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A) Attend all the production meetingmeetings, usually they will be every week. Use this time to ask the director about any uncertainties you have over propprops. It is better to ask early, than to get a prop that the director is unhappy with and you have to replace. Also use the production meeting , to check your list with whatever list the director has.
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2) Collecting props will be an ongoing process. As you get gather/make props, make a props cart that the Stage Manager can take to rehearsals. It is also a good idea to have stand in rehearsal props for actors to use. An example would be index cards for any letters. See below for further details on getting props.
3) One to two weeks before put-in, there will be a Costume and Props Parade where you will show the director the props you have. This is mostly for costumes, but it It is important for the director to see what the props will look like , so they can changer their mind and make you get different props. That was mostly a joke, but it can happenmake sure the props will work for the production, and look appropriate, so do your best to get as many props by then. Any props that you do not have by the Costume and Props parade, you should know where you will be getting them from and what they look like.
4) During put-in, set up a table in the dressing room with labels indicating which props go where. Tape off a square for each prop and tell actors which props are theirs. Make sure the Props Manager (runtime job) knows what props go where and how to reset props, if necessary. Put weapon props in the weapons chest (if applicable, see below). At some point give the genitals speech:
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Only touch your props when appropiateappropriate
Do not touch other people's props without consent
Know where your props are at all timetimes
Put your props away when you are done using them
Any prop weapons should be treated like STD-ridden props. Definitely do not touch other people's prop weapons
5) During tech week, listen for notes and adjust props accordingly.
Getting Props
(1) Ensemble Stock
All the props we have are in the office on the shelves. Most of the shelves are labeled and sorted. Try to find as many props as possible here.
(2) Borrowing from other theater groups
Rinaldi has a massive supply of props. The personal responsible for it keeps changing, so ask an upperclassman familiar with Rinaldi who to get in touch with. Set up a meeting and you will get access to their stock. We can also borrow things from MTG or GNSMTA. If you are lucky there will be someone in the production staff who is a member of MTG or GNS and they will get you access to their props supply. If not email their officer lists and explain what you are looking for. If someone has worked with MTA or taken classes, they might be able to get props from there.
(3) Borrowing from actors and other Ensemble membermembers
If the prop you need is something people have in real life (like a locket), another option is to email actors and ensemble@mit.edu asking for whatever you need. This does not often result in you getting your props method has a low success rate so keep looking.
(4) BuyingMaking Props
If all else fails, buy materials to make the prop. We have a glue gun, white glue, paint brushes, and acrylic paint If you do not have experience with things such as woodworking, feel free to ask a savvy ensemble member or the TD for help with certain pieces. We have supplies on the bottom shelf to make props. Artist Supply in Central Square also has a wide selection of materials to make props including more paint and fancy paper for making letters. If making props seems like a daunting task, try .There are also stores around Boston and Cambridge and you can ask upperclassmen for suggestions.
(5) Buying
If making props is too difficult a task, the last resort is buying props. Amazon is a great place and other websites are great places to find all sorts of things, but make sure they the props will arrive in time for the production. Amazon Prime is great for this, but always make sure to get good prices. Ensemble does not have many moneys.
Timing
. There are also stores around Boston and Cambridge (Target, CVS, etc.) and you can ask upperclassmen for suggestions. Make sure you are not exceeding your budget as the Ensemble does not have large budgets.
Buying/Renting Weapons
For Romeo and Juliet in Spring 2011 we required the use of Rapiers. The ensemble owns both bastard swords and foil-type swords, neither of which was perfect. We therefore rented rapiers from [[http://www.weaponsofchoicetheatrical.com/|Weapons of Choice]]. If they are no longer around, try contacting MIT theatre arts to find another place. Prices can get expensive - it's probably around $30 to $40 for each weapon for the run of the show, but that have a quite good selection. For R&J our director found a contact who gave us money to pay for the renting, but if we were willing to skimp on other areas we should be able to rent 2 or 3 ourselves. Shipping will take about 5 days, so rent them a bit before you want them to show up.
A couple general notes about renting weapons:
Keep the packing material around so you can pack them up neatly for the return trip.
Take care of them. They aren't ours and we don't want to be on the hook if they break.
Keep them safe. Make sure they stay in the office and people don't play with them. This can't be emphasised enough.
Make sure to rent one more than you need. Weapons do have a way of breaking we you least want them to.
If you're renting them for spring semester, the buffer for returning them can creep up fast. Either do it before leaving for spring break or right after you get back.
Weapons/Weapons chest
Shakespeare Ensemble has a weapons chest (in our office) which we use to store weapon props during and outside of shows. The chest has a number lock (ask officers if you don't know the password); CAC wants us to keep it locked between performances so make sure the Props Manager for the show is aware of this and does this.
Timing
Start Begin this and start gathering props as early as possible in the production. If there is a complicated prop you want to start working on it as early as possible in order to give the actor time to practice. This involved pulling have it ready for the actors. If there are props that the actors need to practice with that aren't ready, rehearsal props, which are similar to the real props in structure and use, but not as detailed, are a great idea.
Being props designer will take at most around several hours per week, depending on the complexity of the show. Be prepared to spend a lot of time doing this job.
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Notes on Props (alphabetical order)
Glasses (particularly champagne flutes) that are poured offstage may look surprisingly less full onstage; make sure you experiment beforehand with how much is needed to make the glass look full. Also make sure to clean any glasses that will be used, and if the director wants real liquid make sure whoever has the props runtime job, knows what kind of liquid to get.
Metal Swords must be blunted via filling. Generally, sharp metal pieces on props must be filed until blunt in order to safe-ify them.
Tele-Q (telephone ringer) button is easy to 'slip' on; tell run crew to hold it down firmly if you do use this.