#criteria 1

[jakeayrisblog]

Production plans

As part of the stage management team there were many plans that had to be created and used during both the pre-production period and the run of the show.

The Pre-production plans included things like making a props list and then organising it into categories of what would be bought/sourced/made and who would be responsible for each one.

We also had to plan and design what the props would look like, for example the whittling knife I fixed by making it a new handle had to first be designed so that I knew how big the handle would be, what shape it would be, what it would be made from, what colour it would be and any other details that were needed on it.

During the run of the show we each had a plan for the production that showed what all of our cues were and when they took place. For me this included things like:

when I turned on my dry ice machine.

When I filled up my bucket (too early and it would melt, too late and I would miss my next cue).

Entered the auditorium.

When I filled my dry ice machine with the ice.

When I pumped out the dry ice.

When I left to refill the bucket

Etc. 

As well as all this I had to add more cues for the final show so that I knew which trucks moved where, when they moved and what position they were in for each scene.

[jakeayrisblog]

Examples of ASM jobs in different sized theatres

Christ’s Hospital – Small Scale Job Title: Theatre Technician Requirements: Previous experience in a similar environment, Understanding of Health & Safety requirements and must maintain full first aider status. Salary: Up to 28,000 based on experience.

Chichester Festival Theatre – Medium Scale Job title: Technical Assistant stage manager Requirements: Performer flying/ working at heights experience essential. Job duration: Summer Season Salary: Not Advertised

Hawthorne Theatre & Rollercity – Medium Scale Job title: Assistant Production and Technical Manager Hours: 37 Hours per week including evenings, weekends and bank holidays. Salary: £19,069 - £20,961 per annum.

    Royal Opera House – Large Scale Job Title: Assistant Stage Manager Salary: £33,540.78 per annum Job duration: Permanent.

In the medium scale jobs, the ASM will have more responsibilities and tasks to carry out, because there would not be as many of them as there would be in a large scale theatre, however they would also earn less money than they would in a large scale theatre. This is because large scale theatres would have more money to recruit and pay more staff due to them bring in larger audiences than at a smaller theatre. So on average the smaller the theatre company the more work you have to do and the less money you will earn for it.

[jakessounddiary]

Unit 71: Criteria 1 - Venue Issues

The Auditorium

  The acoustics of the Auditorium in the Miskin theatre are not particularly good as the location of the sound platform and the lighting control room mean that the back wall of the auditorium is set at different depths meaning that the sound hits the walls at different times and reverb at different times. All of the walls are solid brick and do not absorb sound, so the sound bounces off of all the walls in the room increasing the amount of reverb produced. Also the size of the room and the distance between the back wall and the stage means that when the sound-waves hit the wall they have not completed their wave-length and can hit the wall in the middle of a crest or trough (or anywhere in between). However these are fixed by hanging blacks and graphic EQing the room.

For the dance show we require power for ten speakers and four subs as well as power to the desk and mac. There are a few empty plug sockets on the sound platform so we use those to power the desk and mac. Down on the stage floor there are four wall boxes around on the walls which each have a few plug sockets on; so if we connect some long four ways then we can power the four subs and six speakers on the ground, as for the four in the rig they are powered by more wall boxes up on the ceiling.

The speakers are positioned so that the sound can be heard from anywhere on the seating bank or from any of the tables, they all play at the same volume and so the sound is balanced and not focused to the left or right. This will mean a nice balanced sound for anyone in the audience.