campaign, etc.

Even though we are all professionals working in the industry, and even though we are paying a (very small) stipend, I somehow didn't feel like I could ask the actors to sign contracts because we weren't an established institution.  Now I'm running into all sorts of issues and I've sworn to myself that I will never work without a contract again.  Even if it isn't legally binding, at least I can at least wave it in front of them and say, "Yo!  What makes you think this is appropriate behavior?!  You agreed!"  At the moment I have no recourse and now it's too late to start replacing actors.

Anyway, I guess I'm just looking for your thoughts on the subject of non-union, professional actor contracts.  And if you have any examples of contracts you have used with success (I did see the SM contracts in the download forum).

Thanks for reading!

Maren

25
Yeah, I'm good at asking questions.  I just need to give myself some context in order to understand the answers.  Those resources sound great, though...thank you!!

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Students and Novice Stage Managers / Talk to me about tech...
« on: Sep 24, 2014, 02:42 am »
Specifically technical knowledge necessary for an SM.  I am self-taught, with good people and management skills, but zero technical knowledge.  Luckily I've been able to skate by in the few shows I have so far managed because they were grassroots companies with few design needs and/or companies with really, really good designers.  Once I ran lights for a production of Romeo and Juliet.  It consisted of a single spot with no sight and no stand so I had to point it manually and nearly caught my shirt on fire.  Another time I ran sound for Woman in Black.  It consisted of a laptop running WMP.  Super high tech.

Anyway, I'm mostly wondering if you lovely folks can point in the direction of some good resources (paper or web-based) that might help me overcome my handicap.  Thanks in advance!

27
Hey compadres.  Please don't ask what that subject line is about.  It's midnight and despite being in the theatre industry, I'm really a morning person...with insomnia.  Anyway, I write what I feel. 

A piece of personal trivia by way of introduction:  My first SM gig was in college.  The woman who called me was in charge of the opera program (I was a vocal performance major) and had seen fit to appoint herself director, musical director, conductor, and stage manager of a large production of Mozart's Magic Flute.  Come tech week, she apparently decided it was all too much (really, though??!) and asked if I would step in to SM.  In my naivete, I agreed.  It was a nightmare.  Cast of 40 singers (not actors...a very different breed), large auditorium in which I had never worked, and 0 experience.  And I looooved it.  Favorite moments include a singer walking off set because someone had got glue on her pair of scissors, Monostatos losing half his costume, and Sarastro going on stage with the words to his aria pasted to his staff on post-its.  Good times.

Despite the auspicious beginning, or because of it, or resulting in it, I have no formal training in this area.  Actually little formal training in theatre at all.  I've worked extensively as an actor (easier to be self-taught), recently made my directorial debut (not my forte), and really enjoy the dozen or so shows I've SM'd over the years.  I currently work with a small fringe company in Seattle as a founding member and jack of all trades.

I discovered this site only today and it has already proven chock full of invaluable information.  I'm looking forward to taking further advantage of that resource as part of the community.

Cheers!
Maren

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