So we're now in the final week of production, and this is where it really starts to hot up for the stage manager.
Up until now I have been looking after rehearsals taking notes on the action of the actors, called 'blocking' which creates a record in the master copy of the script, which we call 'the book'. Along with Anna the designer, we have been finding props for the show as they come up in rehearsal notes. The rehearsal experience at Half Moon, although intensive, has been great fun and Angela (the director) has been fantastic in allowing me to have input to decisions regarding the show; which with some directors is not always the case.
This week is perhaps the most challenging for the Stage Manager. On Monday we had the technical rehearsal or 'tech'. The tech is where all of the different technical elements (lighting, sound, video and props) are combined with the dialogue. It is my job to run the tech and ensure that everything happens in the right place at the right time in the play. Each change, such as a lighting change or sound effect is called a 'cue'. During the tech, I write all of these cues in the book as we stagger through the play, cue by cue. During the process, scenes are often repeated many times and elements altered, for example the volume of a sound or brightness of a light. We only move on once everything in that scene is just right and recorded into the lighting desk or VJ console. It took us 10 hours to tech Begin/End!
Up until now I have been looking after rehearsals taking notes on the action of the actors, called 'blocking' which creates a record in the master copy of the script, which we call 'the book'. Along with Anna the designer, we have been finding props for the show as they come up in rehearsal notes. The rehearsal experience at Half Moon, although intensive, has been great fun and Angela (the director) has been fantastic in allowing me to have input to decisions regarding the show; which with some directors is not always the case.
This week is perhaps the most challenging for the Stage Manager. On Monday we had the technical rehearsal or 'tech'. The tech is where all of the different technical elements (lighting, sound, video and props) are combined with the dialogue. It is my job to run the tech and ensure that everything happens in the right place at the right time in the play. Each change, such as a lighting change or sound effect is called a 'cue'. During the tech, I write all of these cues in the book as we stagger through the play, cue by cue. During the process, scenes are often repeated many times and elements altered, for example the volume of a sound or brightness of a light. We only move on once everything in that scene is just right and recorded into the lighting desk or VJ console. It took us 10 hours to tech Begin/End!
Today we had two dress rehearsals. This was pretty nerve-racking for me, as it was the first time I operated the show continuously from beginning to end (excuse the pun!). During the show I operate the lighting, sound and the video, so my hands have to be able to move quickly from computer to computer! The dress rehearsal went really well, apart from the odd little blip, and the energy in the theatre is high. I can't wait until the show tomorrow... it should be a good one!
No comments:
Post a Comment