THEA242 FINAL

assistant stage manager

Assistant to the PSM Support the entire production. (if it's a small show, you may have only one Stage Manager)

production stage manager

Base salary is more than actors All roads pass through SM Connects everyone Blocking, breaks, calls show Runs show At the table first, then in the booth Takes over the show after the director leaves. Time management. Organize everything by meeting with everyone; all departments. Makes sure there is a light, sound, set, and property check before each show. In charge of keeping the actors on schedule & calls the show. Liaison between management and actors. Liaison between director and actors. Liaison between the crew and the show itself. The glue that holds everything together. Enforces union rules. Plans the rehearsal schedule. Issues daily notes. Responsible for the cue book, responsible for the show, manages actor's issues. Attends every rehearsal and meetings involving the director.

how does the process of blocking a show work ?

Blocking- where are the actors on stage? Director could give the actors their blocking. Depends on the director: May want the actors to "do what feels natural." Let them figure it out. Most actors like this

Who is at the first rehearsal?

Director; Stage manager; Actors; Set designer; Costume designer; Lighting designer; Sound designer; Multimedia designer(?); Producer(?); Staff & crew(?), and Dramaturge (almost exclusively in academic settings). Question marks indicate the person may or may not be at the First Rehearsal. In some cases, but not all, they do attend.

Tech week/Hell week

long rehearsals during which ALL technical aspects of the production are rehearsed. Usually one or two "10 out of 12's"

Actor's Manager

manage day to day of the actor, not union job, salaries vary ... 0 to 25% usually only big names who can afford them

glo tape`

marks where things are on stage and can see when dark

props

objects on stage used by actors. typically moveable or portable

opening night

opening night end of directors job

blocking

putting the show on stage

what an actor should do for an audition

rehearse monologues/songs; if the script is available read it . Understand historical context; Arrive early; Bring head shot; Be confident; Be Polite; Introduce yourself; Be fearless; Be memorable; Take directions; BE HEARD

cue to cue

running the show from cure to cue with actors

levels

stage levels or lighting levels

after opening night is when director

leaves and PSM takes over

opening night

Opening gifts. Used to send Western Union Telegrams Merde gift- mostly referred to in the ballet world, same as opening night gifts Warming up-vocal warm ups, physical warm up, everything prior to 30-minute call John Gielgud "get it over" — HATED opening night, too much pressure Calls: "places, half hour, 15 minutes, 5 minutes, and places" Superstitions- don't you DARE say "MACBETH" the "M" word!

technical director

Responsible for the theatre's technical production process including creating the master theatre schedule. Responsible to assure the technical equipment in the theatre is functional, maintained and safe, including lighting, sound, communications and stage facilities. Advises production managers, lighting and sound designers on the technical specifications, costs and usage of equipment for the show. Determines needed technical supports for performances. Supervises and assists with set and stage construction and management. Duties include: Generate working drawings for construction Budget estimations and management Materials research and purchasing Scheduling and supervising build crews Organizing strike and clean-up

what is tech week - not the actors favorite

Technical week - also called tech week, tech, production week or Hell Week. The week prior to opening night in which all of the technical elements - including costumes, lights, sound, set and makeup - are incorporated into rehearsal for the first time.

stage managers - what do they do

**They deal with every collaborator in a theatre production

story of THE MAN IN THE BALLOON AND THE WOMAN ON THE GROUND

--director vs. stage manager

Actor first reads the script and gets information about their character from four places:

1. What the author says about your character in the stage directions (may sometimes be what the stage manager has written down describing what the actor is doing, i.e. crying) 2. What other characters say about your character (may be subjective) 3. What your character says about your character (may be subjective) 4. What your character does* * This is most important, has the most truth. Can't lie about what you do.

rehearsal hours

8 out 10 hour calls ( work 8 of 10 work day hours and meal break for 2 hours ) 10 out of 12 7 out of 8 straight 6 Straight 5 Breaks, lunch breaks etc.

Average time dedicated to a show from first rehearsal to opening night

: 4-5 weeks (4-week rehearsal and 1 week of tech)

actor should for do for an audition

Actor should make strong choices, and utilize your strengths for your character . . . be the best actor you can be and either enjoy the audition process or look like you are enjoying it . . . . . . set goals for yourself and try to meet them and the rest is in the hands of the those casting the play and out of your control

dress rehearsal

Is the first time costumes are used.

our class auditioned for

Maggie, Brick, Big Mama, and Gooper in Cat on a Hot tin roof

preview and opening night

Preview means that there is an audience. Previews are less expensive than the shows done for the rest of the run. Adjustments can still be made during the previews. Notes are given to actors and set changes can be made during previews. After a show opens, the union contract (Actors Equity Association [AEA]) stipulates that nothing can be changed. Everything has to be the same for every performance. If changes need to be made, everyone needs to be paid for overtime—gets very expensive.

traditions and superstitions of opening nights

SAY Break a leg!! Bad luck to say good luck! Weird, but true. (Ballet world says Merde). • Greeks! Chorus would sing and dance around in a circle-audience would stomp (break their leg) in appreciation • Romans-cripple, break the legs of the opponent and win (or live) • "The King's Men" getting $ in Shakespeare's company- the groundlings would throw money if they liked it and the actors would pick it up by kneeling down thus breaking their legs • Place leg behind the other to bow or curtsey at curtain call (break the leg) • Break the legs or curtains by having more bows/curtain calls • Each time the curtain came down it would break (fold)

the buck stops with the stage manager

accountable for smooth running of the show. If there are any difficulties, the Stage Manager is the person people will go to. This is why the Stage Manager calls the show rather than everyone running their own cues, like Light and Sound people. They wait for the Stage Manager's "Stand-by" and then "Go"

costume parade

actors fashion show on stage

rake

angle of a stage, upstage and downstage

dry tech

cue to cue without the actors

why is there a call backs?

director wants to see interaction with another actor. How do you look on stage with others? Character choices. Can you take direction and make adjustments? Are you flexible or a pain in the ass? Range? Are you fearless to make new choices? Do you fit in the family? You shouldn't memorize the call-back, but you should be familiar. The call-back should be about your choices, not your memorization ability. Be excited to be there!

casting agent

get the word out for auditions, find talent

Actor's Agent

gets work for the actor, makes 10% of actor's salary (10 per center) will have many clients

half hour

half hour call until the show goes up then 15 min, 5 min and places !!

final dress rehearsal

is last one before previews.

actors skill set

voice, body, imagination, Breathing is most important in the actor's voice skill set

first auditions are usually monologues

when we did it, Victoria the TA announced each auditioner and the director for the mock auditions was professor reidel

spike marks

where things are placed on stage

LESLIE REIDEL, REP DIRECTOR (Director, mock auditions CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF)

• Auditions is when an actor gets a job. • In the profession, very good actors look forward to auditions because it's the time when they actually get to act. Want to do your best acting at the audition. • Read the script and sometimes actors will come in and learn the material on the spot. Helps the director see them do the part because there's no script. • Useful audition tip: o No hats. You should wear something that looks like the character you are auditioning for. • Directors give you a direction so what you get in rehearsal is for the director to be the absent audience member for the actors. • The best actors never stop working, even after the play opens. They make each performance better than the last • The actor is always preparing and working toward the audition and toward the performance. The speaking of acting is to change something, to persuade—not just giving information. Trying to get people to see the world your way

first rehearsal - some possible things that might happen usually led by the director

• Directors talk about the play; listen anew. Ask designers to show visual elements because seeing set and costumes is quite telling. Informs actors what kind of production this will be. Maybe ask PSM to walk (and explain) the taped floor standing in for the set. • Most of the time there is a reading of the play with the actors sitting around a table, sometimes 2 readings or more. • Have a read of the play itself without acting. No interpretation of the play. Just read the play for what the story is and for actors to listen to each other. • What happens: Meet and greet, team building activities, read the play, go over schedule, elect union (AEA) deputy, costume fittings, see the model, sketches, swatches, hear music, get excited, start to feel like family, hear director's vision. • Director: Share vision and talk about the play, create atmosphere for creativity, discuss characters, support, and allow everyone to feel important and as essential part of the production

what happens at the first dress rehearsal ?

• First time the actors put the costumes on. Actors can see how they move in the costumes on stage. So can the costume designer and their crew. • First dress rehearsal is important for the director, costume designer, & lighting designer • Costume parade (usually not any more) People watch costumes now during runs with lights on. • Happens during tech week

DRAMATURGE: KEVIN KERRANE

• He taught in the UD English Department; had the freedom to teach journalism, drama, Irish literature courses. • When the REP does Irish plays, they ask Kevin to come in. He says he does what the director asks him to do. For example, Leslie Reidel directed The Weir by Connor McPherson and they had three different versions of the text. Kevin had McPherson's email to see which one they should use. Kevin can also help with language of the play and what certain words mean. • What have you been asked to do by Sandy or other authors? Dramaturges aren't used in commercial theatre, usually. The University uses him; it's more common in academic settings. • He would show up the first day of rehearsal (the end of the process). He would look into what the Director might want. When Ben Barnes did Juno and the Paycock at the REP, he directed it before, so most of the research was done except for one specific scene in Act II. Kevin had to research sheet music so that the song was accurate to the area and time. • Kevin saw a Delaware Theatre Company production of Woman in Mind a little while ago. Most of what we see in Death of a Salesman are memories, while Woman in Mind is about fantasies. As the play goes along it's harder to separate reality from fantasy. The show dramatizes bad marriages and how women are treated in society. • Kevin was impressed about how richly detailed the set for The Seafarer because it was gritty, grungy, and dingy and yet it felt very open. Kevin thinks McPherson is one of the most interesting modern playwrights. McPherson has The Girl from the North Country (Bob Dylan) running in NYC right now. Also has a supernatural element, like The Seafarer, while being realistic. • Wrote a book about Baseball scouts and followed them for a season. He's very knowledgeable about Baseball. They are looking at players who are younger and they have to project farther into the future. What kind of athlete will they be in the future?

TECHNICAL DIRECTOR: Keith Davis—BFA from Carnegie Mellon; Masters from UD

• Keith Davis is the REP Technical Director. The designer creates a pretty picture; I make something physical, real. Wear many hats: Structural design, Rigging, Carpentry, Project Management, Safety Coordinator etc. • My process starts months before the show. I see a ground plan - bird's eye view - from the set designer. Look to see where the walls are, how tall they are. Are there stairs. • I create an early budget estimate - usually pretty accurate. • Sometimes the designer presents a design that is 'way out there'. If the cost exceeds the budget: I go to the REP Production Manager: can we find extra funds? Or go to the designer and work to adjust? Or somewhere in the middle? • During the construction period, I start every day by visiting the scenic painter (scenic charge artist) to see what she needs and/or what is going on with her and her painting crew. • Original projection for Minor Fantastical Kingdoms was $25,000 which raised to $37,000. • After the budget estimate, create drawings: the look, structure and how we will install it. We build sets in sections away from the theatre. We truck them to the theatre to be put together. • Tech process: all elements brought together - set, actors, props, sound, lights - everything blocked, integrated. Uncover issues and resolve. • Set strike: Once a production is over break apart the set and mostly dispose of it. Each show only has one day of strike. • Safety is a big part of the job. Primarily responsible that everything is safe on stage. In addition to a BFA and Masters in Technical Production and Manager, Certified in Rigging, i.e., hanging stuff in the air. Lights and other structure overhead are very heavy. Safety is critical. o For Minor Fantastical Kingdoms, the tech process will be different from other shows. Usually they can access everything once it's installed but with MFK they're not going to be able to touch it after they install it. Having access to the set is going to be a challenge. • How long is it going to take the Redwood trees in for MFK? Usually load in is 5 days, but Keith allotted 8 days for it. • Did they already own everything to move the Woman in Mind panels in and out? Yes and No. He maybe only spent $1000 dollars on stuff he had to make. • "Theatre is the bastard child of 1000 other industries". Keith needs to know a lot of different things to be able to do his job correctly. • Keith first saw designs for Woman in Mind in June. He is already working on the shows for the end of the season. • What was the cloud backdrop in Woman in Mind? It's scenery netting and cotton that you would find in sofas and that material and lights make the cloud look 3-D and it is 3-D. • Keith has to schedule when our class can come into the Thompson Theatre!

For future rehearsals

• Rehearsals should be all about trial and error • Actors will do their best when not worried about making mistakes. • Protective, creative, supportive climate to be able to rehearse.

Matt Marholin - REP Production Stage Manager (PSM)

• Some key responsibilities of the Production Stage Manager (PSM): o Before and during rehearsal and during the run of the show create an environment within which everyone feels safe to be creative and do their job to produce the best show possible. o Assure everyone works respectfully and professionally with each other. o Manage the show - document everyone's blocking, and assure, for example, costumes meet the aesthetic and physical needs of the actors - so all can focus on their job. o Once the show opens actors may come up with ideas to improve it and we work it out with them. Some we keep, some we don't. Once the show opens the PSM takes over and watches it to make sure they're doing the show as intended by the director. • He works with all the departments in communicating everything said and done in rehearsals through written notes, so everyone knows what happened in rehearsal each day. • Scheduling is another big part of his job; he hates wasting people's time so rather than calling all of the actors for every rehearsal he will look at the schedule to see if people can come in late/don't have to be there • Have you ever had a dangerous situation on stage that you've had to hold for? Yes, most set pieces used to fly in or were on wagons (simpler), so with automation comes more problems. Has had a number of situations where he has had to stop a show. • He signs a contract with the REP every year. • When he did the national tour of the Wiz in New Orleans, they would fly into town Monday morning and the crew would go to the theatre at 6pm at night and go back at 6 am the next morning. They did their Monday night and then in the morning at 6 am no one had a key and they couldn't get into the theatre. There were 90 crew members waiting at 6 am and they lost an hour of work. • A Typical Day for Matt: o It varies from show to show in terms of how many hours we work o Day starts an hour before rehearsal, they set up the room for rehearsal o Make sure that props are set and make sure costumes are ready for the actors o Use some of the time to correspond with other departments o Then the cast comes in and we work an 8-10 hour day o 5 hours of rehearsal, 2 hour break, and then 3 hours o Stage management stays behind and types up notes from that day and they do the schedule for the next day o He ends up working an hour before rehearsal and an hour after o This day will change once they get into the Theatre.

Steve Pelinski, Actor with the REP: Waiting for Godot, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Seafarer, and Woman in Mind.

• Steve has been acting since he was very young. Connects acting with dying - actors die a lot. His best death and most challenging role was as Richard III - lasted so long, so strenuous, and actually hurt his back. • As a REP actor, performs in 6 or 7 plays per year and enjoys the variety - from Shakespeare to contemporary, from comedy to drama. Also, likes Irish plays - his mother was very Irish. • Comedy is difficult. There are a lot of good actors who don't play comedy well. • In live theatre, your imagination can bring you to the world of the play easily. In film or television, it's so mechanical. There's someone with a camera, someone with a microphone and lots of other people surrounding you. Sometimes the person you're talking to in a movie or television taping is not even there. Theatre is so natural for actors, focusing on scenes and other actors from the beginning to the end. • Steve's favorite role to play was at Guthrie Theatre where he played Al Moody in The Play's the Thing. He said there was so much laughter from the audience that they had to hold for a long period of time and he forgot what lines were next. Was the most fun he had ever had in the theatre. • How did you play a blind man in The Seafarer? Steve's mother lost her eyesight, so she was in his consciousness when he had to replicate that vacant stare. The character was newly blinded, and the director wanted him to face out. Steve had to explore relying on other senses during his performance. • Do you change your performance based on the audience? When they did Twelfth Night in NYC, we had to resuscitate and tweak the play because the audience was not into it. But otherwise, you see trained professionals who have worked on this piece. You can't judge or blame the audience based on their reaction to the play that's just how they're experiencing the performance. • Can you talk about the pros/cons with working with the same actors? Steve's been a guest in a resident company and he's also in a company. As a member of the company, you know pretty much how everything works because they've been together so long. Downside is that there are no surprises! Discussed how great it would be to have a vocal coach and movement teacher to help the company so that performances are not so predictable. • Some people in the company may think that they don't need to take direction because they've been doing it for so long, but Steve doesn't agree. He thinks you should always continue to grow as an artist. • He will be directing Mauritius an original play by Theresa Rebeck. At the same time, he will be rehearsing for another play. Will be challenging. • Will be performing as the Matthew Brady character in Inherit the Wind directed by Sandy Robbins. Expect there will be opportunities for students to perform in ensemble roles. o For Steve, as an actor - you are of service to people. It's a generosity of spirit because there's a power that actors have that comes through in a live performance and can change the audience.

What does the Actor do and how do they do it?

• Tell the truth • Interpret material • Entertain • Bring story to life • Rehearse • Memorize script • Portray narrative • Learn the part • Read script/stage directions • Take a bow • Spend the money • Get fired