Alys Brown

Final Blog Post

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Creating a Company

As a company it was relatively easy for us to discover the type of work we wanted to create. It was essential we created work that was comical, but also for entertainment and because of this our group formed a solid mission statement; “we don’t want to change the world, we want to make people laugh at it”(Mission statement, https://fullfrontaltc.blogs.lincoln.ac.uk/our-mission/) . 

Early discussions found that we wanted to be ‘Full Frontal’ with the comedy we created.  We were inspired by sitcoms such as Fawlty Towers and Blackadder, which continue to inspire the group and guide us in future work. Our first show ‘The Magpie and the Yorkshireman’ was decided upon very early on.  Often viewed as a controversial figure Margaret Thatcher was the perfect subject for us to write a comedy about, questioning how and what people find funny. We knew we had found a topic that created conversation.

After assigning roles we quickly set about writing the first few scenes.

Roles

I took on the role of Stage manager within our company as I felt I had the necessary skills to organise and coordinate the company in the run up to our show. As it states in the book “Make your show a success” a stage manager is someone who “is the trusted lieutenant of the company. A good stage manager has the following skills: good organisational skills, a problem solver, diligent record keeper, willing to take the initiative” (Gibbs, 2010, 55). I had not had experience calling a show before but wanted to learn as well as put in to practise my organisational skills.

As stage manager I oversaw the decision making process regarding the design of our set. “The stage manager will liaise and coordinate with the various departments of the creative team” (Gibbs, 2010, 56). Our first design plan saw the creation of three ‘rooms’ on stage splitting the stage in to three equal thirds to identify the hotel lobby (centre), a hotel bedroom (stage left) and a pub garden (stage right). During the process this changed and stage right was turned in to a bar.
Before any design or writing of the script could be continued I arranged to meet with Darren Page the School Stage Manager and Martin Rousseau to discuss the technical elements we would require. Joined by the director and the producer we ran our ideas as a company past them to check what we wanted to create would be acceptable to the LPAC. They assured us that what we wanted would be ambitious but doable as they could support us in our creation of the set. At this stage, the ASM joined me in sourcing props from the venue’s prop store as well as sourcing items we knew we already needed from members of the company. I made a list of items that could be sourced for free and any potential items, such as a coffee table, a desk and a bar that would need to be bought.

Rehearsals

It was my job to schedule rehearsals weekly for the cast. Early on it was clear that the availability of the cast would be very varied and so I decided to schedule their unavailability’s in order to find time when everyone was free using an Excel spreadsheet. As well as this, because we had decided to write our own script, the company needed time to write scenes and so rehearsals were often used as company meetings to catch up on the progress of each member. On the rare occasion I or another member of the company including the director may not be available for rehearsal, it was agreed we would have an assistant director/editor who would coordinate a number of the writers meetings and work on the first few scenes. Rehearsals increased in April and May, as I continued to coordinate booking rooms and communicating this effectively to the cast on a private social media page. After the first few weeks, myself and the director decided we needed space booking in advance and that we would call certain rehearsals based on who was available on those days for specific character work.

Budget

Budgeting was a large part of my role during this process. As well as the producer keeping control of the company finances, I monitored our expenditure on set and props and other areas in order to ensure we could afford the large set the show required. Communicating frequently with the producer was an important part of my role to make sure the funds we had in the company account was correct with the records I had of income/expenditure. “From initial costings given by the technical departments you [SM] should be able to break down the budget in to sections…ensure none of the groups exceeds its allocation” (Hawkins and Menear, 2011, 38). Monitoring things such as cost of building materials, props to dress the set, and maintaining a contingency ensured we kept within the £580 budget we had for the show. As Arts Council England state “Your budget has to balance. The budget should be for the total cost of the project” (ACE, 2016). They state “we expect at least 10% of the total cost of the activity to come from other sources” (ibid). I made sure the budget was balanced and funds were received from both our Kickstarter and through in-kind support from the School meaning we, hypothetically, met ACE requirements for grant funding. “Financial income from other sources helps to demonstrate partnership support for the activity, and shows that the activity is making the most of our investment” (ibid).

Materials

The design for the walls of the hotel changed shortly after a production meeting had at the start of a rehearsal mid-way through the process with the director, the producer and our designer. They decided that for continuity they wanted the walls of the hotel lobby to match our company logo and marketing materials, using the same blue watercolour.

I then arranged a time to meet with Martin Rousseau at the LPAC about the dimensions of our set and the materials we would require and to inform him of this design change. He informed me that he had the flats we needed but that he would need to order extra materials for the bar and desk that needed to be built. He later sent me a quote for these materials of £177.81 which we were able to afford and happy to pay.

Speaking with Martin, I arranged for a few of the company to join me in painting the flats we required.

Production Meeting 

Building the set for the first time on stage outlined the ‘to do’ list still to be completed.

As well as this we had our final production meeting with Darren which all of the members of the company that had technical roles attended. I handed Darren our Technical Rider (Rider,https://fullfrontaltc.blogs.lincoln.ac.uk/documents/) and told him a day schedule for the 19th would be sent to him before our tech rehearsal on the 14th May.

The rider was checked and Darren informed us that although a smoke machine would be allowed, flour would not be acceptable to use in the show to symbolise plaster after an explosion as the substance is flammable and that talc would be preferred. The rest of our shows requirements were agreed and we discussed buying a rug for the stage instead of the originally planned carpet which was too expensive.

Technical

In the book Stage management and Theatre Administration it explains that the production manager is responsible for checking with the venue’s personnel and arrange for the appropriate number of stage staff to be available and to check the venue has suitable facilities such as the number of dressing rooms and suitable theatre stock such as treads, curtains and masking required for the show (Hawkins and Menear, 2011, 51).

Having liaised with the technical team at the LPAC through Darren Page and Martin Rousseau throughout the process, both I and the venue were aware of the requirements of our show. As well as this I had enquired about the system used for operating the lights and sound for the show and learnt this was a midi system, controlled through QLab. It was at this stage that I began the tech script, annotating the script with cues, and creating a production schedule for the day.

As well as this I followed the example given in Hawkins and Menear’s text when it came to the building of the set as they state “a detailed drawing should be made showing how everything should be positioned and if possible a photograph taken of each set” (ibid, 59).

LX What?

The one element of the process I have struggled the most with has been understanding the programming of lighting and sound cues. I was able to co-ordinate effectively with Hayley, responsible for lighting and sound design, and our director for what the show required. However, I had no experience in programming or the software QLab.  Reading the Essential guide to Stage Management, Lighting and Sound, I slowly became aware of the need for ‘standby’ and ‘Go’ cues. “The word ‘go’ should always be spoken last as it determines precisely the instant that a cue is realised” (Palmer, 2000, 79). Also I learnt that “where there are lots of cues to be given at the same time, they may be grouped together for clarity” (ibid). This book explained clearly to me the procedure I needed to follow if I was to call the show, and annotate my tech script with the correct LX and Sound cues.

However, at the technical rehearsal when it came to programming I learnt that QLab was able to group these cues easily and as I would be operating on the day, and not calling the show, I would not need to identify every standby/go cue. All I would need would be the cue number and its position in the script written down, as each cue was able to do multiple things. For example, often at the start of a scene a blackout and music would play to show the end of the scene, followed by lights up on a different area of the stage, the music would fade and another piece of music would play to underscore the start of the next scene, before fading out. This was therefore grouped in three cues: one to start the blackout and the music, one to fade up the lights and fade out the music and another to play the music that underscored the scene. Immediately it became simpler for me to programme as I was able to group cues together so it would all happen simultaneously.

This programme was very effective for our company as it would therefore allow me to ‘opp’ the show alone if the show was to go on tour, saving money on paying another operator.

Get In

The company arrived at the venue shortly after 8:30am in order to begin the get-in at 9am, sharp. Organising a large group with busy schedules during this process taught me methods of organising everyone whilst ensuring punctuality, by arranging to meet before the rehearsal start time so that no time is wasted setting up. During the get in, Hawkins and Menear state that “the SM is responsible for the setting up of the stage before every performance” (Hawkins and Menear, 2011, 72). When helping the stage crew bring the production scenery in to the venue and build the 11 flat structure on stage, I made sure all the relevant safety checks were made regarding the fit-up and the masking. The School stage manager also helped me with this by checking for trip hazards.
After this, the ASM constructed two props tables either side of the stage using the props check list I had created to manage the large list of props used in the show.

The Show: On Reflection

The show was a success! The audience’s response was more positive than any of us could have hoped, and thankfully I was able to take control of the operating and no technical mistake was made. Despite everything, it was essential we had the set and technical elements that we had in order to fully embrace the farcical style our comedy was framed by. I am particularly proud of myself for the skills I have learnt in order to use the Qlab software as well as developing my communication skills working with the venue, the company and the technical team throughout the process. One area I would like to see improved in the future was the speed of the lighting changes at some points in the show. Unfortunately nothing could be done to resolve this issue as the lights were LEDs that were required to move a number of times and so changes were sometimes slow or cross-fades dragged slightly.  However, overall the show was a complete success. As well as this I felt the get-out was smooth and efficient due to my co-ordination of the company and the venue stuff in taking down the set and my clear organisation that ensured each prop was returned and checked off the props list.

 

Works Cited

ACE (2016) Budgets for Grants for the Arts activities. Available from: http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/information-sheets [accessed on 24th May 2016]

Gibbs, N (2010) Make Your Show a Success. London: Teach Yourself

Hawkins, T and Menear, P (2011) Stage Management and Theatre Administration. London: Phaiden Press Limited

Palmer, S (2000) Essential guide to Stage Management, Lighting and Sound.London: Hodder Education

 

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LX What? 15/05/16

The one element of the process I have struggled with the most has been understanding the programming of lighting and sound cues. I was able to co-ordinate effectively with Hayley, responsible for lighting and sound design, and our director for what the show required. However, I had no experience in programming or the software QLab.  Reading the Essential guide to Stage Management, Lighting and Sound, I slowly became aware of the need for ‘standby’ and ‘Go’ cues. “The word ‘go’ should always be spoken last as it determines precisely the instant that a cue is realised” (Palmer, 2000, 79). Also I learnt that “where there are lots of cues to be given at the same time, they may be grouped together for clarity” (ibid). This book explained clearly to me the procedure I needed to follow if I was to call the show, and annotate my tech script with the correct LX and Sound cues.

However, at the technical rehearsal when it came to programming I learnt that the software our show would be run from (QLab) was able to group these cues easily and as I would be operating on the day, and not calling the show, I would not need to identify every standby/go cue. All I would need would be the cue number and its position in the script written down, as each cue was able to do multiple things. For example, often at the start of a scene a blackout and music would play to show the end of the scene, followed by lights up on a different area of the stage, the music would fade and another piece of music would play to underscore the start of the next scene, before fading out. This was therefore grouped in three cues: one to start the blackout and the music, one to fade up the lights and fade out the music and another to play the music that underscored the scene. However, if separated each fade up or fade out of lights would be a separate cue as would every fade up or fade out of any sound: totalling 6 different actions. Immediately it became simpler for me to programme as I was able to group cues together so it would all happen simultaneously.

I feel this programme was very effective for our show as it would therefore allow me to operate alone if the show was to go on tour, saving money on paying another operator.

Technical 14/05/16

In the book Stage management and Theatre Administration it explains that the production manager is responsible for checking with the venue’s personnel and arrange for the appropriate number of stage staff to be available and to check the venue has suitable facilities such as the number of dressing rooms and suitable theatre stock such as treads, curtains and masking required for the show (Hawkins and Menear, 2011, 51).

Liaising with the technical team at the LPAC through Darren Page and Martin Rousseau throughout the process ensured that both myself and the venue were aware of the requirements of our show. It was at this stage that I created a production schedule for the show day to prepare the venue and the company of how the day would run.

As well as this I followed the example given in Hawkins and Menear’s text when it came to the building of the set as they state “a detailed drawing should be made showing how everything should be positioned and if possible a photograph taken of each set” (ibid, 59).

Sam our set designer drew up a sketch of the design as well in order to document the design on paper.

Set and Props 11/05/16

Coordinating a large company to decorate and build such a large set had its difficulties. It was tricky to stay on top of the large list of props we required and the number of jobs that needed completing in time for show day. However, I created a check-list for props pre-set and off stage used by the actors in order to make sure they arrived at the venue on the day, were in the correct place for the show, and were returned at the end of the day. Lee, our ASM took responsibility for props ensuring each character knew which side of the stage their props were before the show.

As well as this I regularly visited the technical team at the LPAC to keep them informed on our progress and to check our set was nearing completion.

Production Meeting – 10/05/16

Building the set for the first time on stage outlined the ‘to do’ list still to be completed. The door needed another coat and the walls needed to have the blue watercolour added to them. The bar was painted but would need another coat and the Desk was yet to be built.

As well as this we had our final production meeting with Darren which all of the members of the company that had technical roles attended. I handed Darren our Technical Rider (available on this blog under Documents) and told him a day schedule for the 19th would be sent to him before our tech rehearsal on the 14th May.

The rider was checked and Darren informed us that flour would not be acceptable to use in the show to symbolise plaster after an explosion as the substance is flammable and that talc would be preferred. This was agreed and we asked him if it would be possible to use a smoke machine as well. It was confirmed that we could and so I sent an updated version of the rider to Darren later that day. The rest of our shows requirements were agreed and we continued painting the set.

Materials 2 04/05/16

Having spoken to Martin in regards to the flats we would require for our show, I arranged for a few of the company to join me in painting the ones we required. I had checked we would have space to use and set to work painting the flats ivory. The door also needed painting having been painted brown for a previous show. This meant we needed to buy white gloss paint which we had not previously budgeted for but that we could afford. Once the flats were dry we stored them safely as directed to by Mike the technical manager at the sides of the stage.

Materials 21/04/16

The design for the set changed this week due to a production meeting had at the start of a rehearsal with Jess the director, Sean the producer and Sam on set design. We decided that for continuity we would make the walls of the hotel lobby match our company logo and marketing materials, using the same blue watercolour. As well as this the colour of the hotel room door was discussed as to whether it should be painted white or black to signify the political connections within our play; the black door reflecting ten downing street. This was a discussion that was left unresolved until nearer the performance date as it was felt the colour could be decided based on the budget we had left after other expenses had been paid for.

As well as this, I met with Martin Rousseau at the LPAC about the dimensions of our set and the materials we would require. He informed me that he had the flats we needed but that he would need to order extra materials for the bar and desk that needed to be built. He later sent me a quote for these materials of £177.81 which we were able to afford and happy to pay.

As well as this, he informed me that the flats would need to be painted with a specific paint from B&Q to create the effect we wanted. He suggested buying Colours Ivory Silk emulsion paint for walls 2.5litres. When buying the paint it was cheaper to buy 2 pots of 2.5 litres for £18 and in the end we used both pots to cover the flats we had.

Rehearsals 2 19/04/16
Within rehearsals my role is to feedback to the director any technical issues that could occur in regards to the actors blocking and to coordinate the next rehearsal, the time and date. For example, in a recent rehearsal the actors began staging some of the scenes they had written and I had to remind a few of the actors that they would have to exit the lobby through entrance B instead of Entrance A as A would be the entrance to the bedroom, where the next scene was about to take place. This taught me to make sure I marked out the three separate rooms on stage clearly using chairs and tape to show the actors where there entrances were at the start of every rehearsal. As well as this I planned to make notes of all the set and props used in every scene as they began the blocking. Doing this will help me monitor the props required and to coordinate with the ASM to make sure they are sourced in time.

Budget 16/04/16

Budgeting was a large part of my role during this process. As well as the producer keeping control of the company finances, I monitored our expenditure on set and props and other areas in order to ensure we could afford the large set the show required. Communicating frequently with the producer was an important part of my role to make sure the funds we had in the company account was correct with the records I had of income/expenditure. “From initial costings given by the technical departments you [SM] should be able to break down the budget in to sections…ensure none of the groups exceeds its allocation” (Hawkins and Menear, 2011, 38). Monitoring things such as cost of building materials, props to dress the set, and maintaining a contingency ensured we kept within the £580 budget we had for the show. As Arts Council England state “Your budget has to balance. The budget should be for the total cost of the project” (ACE, 2016). They state “We expect at least 10 per cent of the total cost of the activity to come from other sources” (ibid). By monitoring the budget and making sure it was balanced and funded from our Kickstarter and through in-kind support from the School we would, hypothetically, meet ACE requirements for future grant funding. “Financial income from other sources helps to demonstrate partnership support for the activity, and shows that the activity is making the most of our investment” (ibid).

Rehearsals 24/03/16

It was my job to schedule rehearsals weekly for the cast. Early on it was clear that the availability of the cast was very varied and so I began scheduling their unavailability’s in order to find time when everyone was free using an Excel spreadsheet. It was soon clear that finding time when everyone was available was rare. As well as this, as we had decided to write our own script, the company needed time to write scenes and so rehearsals were often used as company meetings to catch up on the progress of each member. Due to rehearsals being used for the writers of the script to meet and plan future scenes, myself and a few other members including the director were not always available for these rehearsals. Therefore it was agreed we would have an assistant director/editor who would coordinate a number of the writers meetings and work on the first few scenes. This is one weakness I have struggled with during the process so far. However, once rehearsals increase in April and May, I will be organised in coordinating the rehearsals and the building and sourcing of materials for our set which ensures I, as stage manager, and the ASM (props) are kept informed on everything to do with the show. After the first few weeks, myself and the director decided we needed space booking in advance and that we would call certain rehearsals based on who was available on those days.

Design 03/03/16

I took on the role of Stage manager within our company as I felt I had the necessary skills to organise and coordinate the company in the run up to our show. As it states in the book “Make your show a success”  a stage manager is someone who “is the trusted lieutenant of the company. A good stage manager has the following skills: good organisational skills, a problem solver, diligent record keeper, willing to take the initiative” (Teach Yourself, 2010, 55). I had not had experience calling a show before but wanted to learn a new skill as well as put in to practise the skills I already had in organisation and the knowledge I had gained over the years in technical theatre.

As stage manager I oversaw the decision making process regarding the design of the set in order to reflect the period we were setting our piece. “The stage manager will liaise and coordinate with the various departments of the creative team” (Teach Yourself, 2010, 56). Our first design plan saw the creation of three ‘rooms’ on stage splitting the stage in to three equal thirds to identify the hotel lobby (centre), a hotel bedroom (stage left) and a pub garden (stage right). We wanted to clearly establish our play was set in the 1980’s and remain true to the style and fashion of the time.
Before any design or writing of the script could be continued I arranged to meet with Darren Page the School Stage Manager and Martin Rousseau to discuss the technical elements we would require. Joined by the director and the producer we ran our ideas as a company past them to check what we wanted to create would be acceptable to the LPAC, our venue for the show. They assured us that what we wanted would be ambitious but doable as they could support us in our creation of the set.

The true assassination attempt that took place at the Grand Hotel, Brighton, inspired us to set our hotel in Brighton, so we researched the hotel’s décor to give us an idea of how we should dress the set.

We did not expect the hotel to be so grand and luxurious inside and soon realised that we would have to adapt our interpretation of the hotel in order to visually present the period our play was set; rather than simply recreating the hotels interior.

Therefore our second and final design incorporated our company colour scheme (blue and white watercolour) whilst also using contrasting primary colours, blue and yellow, to try and reflect the period’s unique use of colour in decorating.

Our hope was to use carpet to dress the stage similar to the hotel image above. We wanted a patterned carpet that created a dated, old fashioned feel for a modern audience, but that would have been fashionable for its contemporaries.
We chose the design below but unfortunately could not budget enough to cover the whole stage the way we wanted.

We decided it would be best to remove the carpet from the design and chose rugs as a way of covering the stage floor as we did not want to compromise the design by covering the space in a plain cheaper carpet. This was disappointing from a design perspective as we felt the carpet would have connected our replica of the hotel to the interior of the Grand hotel. However, paying £359 to cover the stage was not possible with our company budget of £580 and a set consisting of 11 x 4ft flats plus a number of other large items yet to be bought.

Early Stages 01/02/16

As a company it was relatively easy for us to discover the type of work we wanted to create. Having not worked with each other before we found we had a common interest in comedy, and a talent for performing farce amongst the actors and so this was the route we followed. It was essential we created work that was comical, but also for entertainment and because of this our group formed an informal motto “we don’t want to change the world, we want to make people laugh at it”. In the past, new companies aimed to create a piece of contemporary, devised work, something that carries a message or a political statement. But as a company we wanted to stand out amongst new companies and use historical events to make people laugh. Not only this,  but we wanted to celebrate the play text by writing our own script rather than devising physical theatre or creating a verbatim style performance. With the world commemorating 400 years since the death of William Shakespeare in the same year as a our début show, we felt it was the perfect opportunity for our love for the play text to be at the heart of our mission.
This was when we decided we wanted our first show as a theatre company to be scripted.
However, being a young, new theatre company we wanted to push the boundaries when it came to comedy, each having a good sense of humour, and a broad love for comedy (TV and theatre). Early discussions found that we wanted to be ‘Full Frontal’ with the comedy we created. Making brave comic decisions early on, often inspired by the dark sense of humours of the cast and crew, the decision to take historical events and twist them for the stage was our first step. Inspired by sitcoms such as Fawlty Towers and Blackadder, which continue to inspire the group and guide us in future work, the farcical misunderstandings that occur gave us the confidence to create our own versions. Adapted for the stage and using different events, our inspirations reassured us that the genre of work we wanted to create had a wide audience.
Our first show ‘The Magpie and the Yorkshireman’ was decided upon very early on due to the mixture of northern and southern accents our cast members had and so we wanted to build on the history between the North and the South when it came to our play; but twist it in to a comedy.
Therefore, the political history surrounding Margaret Thatcher, PM during the 1980’s was the perfect topic for our first show. Often viewed as a controversial figure she was the perfect subject for us to write a comedy about, questioning how and what people find funny.
With many people having opposing opinions of Thatcher as Prime Minister, some more personal than others, we knew we had found a topic that created conversation. We decided to take a usually controversial topic and make people laugh at it. As well as this we took it further and took the catastrophic event of her attempted assassination that killed many other civilians in Brighton in 1984, as another controversial topic in order to make the audience question what can be laughed at.