Ballet

[Trixie]

Hello to the technical abyss of the blue room,

 

On the topic of Stage Managing a Ballet Production I was wondering what the differences were between Stage Managing for Ballet and Stage Managing for Theatre.

To prepare myself for this role, can you tell me what the effects on the stage management team will be from pre to post production.

 

Cheers.

[andy_s]

Hello to the technical abyss of the blue room,

 

On the topic of Stage Managing a Ballet Production I was wondering what the differences were between Stage Managing for Ballet and Stage Managing for Theatre.

To prepare myself for this role, can you tell me what the effects on the stage management team will be from pre to post production.

 

Cheers.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

I think there's been a longish thread on stage management for dance on the blue room - try a search for "dance" rather than Ballet, perhaps.

 

 

the difference betwen "dance" and "ballet" I suspect is largely to do with what age group you belong to, and (dare I say it) how much Arts Council support you get. (this last comment may mean very little in Australia!)

[paulears]

The ability to follow a score is useful - and on some productions mandatory - many cues may be linked to music cues. You don't need to be able to dance, but you must at least understand it. Visual cues are quite difficult when there are many dancers on stage - keeping track of the critical one and reading the score/book at the same time make loss of eye contact easy. If you can follow the score (you don't have to be really good at actually reading the music) then it isn't that different from other productions with large casts. The thing I always find annoying is the dancers tendency to warm up and stretch on any item of scenery or stage equipment that lies around - even vertical ladders! Oh yes, and you'll keep tripping over their rosin trays.

[Just Some Bloke]

This thread might help.

[Jivemaster]

Read music, get a score that suits just enough but not too much detail. Thats your Book.

[mac.calder]

Read music, get a score that suits just enough but not too much detail. Thats your Book.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Usually either the piano score, vocal score, condensed score or one of the melody line instruments, although I have called from a percusion score.

 

I have never EVER had to SM from a full score.

 

If worst comes to worst, AND if it has back tracking, take the click track output and put it on an input on a separate channel of your cans if you have multiple channels. HOWEVER... often you will find that the only cues you will have will be during dramatic changes in music (ie mood changes), which means that calling the show is a lot easier.

[Trixie]

The ability to follow a score is useful - and on some productions mandatory - many cues may be linked to music cues. You don't need to be able to dance, but you must at least understand it. Visual cues are quite difficult when there are many dancers on stage - keeping track of the critical one and reading the score/book at the same time make loss of eye contact easy. If you can follow the score (you don't have to be really good at actually reading the music) then it isn't that different from other productions with large casts. The thing I always find annoying is the dancers tendency to warm up and stretch on any item of scenery or stage equipment that lies around - even vertical ladders! Oh yes, and you'll keep tripping over their rosin trays.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Following a score and the critical dancer - Thanks, I hadn't thought of that complexity.

Laughs for the rosin trays - I've done that myself and I'm a dancer.

I have searched through all the dance forums in the blue room with heaps of results, I was just after things more specific for Ballet. For example how are rehearsals in preproduction for Ballet different to those of Musical Theatre for a Stage Manager.

[Jivemaster]

Depends on the Ballet and the company! Rarely is a Ballet one continuous piece its lots of pieces put together.