The Technical Director, TD for short, is responsible for the construction of the set, organizing builds, keeping track of hours, Put-In, Strike, and the safety of everyone involved with the show. The TD has FINAL SAY in all matters related to safety, from the set design to props to audience placement.
TD is a BIG JOB and takes a lot of time. Take this into account when figuring out your commitments for this semester.
Set up the Google Drive with the producer (sample documents can be found here; these need not be followed exactly, but are merely recommendations for how you may want to organize everything you will need to deal with. Old and probably outdated templates can be found here).
The TD is responsible for procuring all the raw material for sets. A trip to Home Depot and Backstage Hardware usually takes care of most needs (but there's some stuff in the office if you need e.g. 2x4s or plywood. There's also a lot of unlabelled wood in the set shop that can be used). There's a box of breaks in the back of the set shop (which are really helpful for small things and less so for big things) and a few boxes with wheels of varying sizes. A list of materials should be compiled as soon as possible during the production process so it can be updated quickly and easily- you don't want to spend an extra hour of travel time because you forgot to buy the dowel pins when you had a U-Haul. Make sure you're aware of Home Depot's and U-Haul's hours before scheduling this trip. Home Depot's Pro Desk (for delivery) is only open during business hours.
Budgeting can be hard, so don't spend more money than you have to! Make sure to double check that all the things you're buying are absolutely necessary and don't already exist somewhere in the set shop or ensemble office, that you're actually buying exactly the things you want when you go shopping, and that you're not spending significantly more money on things than you need to. Planning ahead carefully is very worthwhile to not have to make extra trips to return things. Also, check if you can order something online, because this will often be cheaper and give you more options than going to a store and buying things.
Paint can be acquired from Home Depot - the Set Designer, Scenic Painter, and TD should meet before the home depot trip and decide on what colors (and gloss levels) should be purchased from Home Depot (in addition to what's in the cabinet). This should happen several days in advance at least, and it should be made sure that home depot knows what those colors mean. Paint can be more expensive than you think, so be sure to get a sense of what the Scenic Painter wants, what paint we already have, and how much you need/will be willing to spend ahead of time.
Any materials that need to be shipped to campus should be ordered with at least a week's grace period between their expected arrival and Put-In. 2+ week shipping times are normal, especially for heavy items.
Most of the masonite is now kept in the E33 office in W20-3. It's unclear who owns what of it. (Never cut masonite unless you can't help it. You can always paint "not-stage" a different color than "stage" to make up for not cutting it to the right size/ shape) Audience railings live in the Ensemble office. Additional audience railings live in the Walker Sets Shop and formally belong to MTG.
Gaffe tape and flame retardant can be purchased from Backstage hardware. Flame retardant is ~$25 per gallon of paint. MAKE SURE you have enough of both gaffe tape and flame retardant before Put-In. Additionally, make sure that fire retardant is added to each gallon of paint as it is opened. ProGaffe tape is better than ShurTape.
Make sure you have 5+ sharpies. They're really useful and people need them to measure things to cut and such (although colored pencils also work for this). Worse, people never return them to you when they're done with them, so it's hard to get by with just one or two. We also now have pencils (they are wide and in a cylindrical case somewhere. Make sure the sharpener exists.
In general, make sure you know where everything is being stored. There can often be so many small components that they are hard to keep track of and easy to lose, so be sure keep things in at least a semi-organized state and ensure that people communicate to you promptly where things are placed and if things are ever moved around.
If we want to borrow the signs that block out the windows from MTG, we should contact them in advance. Black trash bags also work, although they don't look as nice.
The TD should begin scheduling builds as soon as possible. This varies from show to show, but builds should start at the latest the weekend after final set design is due. Remember to double check with MTG and G&S when their builds are (if they have them planned yet; if not, take advantage of this fact to plan your builds first), since two groups should probably not be working in the set-shop at the same time. A good amount of time for builds is generally 3-4 hours per week, but you may need to put in extra hours for particularly extensive sets. Try to make sure you are having sufficient build time early on so you don't have to be trying to finish everything yourself during or right before tech week.
All actors are required to complete some number of Pre-Put-In/prod hours, the number of which is usually 6. Tell actors in advance (3-5 days is good) when builds are going to happen, and put them on Callboard. These Pre-Put-in hours can be completed by working at a build for any department (sets, costumes, pub, sometimes lights, etc.) or in any other way the TD sees fit.
People involved with the show or members who do not complete their Pre-Put-In hours or do not complete their 8 hours at Put-In will lose their 2 comp tickets. Make sure that these people know the consequences of inaction.
Builds need not be dedicated to the completion of a given set piece. It is often advantageous to measure and cut lumber at builds, especially as put-in approaches. Keep in mind that anything constructed at builds must live in the set shop until Tech Week (the theater group with the next Put-In can store set pieces in the front part near the Set Shop doorway) and must fit through relevant doorways and into the freight elevator. If you finish set pieces, try to paint them entirely before Put-In. The entire set usually needs to be painted during tech week, and it helps a lot when pieces don't require painting so just the floor/backdrop can be focused on.
Make sure the TD and Set Designer communicate frequently. For example, make sure you both understand the complete list of set pieces, and talk about how ambiguous responsibilities, such as the exact manner of building set pieces that involve more artistic freedom, are being split.
Check the list of set pieces to be completed periodically to ensure that everything is being built on schedule. Large set pieces with many components are suitable to be worked on during builds, while smaller set pieces tend to be one- or two-person jobs. Still, be sure that these smaller jobs are still being done.
The three theater groups that use the set shop have written up several documents in an effort to keep the set shop clean and safe. These documents are all linked to here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bONe-KXnjkrsZy7yjn0W8GUtsDNZgBuEc9c5KTbo9bo/edit?usp=sharing
Review these documents thoroughly before having any builds in the set shop. Be sure to adhere to the rules, and mark when your builds are to make scheduling easier. You may also want to add yourself to the contact sheet of people who know things about the set shop.
Feel free to store set items and tools in the set shop, but be sure to label everything with "Shakespeare Ensemble" and/or the name of the show you are currently doing and the year. Also, you may use any of the communal wood and set pieces in the set shop, but again, make sure to claim everything you want by labeling them.
The set shop is kind of far from the ensemble office as well as our performance spaces, so it can be difficult to move set pieces back and forth. For a small amount of items, the dexion cart (which lives in the set shop) as well as the ensemble's shopping carts (which lives in the ensemble office) can be used for transportation. Therefore a U-Haul can be useful during put-in and strike.
The TD is responsible for meeting with CAC to get final approval for the set design a week or two before Tech Week. Our current contact at CAC is Meredith Sibley (mfsibley@mit.edu). The producer should also attend this meeting, and it can be helpful for the set designer, and perhaps the lighting designer, to be present.
The primary purpose of the meeting is to assure CAC that the technical elements of the show are safe. The meeting typically consists of a short summary of the set from the TD/set designer, including any particularly challenging or unique set elements; the light plot from light designer; the weapons plan from the props designer; a production safety, and a work safety plan. See the sample documents here.
This is also when we request tables, chairs, Germans (the large audience risers), and butterflies (larger but shorter risers). You will need more tables than you think, ask for 15 + number needed on stage. They are used for booth, changing room, and keeping backstage tidy. If you want a fancy ticketing table, ask for one or two of the tables to have a maroon skirt.
No seriously. You will be up late on Saturday putting up scaff, and up early on Sunday for put-in. During Tech Week you should expect to spend 3-4 hours per day putting up audience or finishing set pieces, on top of PSets and rehearsals (although there is some work that can be done during rehearsals, anything noisy has to be done earlier or later in the day).
Before put-in, make sure you know what actors can do what and when they are available in order to schedule everyone for a reasonable time slot so that everything can be done. Ask whether people are afraid of heights and whether they can lift heavy things in addition to whether they have lighting experience. Make sure you have first-aid kit at Put-In, and again at Strike.
Put-In is the first day that the Ensemble is in space and is the single most important day for sets. Lights are hung, masonite is placed, big things are built, etc, etc. Generally Put-In officially runs from 7 am to 11 pm, though in reality it can go until 1am. Each member of the cast is required to attend Put-In for a a number of hours which varies from show to show (usually 8). The TD should schedule actors ahead of time (about two weeks) and attempt to distribute manpower throughout the day. Additionally, the TD should talk to lights, costumes, and props to see if/how much manpower they anticipate requiring during Put-In and when they want it during the day.
To reiterate, people involved with the show or members who do not complete their Pre-Put-In hours or do not complete their 8 hours at Put-In will lose their 2 comp tickets. Make sure that these people know the consequences of inaction.
Monument, the scaffolding in La Sala, should be constructed the night before Put-In if possible. This will save lights an hour or two of time in the morning, which helps everyone in the long run.
Lights are usually the rate determining step. Make sure everyone knows this, and knows that when people shout for ground-crew, they should drop everything and go help.
Put-In is the TD's baby and everyone at Put-In is the TD's bitch. The TD must be present in space for the entirety of Put-In. A list of jobs-which-need-doing should be bouncing around in their head, as actors will need direction. If a chalkboard can be obtained, it's helpful to write this list of things down, so that people know what they can go help with if the TD is too busy to ask. Delegating is a good thing; life will run much more smoothly if a competent person is placed in charge of a given project so the TD doesn't need to worry about every detail. Less competent actors can be shoved at these more competent people and told to ask them how they can help, freeing up the TD to put out fires or deal with other actors. Some tasks should be done by the TD, however, especially any job that would take more time to explain than complete. The TD should be in charge, making sure everyone has a job and everything is getting done. If there is nothing else to do, you shouldn't be afraid to get your hands dirty, though!
Ordering food is nice, it makes your helpers happier and more likely to come on time. Usually donuts and coffee (although Dunkin Donuts won't be open yet, so find one that is and order, or go to Verde's or buy them ahead of time) for breakfast, pizza for lunch, cookies for later in the day.
Assigning run-time jobs is the SM's job, but since it may affect Put-In you may want to check in with the SM about this. Things that need to be assigned include:
(More jobs can be added as necessary to make the number of jobs equal the number of actors)
Tech Week is the week that will make or break a TD. Generally after Put-In the set still needs to be painted, blacks need to be hung, windows need to be blacked out, audience needs to be put up, and a hundred other things need to be done. The TD should have a plan for making sure the set is done in a reasonable time frame while keeping in mind that actors act on it every night so paint must be dry and the stage must be clear and that CAC kicks us out of La Sala at 2 AM (sometimes even earlier). If extra hands are needed, the TD shouldn't be afraid of mailing out asking for help, though this may be difficult because actors are quite tired during tech week and no longer have the incentive of prod hours to come and help. Blacks generally take at least 3-4 people to hang. The audience (both Germans and chairs) is best put up right before or after a rehearsal because every actor can be drafted.
Transitions & Organizing Set Pieces Backstage
Setting up the Audience
Either the TD or the set designer has to formulate a plan for the audience plans. There are various arcane regulations about the layout of the aisles. Chairs are approximately 17" across. There are two types of audience platforms in general use: Germans and butterflies. Germans are 1m by 2m, and can hold about 2 rows of 2 each people (or one row of 4-5 people) each. There exist something like 16 or 20 Germans. Butterflies are 6 feet by 8 feet, and can hold 2 rows of 5 chairs each. CAC has something like 24 butterflies, but usually we only use 4 or 5. Butterflies can only be set at one height; Germans can be set at a variety of heights. Some heights are at preset intervals, and some of them require the use of additional pins. There are 4 preset heights on Germans, the lowest of which matches the height of the butterflies.
Platforms can be obtained from CAC. Make sure that butterfly steps and German hardware are around when they're delivered to La Sala. Pretty much all audience platforms (any chairs not on the ground or on butterflies) should have toe rails. This can be pretty much anything - 1×3s or dexion is best, thicker pieces of wood will also work. Extra audience rails can either be borrowed from MTG (they're in the scene shop in Walker basement) or built, but there are a large number of them in the ensemble office already. The difficult part is to make sure that the railing are stable and must be reinforced below the seating platform to avoid wobbling. Additionally, toe rails need to be added to the audience platforms so that chairs don't slide off the back- any scrap wood is fine for this. Make sure that all platforms that vary in height by more than 8" have a step present, and that it is firmly attached. Generally this is only an issue with the butterflies.
Audience size: you can look at the number of audience members expected for a given show and use that to decide how many seats to add or remove for that show. The size of the audience may depend on how well-known the show is - a well-known show can attract up to 150 people per night, but 100 might be larger than can be expected for something nobody's ever heard of.
An incomplete list of audience requirements:
Booth
Booth tends to be in one of: Spacedock, scaff, and behind the audience on Germans.
If spacedock, make sure that when you hang the blacks, you don't impede the SM's line of sight to the stage. It is nice for SM, LD and SD to have a table and tall chairs (can be stolen from the 1st floor athena machines).
Blacks can be hung from Space Dock by placing them over the edge, then putting cinder blocks on the floor on the blacks to keep them from sliding off. (Don't put the cinder blocks on the wall of space Dock. That's just dangerous)
Booth can also be on audience level, although this is less practical. Dedicate at least 2 german platforms for use as booth (normally 4 as of Fall '15), and make sure that it has a toe rail and steps.
Setting up Headsets
Headsets are located in the dimmer closet, in one or two milk crates. The system consists of one control box, a collection of headsets, and a set of cables (Official type unknown). Headsets should be located at booth and wherever run crew will be be (typically either in the dressing room or the kitchen). More information on setting these up is in the SM wiki page.
Blacking out Sala
* Having appropriate lighting backstage is a big help. This includes a lamp at booth (there should be a clip lamp with a blue gel over it in the office) and light for actors backstage (especially near the props table). On some occasions we've had a dedicated stage light for the backstage area that's just on dim for the duration of the show. Alternatively you can use the lights under spacedock. They're controlled by the lightswitch on the column north of space dock (just the normal switch, not the panel. That controls the house lights). If half of the spacedock lights are blacked out (paper or black foil taped over the light works great) and half are gelled blue (gel the light not the waffle) that is incredibly useful.
* The windows on either side of any Sala doors that can be seen from the audience need to be blacked out. Possible solutions include 4x8 masonite or black shower curtains from Shaw's for $2 or a giant trash bag. The cross pieces in the windows can be removed by pulling straight up and pieces of plywood inserted. MTG has two black pieces that fit under spacedock that we could theoretically borrow. The windows in West Lounge should be blacked out. This is more for the decency of actors (like they have any). The shades don't actually block people looking. The best solution found so far would be to use the black shower curtains. Using extra postcards also works, and helps with advertising during tech week.
Strike runs after the show's last performance. Strike is the time when everything is taken down, moved out of La Sala, and somehow stuffed into the Ensemble Office. Strike is the TD's second baby and everyone at Strike is still the TD's bitch. While the TD may need to do things during Put-In, the TD should generally not be doing anything during strike other than delegating tasks to other people, making sure these tasks are being done, coming up with more tasks that still need to be done, and making executive decisions as necessary. Everyone involved with the show is expected to be present for the duration. It helps to have a competent person in the Ensemble Office as things begin to be moved up so that storage is slightly less of a nightmare. Making the person in charge of office cleans that semester the person in charge of the office during strike means that the office is likely to be much less of a nightmare. Sala should be left in the condition it was found- nothing should be on the floor, all Germans and butterflies should be folded, all chairs put away, etc. If any paint is found on Sala floor, it must be cleaned off. It helps to have a U-Haul, if lots of set pieces need to be moved.
Lights are the rate determining step. Make sure everyone knows this, and knows that when people shout for ground-crew, they should drop everything and go help.
Running pre-strike in the week between the two weekends of shows or during the second weekend of shows will make strike go more efficiently. Try to clean up everything that won't get used for the show/strike, and move it all back up to the office. For example, return all the paint supplies and most power tools/saws to the office, but remember to leave behind the drills and their batteries so the set can actually be taken apart. In addition, to expedite the process, try to come up with a list of tasks ahead of time.
Before the end of the run, if possible - if not, only when there are spare hands
- clean blood table
- clean make-up table
As soon as run is over
- take apart any set or audience that is in the way of lights starting to unhang.
- lights should start unhanging
Throughout strike
- give people to lights
- have one knowledgeable person in space Dock sorting cables, putting things back where they belong
- have someone who is tetris-skilled in the office
Other things that need to happen (mostly in order)
- take apart the rest of the set and audience
- take up sound if it is on the ground
- fold up platforms and put them away
- take up the masonite
- put the headsets away
Nearer the end
- get costumes and props upstairs
- get everything else upstairs
- take down the blacking out of the windows
- clean Sala floor, where it was hit by paint, or if we have Gaffe tape issues
After Strike the TD must see that all materials borrowed under the purview of sets are returned.
The basement door near the set shop in Walker is silent-alarmed (and will summon the police). The alarm will go off if the door is propped open. Ask CAC to deactivate the alarm at times you wish to move material in and out of Walker.
All cables running around the stage floor should be taped down with nice Gaff tape. If it is running across an entrance or an aisle, then it should be taped down completely along the length. Any hanging cables should be glow taped. So should anything that people need to navigate near in the dark.
In places where actors enter and aren't blocked by the blacks, place an Othello screen (the large black wooden folding screens in the office). Typical places are the entrance from westlounge and in front of spacedock. CAC also has a bunch of green screens that are useful for blocking views where being black is not crucial.
All of the doors to Sala are loud. Make sure that they are silenced. Make sure that there is a path through the kitchen for actors to walk through, and that the doors are unlocked every night.
Make sure nothing backstage will injure actors- saws, screws, nails, cauldrons, anything else. A good idea is to keep all tools etc. organized on a back table. This will make finding things during tech week easier, and you don't have time at that point to waste on looking.
Blacks are stored in the blue bin in the room with scaff (which is the Piano Room - the door on the eastern side of Sala de Puerto Rico that is most to the north).
Hanging Blacks
Blacks are generally hung by standing on scaff. They can be carried up or brought on from Spacedock. The fuzzy side goes towards the stage. Hang the blacks so they're easy to take down- bows and other strong knots that come out with one tug are good. Double knots are strongly discouraged. Remember basic tension: the ties should extend on both sides of where you want the black to extend. If possible, holes in the black - especially those toward the top, as they will be under more tension - should be mended before the black is hung. This can be done with binder clips, or, for smaller holes, gaff tape. Blacks should be hung to about 1.5"-2" off the floor. Not so that the tops aligned - for some reason, not all blacks are the same height. This will make them low enough so that no one sees under them, but high enough so they don't get dust and debris from the floor. The thin black is not opaque enough to be used alone for blackout during matinees. It is, however, good for making Spacedock appear black. To hang blacks over the edge of Spacedock, cinderblocks may be placed on the blacks - but only on the bad/back/fuzzy side. Or use string to make the distance between the pipe and the black longer. Lights may be hung on the same pipe as a black but they get very hot and should not be in contact with blacks when on.
Taking down blacks
Blacks should be taken down from scaff. There are two methods: either pull the black up to scaff as you go, or drop it as you go. Either is fine, but when dropping or stacking, try to keep the bad side touching the floor/surface. Do not drop anything without calling out first. Blacks should be folded and returned to the blue bin and the piano closet. When folding, keep the good side off the floor. Folding the large black is much easier with a small army of people.
For shows with complicated transitions, casters (wheels) are your best friend. Consider attaching them to any set pieces that would otherwise be inconvenient to move.
Brakes work best when they push on the ground enough that the load of the moving thing is shared evenly between the brake and the wheel. Also, make sure they are held on tightly to the thing they're holding up, to prevent wobble. They are not necessary (and will probably not work properly anyway) for exceedingly large and heavy set pieces; those will stay still on their own. Focus on attaching brakes to smaller set pieces on wheels that need to be kept still for safety reasons.
Mike Katz - Former TD for MIT Theater Arts, possesses an endless supply of awesome beard and terrible puns. He's still in the area, and knows everything. Email: narishkup at gmail dot com