Alternative 'Flying' options...

[peter whitaker]

Hi...

My name is Pete Whitaker and I am part of a company called Highcliffe Charity Players. We are a charitable theatre society and very well known in the Dorset/Hampshire area.

 

We perform 2 shows a year and give all out profit to charity.

 

Our next show is HAPPY AS A SANDBAG which is a world war 2 revue show. There is a scene where an actor is on a parachute while singing a song. Its only a 2 minute song but the graphics we have in mind, will make it a great addition to the show.

 

The show is being performed at The Regent Centre Theatre in Christchurch, Dorset in September 2008.

 

Ideally, we wanted the actor to be flown in – however we have been told that this will cost us £2,000+ which of course, as a charitable society, we can not afford.

 

Can anyone tell me whether they have, or know any company who have a freestanding hoist which we could use to hoist up the actor (in blackout) ready for the scene, rather than fly the actor in.

 

Or if you have any other ideas, then please let me know.

 

Thank you

Pete

[SoLiEn]

this might get more results in the relevant part, Mods?

[Wingwalker]

Hi Pete,

 

I'm curious, could you tell me where you got the price of £2K from?

 

TVM

[ryandell]

Hi Pete,

 

Have you spoken to C-P-S GROUP, This might have been where you got the quote of £2k from, After speaking to an employee I was told they are contracted out to the Regent Centre.

 

Thanks

 

Ryan

[Jivemaster]

Finding someone to do pro flying using a visually correct and period 'chute harness may be a problem. - they may not have current ratings.

[tokm]

Ideally, we wanted the actor to be flown in – however we have been told that this will cost us £2,000+ which of course, as a charitable society, we can not afford.

If 2k is already too much, then I'd say that unfortunately your going to have to forget the idea. Sounds rather low/very good price already, so doubtful anyone else (Foy's & Freedom Flying for instance) are going to be able to do it any cheaper than that.

 

There's been a few topics/questions like this before.. here's one I found: http://www.blue-room.org.uk/index.php?showtopic=15783. Kinda backs up the general comments made here.

 

Sorry..

 

Could you think of another way to stage it.. some sort of black platform that trucks on stage with the actor on, during the black out, with a tight special on the turn during the scene? Or is there a general wash up as well/thus ruining that idea!

 

HTH.

 

Tom

[Ike]

If it's just vertically up and down £2k seems very expensive to me. While I'd almost always suggest going with one of the big players if you want two or three dimensional flying in a situation like this I'd expect the house rigger or rigging contractor to be more than capable of installing a suitable spot line. Using a real period harness is likely to be problematic, personally I'd hire a suitable flying harness from one of the usual suspects and get the wardrobe department to knock up a fake which would rip away if any weight was unintentionally placed on it.

 

Obviously you need to be aware of all the risks or get someone in who is. These will include things like suspension trauma and ensuring the artist doesn't get hung up in anything as well making sure they can't fall.

[paulears]

A modern harness could easily be overcovered by khaki sleeves made out of something that would look like the original pattern parachute harness. With suitable care, I too reckon this could be done in-house by suitable people. No need for expensive tracks, compensators or other people flying gubbins. A local amateur group in Yarmouth did the infamous Chicago hanging scene in-house by using circus riggers and their suspension kit - seemed to work ok, the insurance company were happy, and it looked good.

[tokm]

Just to add a comment after seeing Ike & Pauls post.

 

Do apologise if my remarks came off as being a put down.. Its just I've always gone by the rule that people flying of any sort, even just a vertical up & down, should be done by the pro's, if only for assurance of safety.

 

But if in other people experience just a vertical lift/up and down is acceptable to be done without necessarily having to use the service's of Foys or another pro company, then great. Another bit of handy knowledge for potential use/investigation as an option, for the future.

 

Learn something new every day & all that..

[ewanuno]

A modern harness could easily be overcovered by khaki sleeves made out of something that would look like the original pattern parachute harness. With suitable care, I too reckon this could be done in-house by suitable people. No need for expensive tracks, compensators or other people flying gubbins. A local amateur group in Yarmouth did the infamous Chicago hanging scene in-house by using circus riggers and their suspension kit - seemed to work ok, the insurance company were happy, and it looked good.

 

I work in the circus, and I'd be wary to advise anybody to go to the circus for safe rigging.

I could do it, but I wouldn't want to do an effect in a theater with a non circus actor.

 

with a circus performer you can do really crazy stuff, for example I do a hanging upside down by my feet straitjacket escape, which I can rig from any single point with a load bearing capacity of 1000kg. but I wouldn't hang any randon actor up like that.

[paulears]

From my experience of Circus - here in he UK we have pretty tight safety rules - I stand by my comment. The permanent indoor circus I'm talking about did have a fatality a while back where an artiste crashed to the floor and died, but the resultant safety investigation showed the systems and safety processes were fine. We weren't talking about anything other than simulating a parachute landing?

[ewanuno]

From my experience of Circus - here in he UK we have pretty tight safety rules - I stand by my comment. The permanent indoor circus I'm talking about did have a fatality a while back where an artiste crashed to the floor and died, but the resultant safety investigation showed the systems and safety processes were fine. We weren't talking about anything other than simulating a parachute landing?

 

that's a sad story, I didn't hear about it, was that at the big expensive half round thing? I can't think of any other permanant indoor space in the u.k. apart from the circus schools.

 

fatalities happen sometimes in circus, everybody's broken bones. here they say, "if you don't have any part of your body that hurts when you wake up in the morning, it's because you're dead"

 

lifting somebody up in a harness isn't exactly rocket science it's true, anybody could do it. but wheres your accountability?

 

maybe I should rephrase my point to, " I wouldn't even contemplate doing that in the u.k."

I'm sure you'd need lots of qualifications that the majority of circus performers don't have.

 

 

now I think about it, were'nt the people who starteds foys circus artists?

[paulears]

There are two circus buildings in the UK, Blackpool and Great Yarmouth. The Yarmouth Hippodrome is an interesting building with the original Victorian water feature and controls fully funcional and in use. Huge big levers get pulled and the ring mating removed, the the ring itself sinks into the water, big fountains squirt. Ping pong balls flow in from the entrance, moving lights make pretty patterns, then a load of underwater swimmers burst through the surface from underneath - looks great. All seating is all round the ring in tiers. The original animal cages are still round the back. The circus is pretty traditional and plenty of aerial action.

 

some info on the accident here