| Table of Contents |
|---|
Overview
The producer is to the production as the chair is to the Ensemble. The producer is ultimately responsible for all non-artistic show decisions for the production. S/he selects a production staff, facilitates all logistical matters, and runs all production meetings. If a production team member becomes unable to complete their position, the producer must either replace them or complete the position him/herself. The producer is also the final authority on the production. If something makes the producer uncomfortable for safety or other reasons, s/he may veto it. Additionally, the producer is responsible for handling interpersonal conflicts. It is important that the producer be organized, accounting for all miscellaneous tasks involved in the show. The producer must frequently take initiative and be extremely adaptive.
General Comments
Define people's jobs.
Make sure people are doing their jobs.
Get them to do their jobsBe prepared to do a lot of work.
Pre-Production
Before Auditions
- Set up Callboard
- Contact The Tech and Technique early for a review and photos
Director Prepping
- Review casting policy
- Review time maximums (15 hours per week)
- Performance Space Constraints
- Other Policies
Auditions
- Schedule auditions with the director, SM, and Ensemble.
- Finalize audition forms and make sure all dates/requirements are correct.
- Ensure that a readthrough has been scheduled.
- Set up the online audition form as soon as possible. See webmaster for details.
You should always actively go out and encourage rope people to auditioninto auditioning, especially particularly if they are on the fence.
Assist the SM team and the director with the audition process. Create and go over actor contracts with all auditionees. Ensure that auditions adhere adhere to the Casting Guidelines stipulated in the Constitution.
Actor Management
- Get actors out of any show conflicts (tests during tech week)
- Replace actors should they decline their parts
Production Staff
Finding
...
Staff
Finding a good prod production staff is the most important thing you will do as Producer. Email town-crier, then spam campus. Think very carefully about your decisions! . If you want advice, speak to the officers. A good prod production staff makes a stress-free show. When working with new freshmandartes, you may will either need to assign them as assistants or give them a full position with a mentor. If they show motivation and willingness, you should definitely give them the full position.
- Find an SM by auditions
- TD, SD, and ASMs are high priority
- Lights, Costumes, Sound, Props, Publicity are all important
- In some cases, you may need to design audition posters, yourself
Meet with all production staff (this can be the first prod meeting) - be sure they understand the calendar and what is expected of them. Go over the contract with each member all members of the production team at the first meeting.
Contracts
Old production staff contracts can be found in the ensemble locker: /mit/ensemble/Private/Contracts/Current. Edit the due dates as necessary.
Newer production staff contracts (one contract for everyone) can be obtained by emailing Mark (marvel@mit.edu). They will soon be put in the locker.
Production Staff Issues
It is important to check in regularly with prod production staff to make sure that everyone is doing their jobs. If anyone is not on top of things, consider monitoring them more closely. For example, drawing up a very detailed schedule of when everything needs to get done can be effective for people who are unorganized. If a problematic member of the prod staff continues to cause problems and fail to do the job assigned, you can consider replacing that person as a last resort.
Production Meetings
. If they are unorganized, help them get organized. If they are unsure how to something should be done, explain it to them or have them talk to a more experienced ensemble member. If they are slacking, meet them in person and create a more stringent work schedule. If they are unresponsive to email, call them. If they are unresponsive to calls, try reaching them through one of their friends. If all else fails, pay them a personal visit. Not everyone responds to email regularly: it is your job to adapt to their preferred means of communication, not visa versa.
First Production Meeting
The following key words should feature prominently in the first production meeting: contracts, calendarMeeting 1: Contracts, deadlines, budget, schedule, readthroughread-through, designer run, prod hours, parade, put-in, papertechpaper-tech, q2q, tech week, vision
Set up and run preliminary prod meeting to determine the production calendar, introduce the designers, talk about the director's vision, go over the budget, and schedule all future prod meetings. In the spring, prod meetings start during the first half of IAP. In the fall, the prod meeting should happen at least one week before reg day, or as soon as possible before that, even if not all of the prod staff are on campus.
Contracts
Production staff contracts can be found in the ensemble locker: /mit/ensemble/Private/Contracts/Current. Edit the due dates as necessary.
Director Prepping
Create and go over contract with Director. Go over casting policy and rehearsal time maximums with Director. Make sure the director has scheduled a read-through. It can be very useful to meet with the director before the first prod meeting (even very soon after they hired) to familiarize them with various ensemble practices (e.g. what prod positions we have, how prod meetings work, the timeline for prod/auditions etc, lines of responsibility between director/producer/SM etc). The first director check should be delivered at the first prod meeting.
Auditions
Assist the SM team and the director with the audition process. Create and go over actor contracts with all auditionees. Ensure that auditions adhere adhere to the Casting Guidelines stipulated in the Constitution.
...
. It helps to have production meetings scheduled at a regular time (Sundays after rehearsal, for example).
Rehearsal Period
General
Run all production meetings (usually weekly, more frequently if necessary). Say NO to the director if a task is not feasible - if you are not sure, ask the TD/officers/designer. If you're still not sure, ask Rinaldi. If you're still not sure, say no. Check in at least weekly (not just at prod meeting) with design/building staff. Check in at least every other day with director and SM teams. Try to get and idea of what run crew (dressers, stagehands, etc.) will be needed as early as possible and start looking for them as soon as possible, as they are usually difficult to find.
Chris Nayler Meeting
Make sure to schedule a meeting with Chris Nayler (nayler@mit.edu) to discuss the set and the light plot, to make sure that there aren't any safety issues. Make sure this happens well before put in is scheduled to ensure that the set can be changed in the unlikely event of a safety issues.
...
Obtain entertainment licenses from Cambridge city hall. Register the event with CAC. Remember, we only have 99 guests. On an unrelated note, shows with 100 or more people need a police detail. Remember that the entertainment license costs a large sum of money- make sure you have your $240 (or whatever sum) in cash or money order when you go to city hall.
NAYLER MEETING
PRE-SHOW ANNOUNCEMENT
Prod Week
MISCELLANEOUS TASKS
RUN CREW, HOUSE/BOX MANAGERS
RUNTIME JOBS (ex. LAUNDRY) - SM
Assist as needed. Catch all the balls that are dropping. Help out the stage manager(s) in any way you can. Make sure that runtime jobs have been assigned to everyone (washing clothes, sweeping and mopping the stage, warmups, morale, cleaning the house, water/candy for actors, etc.) At that point your job will be mostly over, but theirs is just beginning. Making their life easier makes everyone happier.
...
Pre-show announcement
Run Crew, House Manager, Box Office Managers
Try to get and idea of what run crew (dressers, stagehands, etc.) will be needed as early as possible and start looking for them as soon as possible, as they are usually difficult to find.
Runtime Jobs
Laundry, for example
Performances & Strike
Performances
Assist as needed. In the past it has been required that the person who registers the event with Cambridge/CAC be present at all performances. If this is not the case, you should probably be present anyway in case of major emergency and/or just because it makes everyone else feel betterDefinitely attend opening night, but ideally all the shows.
After Closing
Ensure that all prod staff have fulfilled all their obligations (i.e., returned borrowed equipment). Set a deadline for all receipts to be turned in. Submit a final budget (based on receipts turned in). Schedule and run the post-production meeting to discuss the production (what went wrong, what went right, etc.).
CAST AWARDS, CUT-TO-CUE
ALUM RECEPTION, BRUSH-UP
PHOTO/VIDEO
Miscellaneous
Interpersonal Stuff
...
This is really the responsibility of the TD, but make sure that put-in and strike are on track to happen in an efficient and effective fashion. Make sure that the space is available very late on closing night for strike, and also that the cast will not get kicked out of space during tech week and performances. Chris Nayler (nayler@mit.edu) is the person to contact if the space is not available for the time needed for strike/rehearsal. Do NOT contact the CAC e-mail address, as they tend not to be very helpful.CAST AWARDS, CUT-TO-CUE
ALUM RECEPTION, BRUSH-UP
PHOTO/VIDEO
Other Topics
HOW TO STAY ORGANIZED (GOOGLE DOC LIST OF TASKS, GOOGLE DOC TO COORDINATE PRODUCTION STAFF SETS/COSTUMES/PROPS)
INTERACTING WITH THE DIRECTOR
TRANSITIONS