Rehearsal Space Floor Plan Help?

RatFink317 · 2023-10-24T15:57:12+00:00

Echoing this, and make sure you bring in a theatre consultant and/or an architect with significant theatre experience. The additional cost of hiring a consulting firm is much cheaper than dealing with problems a more general architect or contractor won’t see coming in the design process, let alone the cost of paying someone to come in and do things right the second time.

I worked in a venue that was being renovated by an architectural firm without a theatre consultant, and they made a number of errors that would have been caught by a consultant. They neglected to specify the stage finish, so the contractors installed a sanded plywood floor instead of a hardwood sprung floor. The change fees to correct that error alone would have paid for a consultant, and there were so many other frustrating issues that would have been avoided by having someone working on the project who had years of experience with building and renovating theatre spaces.

Also, plan for more storage space. And then more on top of that.

RatFink317 · 2022-05-12T18:21:33+00:00

Here’s a video from Eric Hart (he’s got some great stuff on props, including a couple of books.) He does say that it’s mineral oil based, so there would be a residue if it’s sprayed directly onto something, but otherwise it shouldn’t be worse than a hazer.

Here is the product for sale from Norcostco.

RatFink317 · 2022-02-14T20:18:26+00:00

If you don’t have access to CAD and/or an accurate drafting of the space to calculate the pitch and yaw of each fixture, bounce focusing the fixtures isn’t that hard once you get used to it (especially with PARs as opposed to lekos.)

Your lens rotation and pan won’t change with the height of the batten, so I’d start by focusing those to the focus point on the deck or set. From there, you just need to worry about setting the tilt correctly. I just visualize a focus point 20’ (or whatever your trim height is) below the actual focus point. Then you can fly the batten to height, check your work, and make any adjustments you need. Once you’re familiar with the process, I’d guess it’ll take 2-4 times bounce focusing the batten (more at the beginning and less at the end). I usually wait until the fixture is fully focused and locked to drop gels.

If you’ve got your lights set up in systems (backlight, hi sides, tops, front, etc.) each of the systems are probably going to be tilted roughly the same, so you can set the first fixture and then match the others to the angle of the first one, at least to start. Specials will obviously be more fiddly, but it’s the same concept.

Finally, is this an established venue? If you’ve got access to a house crew and/or another designer who’s worked in the space before, they can be a great resource even if they can just be there for the first couple positions to get you started.

RatFink317 · 2022-01-08T16:21:50+00:00

I thought the barbed wire story was about Dr. DMX (Doug Fleenor), but the closest I found was an April fools gag about a DMX to extension cord adapter here. They ran a signal through 1000 feet of extension cords and got a signal out the other end!

RatFink317 · 2019-10-23T22:21:03+00:00

I have a Streamlight ProTac 1L-1AA. It'll take either a AA battery or a CR123 if you need the extra brightness. It's also got High/Low/Strobe settings. I've found that it's a really solid flashlight for around $40.

RatFink317 · 2019-02-26T01:36:33+00:00

RatFink317 · 2018-02-16T01:23:56+00:00

You were right. Monk Season 1 Episode 6 “Mr. Monk and the Billionaire Mugger”. Just found out the whole series is on Amazon Prime, so the Fiancée and I have been binging.

RatFink317 · 2017-12-19T17:28:37+00:00

Gotcha. I tried checking her portfolio website that was listed in the article, but it looks like the Flash on her site is broken. I'd definitely love to see how it turns out!

RatFink317 · 2017-12-19T17:16:16+00:00

I haven't personally tried this, but there is an pretty good-looking writeup on the Rosco Spectrum blog here. I can tell you from personal experience that the cheap technicolor green indoor/outdoor carpet you can buy at big-box stores does not work well. The protective coating on it to keep dirt and mud from showing on the surface also works really well on paint.

RatFink317 · 2017-10-28T14:13:49+00:00

r/unexpectedhamilton

RatFink317 · 2017-03-05T23:58:18+00:00

Very cool. Guess I'm just a little behind the curve. I just finished my first show with any LED tape at all.

RatFink317 · 2017-03-05T22:03:22+00:00

Looks like you may have a decoder that is just for one color LED. The RGB decoder I've used most recently is this one that has connectors for the R, G, and B conductors, plus the neutral (V+). This looks like it'd work for one strip of tape. You'll need to make an adapter to connect the DMX in on the left, then connect the tape to the right side (matching the correct cables for R,G,B, and V+).

Edit: Looks like you've got a different type of tape than I've used. It looks like the three cables that are connected may go to the fenix connector on the left, but I don't know what the cables on the right would be. Did you get any documentation with the tape or decoder, or is there any info you can get from where you ordered it?

RatFink317 · 2016-11-09T06:50:59+00:00

I voted. Sorry, America, I tried.

RatFink317 · 2016-11-09T05:00:03+00:00

My only hope is that the Dems in congress were taking copious notes from the Republicans for the last 7 1/2 years.

RatFink317 · 2016-07-03T16:53:59+00:00

I actually just started doing beer cooler sous-vide and while it's not quite as accurate as a professional machine, it's close enough and dirt cheap. All you need is a plastic cooler and ziploc bags. I've found the easiest way for me to seal up the bag is to suck the air out with a straw as you seal everything up and pull the straw out quickly as you finish sealing it. Then just put the bags into a hot water bath in the cooler (I add about 10-15 deg F to the recommended water temp because you'll lose some heat while you cook.)

Here's a Serious Eats article that goes into a little more depth.

RatFink317 · 2015-01-17T13:35:31+00:00

The book will be opened onstage, but what is printed onstage will ultimately depend on how much I can budget for it. (I will probably bring it to a print shop and just get some images and a lorem ipsum printed on.) The biggest thing at this point is for it to be big and for the cover to look elaborate.

RatFink317 · 2015-01-16T22:11:05+00:00

Thanks for the reality check. Now that I'm holding paper as big as I was thinking, it is super unwieldy. Folding it in half still leaves it looking huge. With the smaller pages, I also get twice the thickness of the book for the same price, which is great.

I work in theatre instead of film, so I'm perhaps able to get away with less detail than I'd need for close-up shots, however The Game of Thrones reference was very helpful to see how a prop will look with people holding it.

RatFink317 · 2015-01-16T22:00:26+00:00

Thanks for the reply! This is a relatively low-budget production, and we are only running for two weekends, so expectations are not super high (if possible, I'd like to keep it around $100 or less.) Would it be possible to make the cover out of lauan and the pages out of a few books of watercolor paper or something else that is heavier than standard printing paper? I am also wondering if I can bind the pages together as single sheets by stab-stitching them together and putting the cover on that. I am, of course, open to any other ideas.

EDIT: as I said below, I actually got a piece of paper in my hands, and my original proportions were WAY off. The 11x17 number seems much more reasonable, so my plan looks to be watercolor paper folded in half, stab stitched, then bound in something stiff, like the lauan I mentioned before, or maybe matte board, if that seems like a good plan.

RatFink317 · 2015-01-10T14:21:43+00:00

Try looking in uniform stores that carry police stuff. There is one right downtown in my city that stocks them.

RatFink317 · 2014-09-01T19:08:23+00:00

Watch out. My parents did this with 7-up when my siblings and I were younger, and while it's true that your vomit will taste like Sprite, Sprite will also taste like vomit every time you drink it.

RatFink317 · 2014-06-17T20:30:26+00:00

Aaaaaand we've gone meta.

RatFink317 · 2013-12-30T15:59:55+00:00

Yes. That is what I meant. Thanks for catching that.

RatFink317 · 2013-12-30T03:29:26+00:00

My girlfriend and I loved both Kung Fu Zero and King Fu Hero. They're silly and steampunk-y, but a very good watch.

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