Robin Hood Pantomime - Archery props

[David71]

Hello - I am new to this forum, and really glad that I found it!

I'm hoping for some help and advice here. I'm making props and some set pieces for a RH Panto this year. I have searched the topics here and found a few threads relating to Robin Hood props - the archery board and options to make the arrows - concealed within the target, appear on cue. All very interesting and useful.

I'm also wondering if anyone here has any ideas/experience of the bows and arrows themselves and how best to go about them. I'll try to explain..... The director would like several cast members inc Robin and Marian to (appear to) to pull an arrow from a quiver, place the arrow in the bow and then pull back and release. Then at precisely the same moment of release - arrows within the set and also the target will spring up - therefore creating the illusion that the arrow has been fired from the bow. The more I think about it, the more I think that perhaps the most practical and effective way of doing this is that the arrows themselves - (that are taken from the quiver and put into the bow) - simply don't exist and are 'mimed' - and it's down to the artist, the movement of loading the bow/releasing and most importantly the reveal of the arrow as it 'springs' up from the target that will really sell it. This illusion could be further advanced by perhaps the actor pulling just the fletching of the arrow from the quiver (which is preset atop the quiver) and then holding it in their hand as they pull back the bow - then concealing it with slight of hand as they release - all eyes would hopefully be on the target by that point anyway? I hope that makes sense. Maybe I'm overcomplicating it? Very interested to hear if any readers here have any thoughts or other suggestions or even resources that they can share. I do have some other questions too - but thought this a good starting point. Many thanks in advance! David.

[tonytech]

I helped with avery amateur production some years ago, Like your idea the arrow was mimed at the bow, the target arrow was concealed behind the target and pushed forward (by elastic) through the target when required.

 

[David71]

Thanks for your reply Tony. Good to know that worked as I may well go with the elastic/bungee option for the arrows in the target and set. There's also the option of spring door releases that I need to also look into.

[sunray]

We found it easier to have the arrow flat against/buried within the target and spring out to right angle, as long as it's quick enough it should look fine.

 

On the final show the final arrow broke and fell to the floor and one of the audience called out "you missed" RH walked DS, held out the bow and replied with something like "four shows with six shots only one miss, let's see you do twenty-four" Someone else called out "Oh no he can't."...

Edited September 27, 2023 by sunray

[David71]

Ha ha! - that's great! Thanks for sharing! - so, that's interesting that you used arrows that were embedded in the target at 90 degrees - that flicked up on cue. Can you provide any more details how you did that? I think that's what I may do, and use a 90 degree torsion spring - I'm currently looking at options. I need to think about how to 'release' the spring from behind the target -  and the best way to go about that....some kind of release pin/band??? any ideas/suggestions very welcome.

 

 

[Jivemaster]

A plaited straw archery target would be 4 ish inches thick so that distance could hide a small mechanism such as a rubber band or a spring to move the arrow in to sight. Like most stage "magic" this all relies on credible mis-direction to encourage the audience to look at the scene not the trick. The target may need to be distressed so that it appears "well used" to conceal the works.

Co-ordinated visual and audible sfx will combine to add "reality".

[xllx]

I worked on a Robin Hood panto back in the early 80s, so memory is a little hazy...

The archery board was an 8x4 sheet, with vertical slots which contained the arrows. The head of the arrow was attached to a spring type mouse trap. The trap was locked with a pin, and when the pin was pulled, the trap sprung and the arrow pivoted to stick out from the board. This was operated by a stagehand behind the board.

I can't remember the exact way the arrow was connected to the mouse trap, but shouldn't be too difficult to work something out!

[sunray]

1 hour ago, David71 said:

Ha ha! - that's great! Thanks for sharing! - so, that's interesting that you used arrows that were embedded in the target at 90 degrees - that flicked up on cue. Can you provide any more details how you did that? I think that's what I may do, and use a 90 degree torsion spring - I'm currently looking at options. I need to think about how to 'release' the spring from behind the target -  and the best way to go about that....some kind of release pin/band??? any ideas/suggestions very welcome.

 

 

I've made phone calls to see if these still exist but it's believed they went somewhere else. This was close to 10 years ago so I don't recall exact detail, only the main bulk.

It was very crude but with several mechanism parts to reduce the friction on the release, the guy who made the final unit was a pipe fitter so it was well over the top, having said that there was only one failure and not a single misfire in final design:

The whole unit was built within a box; pair of vertical panels, top and bottom and rear safety door and made of 10mm thick nylon and unisrut with various lengths of studding to form pivots.

Arrow mounted on pivotting arm, description later

Shelf with rounded end to protect bungie and thick rubber layer to cushion thud of arrow

Bungie rope fixed to arrow and fixed point at bottom, I've shown as loose/curved but of course in this position it's under maximum tension. Also in rear view I've shown as offset to not obstruct view

Metal flap, actually half of a hinge, includes spring (not shown) to tension it against green flap

second metal flap actually part of a hinge

Rope to pull  green flap'

Surface of target, slot constructed using brown brush strip to match target and tree.

 

Being built by a pipe fitter the pivoting arm was constructed using a  with a short piece of pipe each side to form the pivot with studding through it and a longer piece with the bungie attached, the 4th had a reducing bush  and length of tent glassfibre pole to form the arrow.

 

There were also a couple of separate levers to attach to the arm for cocking against the tension.

 

 

Operation: pull rope to drop flap, second flap moves right allowing arrow mechnism to be pulled by bungee rope to horizontal and be firmly held against shelf.

 

Yes I know it was well over the top but the initial development and test versions went through several failures and jamming. These 4 (three in the target and one in a tree) survived loads of practice, rehearsals and six shows. The only failure being the  glassfibre arrow snapped on the very last shot but of course the adlib was fine.

 

[kerry davies]

Of course much simpler is the grouchy, flat-hatted stage hand in a warehouse coat who stomps on, glowers at Robin, grips the arrow and stomps across the stage/auditorium and jams it into the target. Walking off shaking his head and shrugging is an optional extra. 

[DrV]

15 hours ago, kerry davies said:

Of course much simpler is the grouchy, flat-hatted stage hand in a warehouse coat who stomps on, glowers at Robin, grips the arrow and stomps across the stage/auditorium and jams it into the target. Walking off shaking his head and shrugging is an optional extra. 

Gonna file that idea for future reference!

[kitlane]

It's a long time ago (20+ years) and I can't remember where we got it from, but we borrowed the prop from another theatre. IIRC the arrow was not concealed at 90 degrees but simply stuck out of the rear of the target (therefore requiring careful positioning to hide it from the audience). The arrow was propelled with bungee-type cord straight out of the centre front of the target. The coup de theatre was that the first arrow (the Sherriff's) was hollow and contained (part of) Robin's arrow. With a secondary release mechanism Robin's arrow 'split' the Sherriff's arrow down the middle.

[sunray]

57 minutes ago, kitlane said:

It's a long time ago (20+ years) and I can't remember where we got it from, but we borrowed the prop from another theatre. IIRC the arrow was not concealed at 90 degrees but simply stuck out of the rear of the target (therefore requiring careful positioning to hide it from the audience). The arrow was propelled with bungee-type cord straight out of the centre front of the target. The coup de theatre was that the first arrow (the Sherriff's) was hollow and contained (part of) Robin's arrow. With a secondary release mechanism Robin's arrow 'split' the Sherriff's arrow down the middle.

Nice.

[Glyn Edwards]

Imagine Theatre have a couple of (possibly) suitable targets with spring loaded arrows available for hire if they'd work for you. Drop them a line at hires@imaginetheatre.co.uk if you're interested.

 

Glyn

[sunray]

1 hour ago, DrV said:

Gonna file that idea for future reference!

I saw something vaguely similar in an AmDram farce, the show was a cross between Fawlty towers and Monty Python and about union closed shops, for example when a light required switching on the union rep (Michael Palin type character) came on stage with a rule book, stopped the show and called in the electrician who got his book out to look up how to operate a switch and something similar at the food buffet where the union rep called for a waitress whereupon another came on and quoted against sexual discrimination and called for the panto dame etc

[David71]

Hello everyone - just a quick one from me to say thanks so much for all the ideas here!! - I'm sorry that I haven't replied properly yet - having a very busy time gathering materials etc for the many other props needed for the show. But I will chip in later properly! - really appreciate all the comments!! Thank you!!!