(=^･ω･^=)

SARA 20 ヽ(￣(ｴ)￣)ﾉ

[pro-craft-ination-blog]

Week Sixteen & Seventeen;

Design Rotation

Design rotation was interesting as a year ago I applied to RCS thinking I wanted to do design as I was currently studying graphic design at college. At the time I was devastated that I didn’t get in, but I’m glad that I had another year to think about what I wanted to do as after completing the design rotation, I saw it wasn’t for me.

Our project for the two weeks was to create a design for ‘Fear and Misery of the Third Reich” ‘The Spy’ by Samuel Beckett and go through the majority of stages that a designer would do. Such as a white card meeting by the end of week one, and a final full colour model by the end of week two. We were put into groups mixed with PAD’s and PTM’s. At first I wasn’t sure how our group would go as we had a lot of strong minded creative in it and I was worried that we wouldn’t be able to come to an agreement. However we never argued once and we all pulled our weight throughout the two weeks. Which designers normally get 6 weeks on, but they need to do it all by themselves, which I know I wouldn’t be able to manage.

I genuinely didn’t realise how much work a designer does. It’s up to them to make sure that the measurements on the model and technical drawings are all accurate and that each piece they design works. Even down to making sure that the set can be taken apart and put together in the venue. Which isn’t something I would ever have considered, as they have to think creatively but also practically.

What I learned from those two weeks is that I should have more patience for a designer. They might not have a strong skill in costume drawings and that if I’m ever in doubt I should just ask calmly and politely.

[pro-craft-ination-blog]

Week Eleven & Twelve;

Costume Rotation

We finally got to go into my major for two weeks, which was something I was ecstatic about as I really felt like I wasn’t part of the department, none of the tutors even knew I was a costume student which really bummed me out.

We started out with the basics again as there were people in my rotation group who had never sewn before. Dot to dots are always fun, no matter what your age! Then moved onto a basic medieval coif, that I later found out goes under the hood we made later. Since I was the festive season, I went for the classic Christmas red and white, which made my hood look like some kind of hybrid Santa, but the fabric was also really easy to use and I liked that.

As soon as we finished out hoods we went straight to helping dress the panto. I won’t lie, I was really nervous as I had never done anything like that in my life and I really didn’t know what to expect. I just knew that I was to expect long hours and sweaty washing, which didn’t entirely fill me with high hopes. However after a few dress rehearsals I was confident in what I was doing, which made the whole experience better. Even with the sweaty clothes and late nights, I had a lot fun. I’m totally immune to seeing half-naked actors now though, as a few of the guys just strolled around in their boxers when they weren’t on stage for a while. The majority of the actors were the loveliest people I’ve met (there were a few divas) and all the PTM’s that were backstage kept us in high spirits, especially teaching the final dance in the show so that we could all and along in the wings.

I’m really glad I got to have this experience as I don’t think I’d have been comfortable in second year trying to organise everything. It’s really sad to hear that there won’t be a panto anymore too.

[pro-craft-ination-blog]

Week Nine & Ten;

Scenic Art Rotation

Usually in the scenic rotation we would start off in the classroom learning about colour mixing and theory work before being set loose in the paint shop with the scenic majors in the second week, but because the boat for panto had to be finished, Gary decided to switch our weeks around and have us in workshop instead.

Steelies and paint clothes on we were armed with brushes and told to prime the boat white. This was a lot harder than it sounds as it required 2 or 3 coat of paint before it was suitable to put the yellow on, and painting is more exhausting than I thought. We did more than the boat, we helped to sand and shellac the boats pillars (not the most fun of jobs) and even get to help cut out the seaweed cloth, which meant we had to use latex, which smelt of fish. Scenic is fun but messy and usually smelly (lots of weird paint.) We learned on the job really, whenever a task needed to be done that we could help with we were called over and shown briefly what to do, which meant that we got to use the spray gun for spattering the pillars, which means that now I’ve been trained in it I can use it if needed.

On the second week we chatted about paint, such as what they were made out of and the history of it. Then we did some colour mixing, which was something I really wasn’t confident about, as I’ve painted in the past, but just winged it. It was really different being given a swatch and told to go make the colour, but in the end I came out successful. The paint was also really out of date and smelt awful, but we braved it and somehow managed to work with it.

After this we moved onto doing our signs, we were told to go find a bit of scrap wood out the bin and look into what type of sign we wanted to do; I picked out an old police telephone sign. The goal is to make the final piece look distressed and old. Unfortunately I had a martial arts tournament to go to so I missed out doing the sign in class and had to catch up.

Overall scenic was a really fun rotation and I’m considering doing it for my minor.

[pro-craft-ination-blog]

Week Four & Five;

Construction Rotation

Our first rotation was construction. We spent the first part of Tuesday talking about health and safety and how to use the tools and machines that we would be given. In the afternoon we were allowed to get a feel for the jigsaw on bits of scraps, which I really struggled with at first and didn’t like using it, and how to use the power drill. The next day we talked to Zander about what we were planning to make, I just decided on a simple box as I thought It couldn’t be that hard (boy was I wrong.)

My plan of action at first was to create a fancy sewing box, but that plan fell out the window as soon as I realised that I needed really fancy hinges that no one knew the name of. So my box parts became abstract wall art boxes…that I actually think, still live under the workbench. I also made a shelve unit for my locker, which was much more sensible and practical as it’s something I could actually use. It took me a while to wrap my head around how to get the measurements and translate them into something I understood. Which is the point where I really learned that I’m a visual learner as there was a lot of going back and forth to my locker to keep checking that what I was doing would fit. This might have been the biggest thing I learned in construction, as I feel it’s something that I can now consider for my future learning.

Not much to say on construction really, but It was really fun and I learned a lot.

[pro-craft-ination-blog]

Week Two;

Okay so week two was much, much, much better than the first week. We were finally on our feet, our “Introduction to Production”. 

                                          Our groups map of the process of putting on a show.

Up, up and away! Our first stop was up to the grid on our tour of how the PTM’s work. I can say this was my most favourite part of the tour, it’s an awesome experience being able to look down and think “wow i’m 50 feet above the stage now.” It’s a long way down and trousers are a must, as much as I hate wearing them (¬_¬ ) 

We got a brief tour around the Ath and the general working areas, lots of fancy desks with waaaay too many buttons for the sound and lighting guys. We also went down to the orchestral pit which is where the trap man lives also, you might only see him during panto season ┐(︶▽︶)┌

No flared trousers in the workplace, no.1 rule, the second is always ask the carpenters. 

We also did some basic A-Frame ladder training, but the star of the show was the tallescope which extends to about 25 feet. I didn’t go up, I knew as soon as i got into the basket I wouldn’t get out .･ﾟﾟ･(／ω＼)･ﾟﾟ･. Ladders aren’t my thing, and it seemed the taller they got, the more creaky and wobbly they got too. Which is apparently a good thing, but I’ll stick to the ground for the time being.

Thursday we were back on home turf at Speirs Locks where we did an orientation of the staff and area around the building. Meeting back at lunch where we found our brief for the rest of the day and Friday. We were split into three mixed groups and were asked to pick a headline from Thursday's Metro and respond to it however we wanted. Our group picked “Seafood with an extra helping of plastic on the side” We bounced ideas around and came up with making a dinner party with a twist, the twist being that our meal was trash.

There was some disagreement at first with what we were doing and it took a while for our group to gel which I found really unfortunate. I decided to take on the role of a dinner guest which really pushed me out of my comfort zone, but looking back i’m glad i did it, I’m here to learn new things and that’s what i’m going to do.

My week ended with an eventful trip to the Citizens Theatre with some of the PAD folks to see Dragon, which was an amazing show which i’d highly recommend to anyone. It’s all witchcraft I tell you!

Overall this was a much better week than the first one, but i’m itching to get into Costume now and do more practical things!

[pro-craft-ination-blog]

Week One;

My first week at the RCS was full of inductions and talks. 

“I’ve never felt so welcomed in my life!”

There isn’t much to say about this week to be honest. It was a very long week and I can safely say that sleep is now super precious to me.

[pro-craft-ination-blog]

Robertson’s Trust; Outward Bound Weekend

Let’s kick this blog off with my experience at outward bound which was arranged by the generous people of Robertson’s Trust who will be supporting me through my time at the Royal Conservatoire.

We hit the road at 10 to start our journey towards Ullswater. 

We had a quick stop at the Rheged Centre (filled with minecraft references and cool owls) where we got to meet the faces behind the emails being sent to us. Here we found out more about the trust and what other services they offer. Who knew the trust owns a whiskey company? I didn’t! It wasn’t a long stop, maybe an hour and we hit the road again, with the coaches fighting a tight squeeze around that blue car. (⊙△⊙✿) 

Once we got the the centre we all filed into a room where we got to meet our groups and do some activities for the evening. First up was skipping, we had to get our whole group across without being hit with the rope, if we were hit we had to start again. It was a really fun exercise to do, we encouraged each other and built a supportive environment for the entire group, which was necessary for the tasks we were to do later that weekend. After skipping we did a few more challenges like arranging ourselves by height without leaving a bench and balancing our group on a see-saw, all in preparation for a short jog down to the lake.  We went for a dip in the lake, first walking in to our ankles, then our waists. All in preparation for jumping in off the pier into the lake. I didn’t realise how scared i was of water till I jumped in and thought i was drowning.  Back to the centre for the evening where we were served a feast and relaxed for the evening with hot chocolate and chocolate digestives. (●´∀｀●)

Saturday was our busiest day, wake-up call at 7:00am and breakfast at 7:50

We were going gorge walking. I have to say this was the most terrifying yet exciting part of this trip. There was so much kit that i felt like i was the michelin man sitting on the bus; normal clothes -> wetsuit -> warm fleece -> Harness -> waterproof jacket & our rucksacks. We wore wellies as well, which always filled with water right when you needed to lift you leg higher to reach a foothold      (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻ curse those wellies, the water never left them!

After reaching our goal on the gorge we went straight back to the centre to build a raft. Which went amazingly well. Our group successfully built one and paddled it out to the middle of the lake and back (i didn’t fall in thankfully, but i was so scared!)

In the evening there were some activities arranged by the robertson team; a quiz and some people bingo. The quiz was smashing however we never won, the people bingo was okay, but really you just found out who the really generic people were. I never had a chance of finding someone studying Costume Construction since i was the only one doing it!

Friday was our last day at the centre, however we managed to squeeze in a hill walk before we had to go back. The view was incredible! So i took as many pictures as i could since i never got to take any during other activities since we were doing water activities and i didn’t want my phone ruined. We spoke about our hopes and fears about going to uni and played a great game of Mafia before we had to go back. Of course i was the one who fell into the mud resulting in one muddy foot. (ᗒᗜᗕ) I got a bit sunburnt after that walk too, but i didn’t expect not too, being pale of course.

Honestly this was an amazing experience, I wish it was longer. I made a great group of friends and grew as a person myself, i’m not as scared about having to meet new people at uni.

[pro-craft-ination-blog]

Welcome

Hello :) This blog will be for logging my time at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland where i’ll be studying BA Costume Construction. I’ll be posting a lot of my work here and occasionally some tutorials if i have time. Please look forward to it :)

Sara