Great Books

I just purchased "Technical Design Solutions for Theatre" on Amazon.com, and let me tell you, it is the nerdiest, bestest thing ever. From growing flowers onstage to creating a realistic TV-lighting effect, it covers some of the most specific things I've ever seen in a technical theatre how-to manual. There are two volumes, and probably more to come, from the Yale Drama department.



What about you? Favorite theatre books?

New (To Me) Blog Alert- One From The Road

Hey there- so my lil' blog is sorely lacking not only in frequent posts, but also in audio information. Here's a cool blog with tips and tricks for clearcom, audio mixers, and other gear.

Also, I didnt know about this, but maybe they'll do it again in 2010. At John Jay college in NYC, they held a sort of audio conference/training day called Sound 411. Anyone got info on that?

This mic isn't working

Par Can to the Head - Play Her Off!

Flickr Site for Techies

Go here to share your backstage photos!

Recent shows...

Recently, I went to see Exit the King" and God of Carnage on Broadway.

Here's some of the cooler technical stuff that occurred in these shows:

In God of Carnage, one of the four actors vomits onstage. Nobody is quite sure as to the mechanics of the vomit, as she was talking maybe 30 seconds before. Is it something stuffed up her sleeve? Is it something she eats or drinks casually after her preceding line? Whatever it is, it is the only surprise during the entire show.

In Exit the King, the scenery is made mostly of regal drapery that has lost its sheen. From the beginning of the show, noting the aircraft cable supporting said soft goods, I was wondering how (and when) they would be flown in or out. Being a technical person, I noticed the minute those things moved even slightly. However, my boyfriend didn't notice until they were nearly touching the ground, because they moved so slowly (during a fairly intense monologue by Susan Sarandon, who commands quite a bit of attention). I spent the whole time wondering whether some poor ($60/hr) stagehand's arms were getting tired.

The uncool technical stuff:

At the end of God of Carnage, which up until this time has been a fairly realistic endeavor, the red wall which composes most of the set changes color from to shades of blue (thanks to color scrollers, surely), veeeery slowly. The characters are left in this weird, abstract image, for no apparent reason, as the lights go down. It was one of the cheesiest lighting moments I have ever witnessed, and I've worked in community theatre. COME ON.

At the beginning of Exit the King, I nudged my boyfriend, pointing to the downlights in each aisle. "Oh no", I said, "They're coming into the audience!"
"No", he said, "You just think that because of The Onion article you read last week."
But then I saw a backlight and a frontlight as well! And sure enough, Geoffrey Rush broke the fucking fourth wall halfway through the show. And his makeup was horrifying up close. So boo to you, lighting designer, for not cleverly hiding those lights, boo to you, director, for letting Geoffrey Rush march down the aisles, and boo to you, makeup artist, for making Geoffrey Rush look so, so scary.

Lame

From TVTower.com:

"Almost all wireless mics operate on the same frequencies as TV stations. The TV stations are licensed by the FCC and are running at very high power levels. Virtually all wireless mics are not licensed, and must accept any interference they get from TV stations. For this reason, a wireless mic that works fine in one city, may not work in another."

Right...so we knew that already...but what's below is what sucks



"As new stations go on the air, your wireless mic may become useless. It is important to understand this, because every TV station in the country is getting a new frequency for digital TV broadcasting. Only some of these new transmitters are on the air yet, but in the {future], they should all be on the air. Check with all your local TV stations to determine what new channels have been assigned to them for digital broadcasting, and when they expect to be on the air. Most manufacturers can switch your existing wireless mics to different frequencies if needed. It would be wise to determine today if your existing mics will have problems so you can get them changed at your leisure, and not in a panic after they fail."

The Academy Awards for More Technical Stuff

So these are the nominees, in the more technical world of film. I wonder why there's never much concern for lighting design in film, especially when lighting can determine so much of a film's mood (fight club is one particularly gritty-feeling example).

I have not yet seen Australia, Button, Revolutionary Road, Slumdog, Duchess, or Wanted. Yeah, I live under a new-film rock. But I'm going to predict that Duchess gets the costume award (period pieces always fare better), Button gets make-up (for making Brad Pitt unattractive; see hoopla surrounding "The Hours"), and Dark Knight for the very vague "Visual Effects" category. I won't hazard a guess on the sound stuff, because unless the sound is incredibly unusual or bad, I never notice the editing or the mixing.


Achievement in Costume Design
* Australia
* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* The Duchess
* Milk
* Revolutionary Road

Achievement in Makeup
* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* The Dark Knight
* Frost/Nixon
* Milk
* Slumdog Millionaire

Achievement in Sound Editing
* The Dark Knight
* Iron Man
* Slumdog Millionaire
* WALL-E
* Wanted

Achievement in Sound Mixing
* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* The Dark Knight
* Slumdog Millionaire
* WALL-E
* Wanted

Achievement in Visual Effects
* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* The Dark Knight
* Iron Man

What are YOUR thoughts?
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