tech rehearsals

[mr techie]

hi everyone

just wondering during a tech run how small a problem do u go before u decide wether to stop or not??? does this make sence ??? for example if it was a fade time on lx cue that was wrong would u stop change the time and rerun the q or would u make a note and change it later. in my opinion I would stop and change the q as thats what a tech runs for 'the technical people'. Also whos in charge on a tech run in ur opinions. when ive sm'd a show the director neerly always gives me free reign but then always end up butting in giving acting notes and such

 

thanks in advance for your thoughts

cheers,

 

mr technician `

[sam.henderson]

Have a look at this thread.

 

Sam

[mac.calder]

hi everyone 

just wondering during a tech run how small a problem do u go before u decide wether to stop or not??? does this make sence ??? for example if it was a fade time on lx cue that was wrong would u stop change the time and rerun the q or would u make a note and change it later. in my opinion I would stop and change the q as thats what a tech runs for 'the technical people'. Also whos in charge on a tech run in ur opinions. when ive sm'd a show the director neerly always gives me free reign but then always end up butting in giving acting notes and such 

 

thanks in advance for your thoughts

cheers,

 

mr technician `

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Personally, small things I note on paper and distribute post rehearsal, both verbally and on paper - if it is something like a que was missed after a rest period, ask them afterward "Do you want me to call you to standby earlier?" etc etc.

 

Anything that is technical difficult that is messed up and involves a lot of timing, I will usually stop the show, tell the actors to take 5 but not to move out of the space. Then I will get the crew on the ground (ie except lighting and sound) to do their stuff until they are comfortable (running at half speed if necessary), first in full light, then if required, in blackout. Next I would add the sound and lighting.

 

After that I would call everyone to resume a few lines before the complex change, and run it through.

 

The trick is you do not want to say "We can fix that later" because you may not have a later, but stopping for things like "Your fade on que 12 was too fast" will really piss off your ops and your actors, hell chances are next time he would have done it perfectly anyway.

 

My rule of thumb: Anything that cannot be corrected with a short "Can you just" should be stopped for - there is no use giving him a sheet of paper with "Can you make sure that you hit LXQ14 on the dot" when it is in the middle of a run of cue's though - so you stop, run it again, if he still has problems, then the run may be too difficult, so go up to the bio box (if your not there already) and see if it is humanly possible for the sequence to be run. If not, change it.

 

SMing is a juggling act. If you have 5 hours of tech, and a preview right after and a full run of the show takes 1hr 40min, you cannot stop for everything. But if you have 3 days of tech, hey, stop whenever you need. If you are in ameteur theatre, you don't have unions breathing down your back either, so you can run that lighting sequence until 1am in the morning. Your op will want to kill you, but it will be perfect.

 

MC

 

 

--nb: The use of the masculine form of address is in no way indicative of my views of women in the theatre. I have worked with a number of them and find them just as (if not more, every so often) capable as men.

--End Covering rear end--

[Just Some Bloke]

No.1: It would make your question so much easier to read if you used the shift key appropriately.

 

No. 2:

just wondering during a tech run how small a problem do u go before u decide wether to stop or not??

It all depends how long your tech reeharsal is and how much you have to fit in in the time available. If you've got 2 days and it's a half hour play with very few cues, then you could go back over a lot more than if you had 2 hours to tech a 3 act musical with 200 lx cues alone. If an LXQ needs an extra second adding to the fade time it's quite easy to save the note till later, but if you've got the time and you want to be sure then certainly go back and try it again.

 

No. 3:

Also whos in charge on a tech run in ur opinions

The Stage Manager is in charge. It is not for giving acting notes. If the director strats doing this in a way that holds things up then the SM should (tactfully) point out that this is a Tech Rehearsal and acting notes should be saved for later. If you're at school and the Director is a teacher and the SM a student, then the word "tactfully" is particularly important and if it comes to the crunch then obviously the teacher has to win! In professional theatre then the Director will usually realise they are out of line given a gentle nudge.

[V.A.]

Echoing everybody else here - when I run a tech rehearsal, I stop for complex cue sequences only, and I (the SM) am incharge.

 

When I'm doing a tech rehearsal, I start off by getting the crew together, distributing cue lists, and we then talk through the show so everyone is clear on what it says and means

 

After that, the actors arrive, and I usually only have about 3 hours to get it done (for a show which is usually about 90 minutes long). I get them together, along with the crew, and make sure they're all clear on which crew members are doing what, and how the rehearsal is gonna work. After that, we run the show as it would be, stopping at any complex problems. I also usually cut long sequences of dialogue. After we've got to the end, I read the list of minor problems, we make sure everyone knows how they're gonna get it better next time, and then I run every problem cue (both major and minor) one more time.

[JDLX]

Admittedly I'm not a stage manager, but I find it particularly irritating if all of the technical sections are sitting round doing nothing while there is some cast/direction problem. Please for the sake of your tech team don't allow this to happen as it just leads to irritation and people getting unduely stressed. I would let the director give the odd note to the cast, but if he starts ranting on for 2 minutes + then remind him (in the nicest way possible) that this is a rehearsal for the technical sections and not for the performers.

[mac.calder]

Admittedly I'm not a stage manager, but I find it particularly irritating if all of the technical sections are sitting round doing nothing while there is some cast/direction problem. Please for the sake of your tech team don't allow this to happen as it just leads to irritation and people getting unduely stressed.  I would let the director give the odd note to the cast, but if he starts ranting on for 2 minutes + then remind him (in the nicest way possible) that this is a rehearsal for the technical sections and not for the performers.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I don't let the director make ANY cast/direction comments unless it is "Oh since you are doing this here, if you changed that a little to this, you could take some inanimate object off the stage with you". I give them a pad and a pen and basically say before hand "You have had 3 weeks to get your cast ready. I have 5 hours. If there are any directorial things you need to talk to the cast about, write them down, and discuss it with them post show whilst I am doing notes with my crew."

 

If the director does not listen, I will often over rule (remember, as SM, you should either have a god mic, or have a good voice so you can be heard over everyone) the director, of course do it politely, something like "Sorry Directors Name Here, but we really must move on, can I have everyone reset the stage for Act whatever Scene whatever.....". If the director gets sore, you have the recourse of saying "When we get to dress, you can fix all these problems to your heats content. It does not matter if charactor whoever walked forwards then left instead of backwards, left then forwards if we cannot see him, hear him, or even get the scenery into place for that scene."

 

The director should hopefully not even be needed during tech. The lighting and sound should have been worked out in plotting sessions pre-tech, and so should most of the other tech areas. Tech rehearsals are fitting the pieces together. Remeber before the rehearsal to stand up and say "Right everyone, the cast has rehearsed for 3 weeks, this is crew's first go. We run from the top, and we will not stop unless either I say stop, or the situation is unsafe. If you forget a line, it does not matter. If you mess up blocking, it does not matter. This rehearsal is not about actors, it is about crew. When we get to dress, the actors can take the spotlight again. Thankyou.".

 

You may have been a friend to everyone before now, but during tech week, and the show, you should be all business. Let them know that. Whilst you may have allowed a few small things during rehearsal, like being 2 mins late, tell them now you want them all 5 mins early, and be draconian about it. Continue to bring up the fact that they are there to do a job, and hopefully enjoy it, but that also means they should stick to that job. Nothing else.

 

My personal opinion is once you are in the space, you treat each show as a performance including calls. It also means if they are not on stage, they are silent, if they are not on stage they are in the green room, if they are not on stage they should be making sure they are ready for their next entrance etc etc. If you are in the space all the time, once tech starts, same rules.

 

Wow I strayed off my orrigional rant by the end there.

 

Mac

[V.A.]

I don't let my director make any comments during tech either. Most places I work this is not a problem, but admitedly it is when it comes to my own school (who still don't really see the need for a full tech rehearsal).

 

If the director really insists, I do let them sit in on the rehearsal, and they're allowed to make notes, and I tell them not to speak up unless something really drastic happens (and if it does, they're to find me rather than just barging in).

 

The mic is the Stage Manager's god send during a tech. Nobody else should have one, so you should be the loudest; and usually he who is the loudest wins!!!

[gareth]

I don't let my director make any comments during tech either. Most places I work this is not a problem, but admitedly it is when it comes to my own school (who still don't really see the need for a full tech rehearsal).

Err ... time out, there, fella! Sounds like you're going a bit power-mad. "My director"? I think you might find that, more realistically, you're actually "his/her stage manager" ....

[toby]

it completely comes down to for me if your running on schedule or behind, if you got time, do it as you go, if you haven't dont

[Darkfold]

SM is supposed to be power mad. If they werent, nothing would get done (In my experience...) as they get walked on by people who 'just want to...'

 

As I see it, what the SM says during the Tech is what happens, unless it is unsafe or you have some other very good reason not to.

 

 

Edit: Power crazy is necessary in school with a Director who 'knows what he's doing' and spends all his time in techs correcting pronounciation..... *AAAAAAAAAAARGH!*

[Dazzler]

Wow! It sounds like there are some real power crazy tech rehearsals being run out there. Surely, in an ideal world, a good Stage Manager would be able to cope with the Director making a few adjustments to blocking during a tech rehearsal. For example, these changes could be important to the lighting of the show? or they could alter the cue points for the DSM. I've never seen a Stage Manager with a mic - is it really necessary?

 

A competent Stage Manager will have spent all their time in the rehearsal room building a sound working relationship with the artistic team. They will look out for their DSM who will be trying to keep up with what is happening on stage, as well as having several people talking in their ears. They should be strong and firm, but polite at the same time. They should appreciate that everyone involved in the rehearsal is working to the same final product.

 

So to go back to the original question, I think a tech rehearsal should be stopped if there any particular H&S issues that arise, or if there is particularly difficult sequence of cues coming up. What is important is that everybody realises what is going to happen before going head first into a tricky change.

 

I think the Stage Manager is the person who runs the tech rehearsal, although the Production Manager should be able to step in if anything really important arises. It's also the Production Manager who sits down at the end of the session/day, and goes through the technical notes with each department and the artistic team.

[mac.calder]

Wow!  It sounds like there are some real power crazy tech rehearsals being run out there.  Surely, in an ideal world, a good Stage Manager would be able to cope with the Director making a few adjustments to blocking during a tech rehearsal.  For example, these changes could be important to the lighting of the show? or they could alter the cue points for the DSM. I've never seen a Stage Manager with a mic - is it really necessary?

 

A director making blocking changes during a tech means that there is less time. Some techs are limited to 3 to 4 hours, JUST enough time to do the tech alone, and often some tech stuff will have to be perfected after tech with just the crew required.

 

There is the fact that they have been rehearsing for 3 weeks, all blocking should be relatively static. When all the set is up, audience seats are in position etc, it is difficult to change LX dramatically. I like to set a "No Change" date with the director, after which, perfecting established performance is all that happens... Sure the odd change will need to be made, and if they are technical they should be brought up. Director comments and adjustments do not tend to be largely technical though.

 

As for the mic - any time when you need to raise the level of your voice above a comfortable level to get everyone to hear you, is a time you need a mic. Being in a small black box theatre, there is no need, but huge Pro-Arch theatres you will almost always need one to contact everyone at once to call stops etc. I like to run techs from the bio box (if I can easily get out onto the stage) and recruit a couple of people to remain on cans to relay any problems from back stage, hopefully I will have wireless cans, which means if there is a problem, I can get down to the stage, and still keep in contact with the box which is always good. The god mike (most larger theatres have them for FOH calls and any emergancy announcements that need to be made) and crew mike (for backstage calls) are invaluable tools. If you have to halt something in an emergancy, you need the order to be loud and clear - a mic assists there and means that there is no chance that this "STOP!" or "BACK UP!" will need to be continually repeated because the crew did not hear it.

 

A competent Stage Manager will have spent all their time in the rehearsal room building a sound working relationship with the artistic team.  They will look out for their DSM who will be trying to keep up with what is happening on stage, as well as having several people talking in their ears.  They should be strong and firm, but polite at the same time.  They should appreciate that everyone involved in the rehearsal is working to the same final product. 

 

So to go back to the original question, I think a tech rehearsal should be stopped if there any particular H&S issues that arise, or if there is particularly difficult sequence of cues coming up.  What is important is that everybody realises what is going to happen before going head first into a tricky change.

 

I think the Stage Manager is the person who runs the tech rehearsal, although the Production Manager should be able to step in if anything really important arises.  It's also the Production Manager who sits down at the end of the session/day, and goes through the technical notes with each department and the artistic team.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Hmmm... As SM I usually find I end up doing that. PM's where I have worked tend to be a step back, dealing more with getting the show funded etc, and distributing money, dealling with venue management etc... A lot of roles are defined on a show by show, or company by company mannor

[WJProctor]

I wish I could get across to our director how important a tech rehersal is. She just likes to run the show start to finish on tech night without any stops. I would much prefer to run through each cue 2 or 3 times but it just wont happen. Luckly my crew are well trained and used to it by now. Anyone else had this kind of problem?

[the kid]

I think that having no propper tech is a asset of amdram. Its really hard to explain that you need to sort "this" out.