Author Topic: Help with a sweaty actor  (Read 8310 times)

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loebtmc

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Help with a sweaty actor
« on: Nov 02, 2012, 01:08 pm »
OK - put on a replacement in my musical, and yikes he sweats through his costume by midway through Act 1. His mic pack is double-condom'd and upside down, and he still almost shorted it out last nite.

Does anyone have any miracle ideas to help? So far we are using multiple t-shirts underneath, baby powder every time he comes off (which is only once an act), throw his shirt and jacket into the dryer at intermission, tape rolls on the stage to re-attach his mic, handkerchiefs and absorbent towels everywhere we can hide them. Surely there is something we didn't think of? (And, we can't run out to purchase those wick-away shirts at Target, this is a period piece). ARGH!

MatthewShiner

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Re: Help with a sweaty actor
« Reply #1 on: Nov 02, 2012, 01:29 pm »
Is it a heat issue?  I have done T-shirts with ice packs in them to help keep an actor cool to stop the sweat.

Is he offstage enough to undress, dry and redress????


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LizzG

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Re: Help with a sweaty actor
« Reply #2 on: Nov 02, 2012, 02:23 pm »
Instead of t-shirts under the costume, could you try under-armor, and put the pack on top of it?  It's pricy, but pretty good at absorbing sweat. They have a variety of colors and thicknesses....

loebtmc

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Re: Help with a sweaty actor
« Reply #3 on: Nov 02, 2012, 03:10 pm »
It's a review musical - he is on stage except for two times, once in each act. Ice packs are interesting but not sure they wouldn't cause more wetness in the long run. Hmm - will ask our costumer abt under-armor - surely there is something that wicks away sweat for athletes, right? I mean, we see the sweat through the back of his suit jacket.....

iamchristuffin

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Re: Help with a sweaty actor
« Reply #4 on: Nov 02, 2012, 05:21 pm »
Surgical spirit is a antiperspirant, and stops pores from sweating for a few hours. I've never used it on a back to stop a pack shorting, but it's great for getting tape to stick to someone's neck and head! Might be worth a try. (Not sure if it has a different name in the US)

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Re: Help with a sweaty actor
« Reply #5 on: Nov 02, 2012, 05:59 pm »
The thing to watch with Under Armor is that while it does pull the sweat away from the body, that wetness still has to go somewhere, which can lead to him looking even wetter than he is without.  We experienced this this summer during the show I was working on.  The Under Armor seemed to concentrate the sweat to the point where it looked almost as if the actor had wet his pants (for the shorts).  His shirt was just so thoroughly soaked that it just looked like it had been dyed darker uniformly all over.

Maggie K

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Re: Help with a sweaty actor
« Reply #6 on: Nov 02, 2012, 07:43 pm »
Could the mic be moved to a different area of his body that doesn't get as sweaty?  Some actors I've known have worn them with the band around their chest so that the pack is between their shoulder blades.  It still can get sweaty there but not as bad as the small of the back.
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MatthewShiner

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Re: Help with a sweaty actor
« Reply #7 on: Nov 02, 2012, 10:39 pm »
We recently had to put a mic on the ankle . . . and inner thigh . . . options?

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loebtmc

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Re: Help with a sweaty actor
« Reply #8 on: Nov 03, 2012, 04:10 am »
sadly, he sweats all over, and dances mightily. We are trying some sweat-absorbent t-shirts and seeing what happens. He's just, well, one of those folks who just sweats. A lot.

Thanks for the great suggestions, I will pass the ankle suggestion along to our sound person. Now we need to find tape that will stick to his sweaty face to hold the mic (he is bald, so no hair tags, darn it!)

Didaskalos

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Re: Help with a sweaty actor
« Reply #9 on: Nov 03, 2012, 09:52 am »
Try putting the mic transmitter pack in a sock and then put the condom over that.  That will give you a moisture barrier between the rubber wall of the condom and the openings in the mic pack.  Hopefully, any moisture/condensation that gets wicked inside the condom will have somewhere to go rather than getting trapped right up against the pack.  If you suspect the issue is moisture getting onto the mic jack/connector or battery terminals (the metal conductive components), you can coat them with clear silicon grease--usually comes in in a small tube--and that will water-proof them and keep the water/salt from corroding them.
« Last Edit: Nov 03, 2012, 10:40 am by Didaskalos »
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loebtmc

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Re: Help with a sweaty actor
« Reply #10 on: Nov 03, 2012, 11:09 am »
oooh - that's something our sound guy didn't think of - great idea! thanks!

NomieRae

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Re: Help with a sweaty actor
« Reply #11 on: Nov 03, 2012, 12:08 pm »
Had a similar issue for a long running show I was doing where our lead who was only off for literally 30 seconds in 90 minutes sweat through everything, including his face full of stage makeup... - we tried the following:

- Patting down with cornstarch preshow under all skin parts (helped for awhile)
- wicking undergarments
- double condom over an athletic sock for his mic pack (worked the best overall)
- Fans backstage and in the dressing room
- Asking the house to keep the theater a little cooler (luckily during the summer it was an ice box... he still sweat, but not as bad)

If possible get him doubles of everything including costume? That way it doesn't get dried while sweaty - that can seal in the odors permanently, especially in a man-made fiber situation. We had to throw out a suit because it wasn't properly cleaned after being sweat through so many times.

Also if you have a full intermission while he's off - a complete strip, quick rinse, cornstarch, and recostume with dry pieces. Sounds excessive but he will most likely be more comfortable!
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RuthNY

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Re: Help with a sweaty actor
« Reply #12 on: Nov 03, 2012, 12:44 pm »
Three suggestions from my Sound Engineer, here at the Riverside Theatre in Vero Beach, FL.

1. Wrap a spiral of florist's wire around the bottom three inches of the mic cord, just above the element. This allows you to bend the cord so that the element itself is half a inch away from the face. The element should never touch the skin.

2. Put mic tape, directly on the actor's face underneath the element.

3.  As discussed in other replies above, the mic pack itself should also never touch the skin. Strap it on over an undershirt, or over a sock or stocking, if strapped to the leg/ankle, in addition to the other methods outlined above.


Good luck!
« Last Edit: Nov 03, 2012, 11:33 pm by RuthNY »
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babens

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Re: Help with a sweaty actor
« Reply #13 on: Nov 03, 2012, 05:06 pm »
I do also remember reading in an article about the last revival of South Pacific that Kelli O'Hara's mic pack, while "water proof" for "Wash That Man Right Out of My Hair," was also wrapped in Saran Wrap before going into the condom.  There was an anecdote that she once accidentally dropped the pack into the toilet once and between the Saran Wrap and condom it came out pretty clean.

If you do a double condom/athletic sock suggestion that was also suggested I would recommend putting the sock between the two condoms, so you have condom, sock, condom.  If the two condoms are on top of each other you run a higher risk of both of them breaking/ripping as the friction of latex on latex is not very kind to the integrity of said latex.

 

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