Photos from my theatre production

[Night Train]

Here is the link to our production of Robin, Prince of Sherwood last week.
I am visible in some of the photos and there are glimpses of my handiwork there too.
I made all the set, build the stage build outs, Nottingham Castle (not shown), Morganna's Bar (hiding behind the camo nets), all the weaponry, Robin's Crusader shield, log stools, Little John's staff, Alan Adale's lute, chests for the taxes, an electric log camp fire and all the little wooden odds and ends.
I also painted everything except the woodland backdrop which was done by my girlfriend at short notice.

We have received five nominations for the Manchester Music Awards for the show so it was well worth the effort.

 

[wizer]

Nice work there. Looks like a good productions.

Can you get me Maid Marion's number???? :lol:

 

[kityuser]

Nice work there. Looks like a good productions.

Can you get me Maid Marion's number???? :lol:

my vote goes to the sisters...............although I`m not sure I could manage all of them

Steve :wink:

 

[Night Train]

Nice work there. Looks like a good productions.

Can you get me Maid Marion's number???? :lol:

my vote goes to the sisters...............although I`m not sure I could manage all of them

Steve :wink:

Careful there, one of them is only 15.:shock:

Marion's getting married later this year so bad luck!

 

[wizer]

Nice work there. Looks like a good productions.

Can you get me Maid Marion's number???? :lol:

my vote goes to the sisters...............although I`m not sure I could manage all of them

Steve :wink:

Careful there, one of them is only 15.:shock:

Marion's getting married later this year so bad luck!

Are there 2 sets of twins in the sisters? Or is that just good hair and make-up?

 

[Night Train]

There aren't any twins anywhere.
Now stop looking at the sisters and look for my handiwork on the stage. :wink:

 

[cutting42]

Good looking stuff. Really like the set and gives a great atmosphere. I love working on stage shows and run a Sound and Lighting hire company mainly for music these days but spent 20 years or so running stage shows in the Amdram world. A couple of comments on the technical side if I might be so bold!

Can I recommend getting different mic sets for the cast, they look like they work at a call centre. It is not necessary to use boom mics for a stage show, a simple small capsule mic in the hairline is all that is required and is invisible. You will also benefit from a lack of "popping" from the mic being so close to the mouth, Robins mic was a bit better but still not ideal.

A bit hard to tell from the photo's but the lighting looks very flat; as if it is all coming from the front. Stage lighting is best crossed so the lighting comes from angles of 45 deg or so. Also the use of side lights and backlights really lifts the 3D ness of the characters and helps the visual image. However these are just tips to help improve an already good looking show, making these changes lift a show from an amdram look to a more professional look. Also the costs don't have to be very different, just a bit more work for the LD in planning and setting lights.

Hope you don't mind my comments.

 

[Night Train]

Yeah comments are good, thanks.

We don't usually use mics but had to for this production and so got what we could afford and what we could source in the time we had. They looked terrible but it was the best we could do at the time. The sound gave us a lot of problems as some of the mics were working intermittently and some suffered interference from the orchestra pit amps so it took a lot of messing about until we got it to sound right.
On one night I had to sing a solo over the voices of the market crowd without a working mic. Only just got away with it because I have been taught to project well.

The lighting was flat because we still had all the hall lights and flood lights on at the time as it was an early dress rehearsal. For the show we used a lot of up lighters to set shadows on the stage and we used the lighting banks that were hung on the stage out of sight. We hadn't done a technical rehersal at that point so were still sorting out sound and props locations and lighting to get the effects that we wanted. We are trying to fund raise to renew the lighting rigs as they are getting very old.

Overall though, it wasn't too bad at all. I'd like to improve the technical setup over time but it is all money and time dependent. I have only been withthe group for less then a year with this being my second show and the first with a proper part. I have managed to raise the stakes with the props and set construction this time now that I have the confidence to challenge if I don't think it is good enough.

 

[cutting42]

Radio mics are an art, especially when you have a few. Cost is always an issue and as with most things you get what you pay for. I would rather have nothing than a bad RM. You can do a lot by stage miking effectively with 5 mics accross the front and hang some mics above the stage. I use AKG 451 with a hypercardioid capsules and VR2 extensions which are a lovely thin black unobrusive holder,

http://www.hawthorns.uk.com/hire/index.asp?item=1093

Then you will need to teach the cast to project a bit and possibly stand closer to a mic for solo's.

If you want to use RM's hire a decent UHF (less interference than VHF) true diversity unit (don't forget you need a licence - usually included in the hire fee but you need a SAP3 form). You can use ch69 which will give up to 14 RM channels and someone good on the mixing desk. This can sound excellent but the usual issue is balancing the audio so that people with RM blend with people without RM. If you go to the West end everyone has a mic if they have to speak so you don't hear a difference. I used to only use the mics for the songs and fade them out for the spoken bits to avoid this happening.

Re the lighting, eBay is fantastic for used lighting gear, very cheap stuff is out there. We are kitting out my kids school at the moment and average cost is about 20 quid a lantern.

 

[Night Train]

Wooosh....right over my head! :lol:

I did type a long reply but it vanished.

I don't know about the technical aspects of radio mics but I will pass on your comments.

It has been difficult to use just stage mics due to the singers moving about a lot while singing. We also tried clip on mics on the costumes but we had difficulties with even pick up as heads were moved about during singing.

Teaching the cast? I wouldn't like to presume. We are only good amateurs.

As an electrician I did offer to sort out the lighting but was told that due to their insurance they would need to bring in a professional lighting installer. Well that's one less voluntary job I have to do. :wink:

 

[big soft moose]

There aren't any twins anywhere.
Now stop looking at the sisters and look for my handiwork on the stage. :wink:

no twins but two of them were related according to the cast list - i like the one at back left next to the sherrif

 

[cutting42]

It has been difficult to use just stage mics due to the singers moving about a lot while singing.

We also tried clip on mics on the costumes but we had difficulties with even pick up as heads were moved about during singing.

Teaching the cast? I wouldn't like to presume. We are only good amateurs.

Yeah, with a live stage you need a very even coverage which needs quite a few mics and a good knowledge of how their coverage works, for example the hyper cardioid is a gently directional mic so you need a few but they are controllable and don't pickup stuff you don't want so great for the front of the stage where you don't want foot fall sounds as well as voice.

For hanging over the stage a cardioid pattern gives a very even wide pickup

Clip ons suffer the problem you describe hence my comment about the hairline, mic is clipped onto the forehead or temple in the hairline.

Cast education is a tricky topic, usually left to the director. Tell the director and let them bully the cast

 

[Night Train]

We also had a lot of feed back problems with mics that needs to be sorted out sometime as we couldn't have any sound monitors on stage.
It made it difficult as all we could hear was each other on stage and not the orchestra or the principles who had mics. It meant that it was easy to go out of time or out of tune as a mass.

 

[cutting42]

We also had a lot of feed back problems with mics that needs to be sorted out sometime as we couldn't have any sound monitors on stage.
It made it difficult as all we could hear was each other on stage and not the orchestra or the principles who had mics. It meant that it was easy to go out of time or out of tune as a mass.

Ah yes, operating the sound equipment is a skill as well. Bit like having a lovely saw and chisels and not being able to cut neat dovetails (that'll be me then). Many societies assume that with some mics and speakers the sound is sorted. Sound is different than lighting in that once the lighting has been rigged, gelled and set it is just a series of cues for each lighting change and this is often pressing a button, 90% effort up front and 10% operating. Operating sound is 10% setting up and 90% live operation. Balancing hearing the cast and controlling feedback, blending the mics, orchestra and foldback (monitors on stage) together into a seamless mix is the skill known as mixing or "on the desk". It is a very difficult job to do well and everyone is a critic - too loud, not loud enough, distorting, feedback etc. Perfection is no one commenting at all, not much job satisfaction I am afraid.

Best advice would be to find an theatre studies student or similar to come down and join the society as they will need the experience for their course, otherwise you need to hire someone who can operate a show and teach willing volunteers in the Society as they do it. It is not in itself difficult but requires a bit or technical knowledge and a good ear. Many professionals on the desk are musicians not engineers, good ones are called "white gloves" and are are as well regarded as great performers/musicians.

I am more than happy to help with remote advice and am occasionally to be found bored stupid in a Manchester hotel for work during the week so am happy to help out with some face to face tech advice etc.

 

[Night Train]

Thanks for the offer, I will bear it in mind.

I have worked in a recording studio and done sound engineering for live stage shows in the past but that was nearly a quarter century ago.
I am trying to recruit a friend of mine who has a recording studio as he would know more about sound engineering.

 

[cutting42]

You are welcome, but if you had the skills 25 years ago you will still have them now, like riding a bike!

Apologies if I sounded like I was teaching you to suck eggs

 

[TrimTheKing]

Ooooh, I do like those vampy sisters!!! :shock:

The one at the back left is very cute! :wink:

 

[Night Train]

Apologies if I sounded like I was teaching you to suck eggs

Not at all. Things were different then, nothing was wireless and the music was just loud or louder.

And I didn't say I was good at it then either. :wink: