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Post by TallPaul on Aug 2, 2022 13:49:29 GMT
By my fourth or fifth visit to 42nd Street, I knew the drill and knew where my seat was, so used to arrive with just minutes to spare. As I walked along Maiden Lane, there would always be musicians going through the Stage Door at the Adelphi, with perhaps 10 minutes to curtain up.
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Post by properjob on Aug 2, 2022 17:24:12 GMT
The musicians seem to have their own rules. They don't hang around for long afterwards either. A good ten years ago now I saw a very good tour of west side story at the Birmingham Hippodrome. The MD came up to the stage for his individual bow and then walked forward indicating the pit to acknowledge the orchestra. The problem was in the time it had taken to get to his bow all but one of the musicians had left leaving an empty pit!
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Post by Dawnstar on Aug 2, 2022 20:23:55 GMT
There was a time members of the pit would be propping up the closest bar til beginners! I've heard that orchestra members at the ROH & ENO, mostly the brass players who often have long gaps between playing in many opera scores, were known to pop out to the nearest pub during performances in the past! Nowadays you can still often see the brass players entering & exiting the pit during performances but I imagine going for drinks mid-performance is (probably) no longer considered acceptable so they just have to sit around backstage.
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Post by firefingers on Aug 2, 2022 22:49:13 GMT
There have been pubs where the stage manager has to ring the landline to get the orchestra out of the bar and into the pit. Drinking on the job is not that common any more (at least in such an obvious way) but as long as it doesn't affect their performance it tends to be fine. Only other performers I've worked with who seem to be allowed to have a few drinks are comedians, which I guess is as it is all on them and if the show goes tits up because they are hammered it doesn't significantly affect anyone bar them.
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Post by inthenose on Aug 2, 2022 23:13:29 GMT
There have been pubs where the stage manager has to ring the landline to get the orchestra out of the bar and into the pit. Drinking on the job is not that common any more (at least in such an obvious way) but as long as it doesn't affect their performance it tends to be fine. Only other performers I've worked with who seem to be allowed to have a few drinks are comedians, which I guess is as it is all on them and if the show goes tits up because they are hammered it doesn't significantly affect anyone bar them. Yeah, this matches my experience. And professional wrestlers - they like a drink or ten.
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Post by daisy24601 on Sept 7, 2022 9:56:13 GMT
Just curious as I follow a few people currently rehearsing in the new cast of Frozen, how much is someone like Samantha Barks who is already in the cast, involved in the rehearsals? She obviously doesn't need to rehearse but should get some rapport going with the new cast. Perhaps ensemble members who are staying on, even more so.
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Post by samuelwhiskers on Sept 9, 2022 22:11:51 GMT
Does Jermyn Street Theatre have a stage door or do the cast exit through the bar? Asking for a friend!
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Post by stagebyte on Sept 9, 2022 23:39:51 GMT
Opinions on the recent flood of actors offering ‘acting through song’ workshops. Any good ones to try? Are all these actors qualified to ‘teach’?
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Post by firefingers on Sept 10, 2022 14:23:06 GMT
Does Jermyn Street Theatre have a stage door or do the cast exit through the bar? Asking for a friend! No stage door that I can remember from doing a show there. Think there is technically a fire exit through the basement but don't think it is for regular use.
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Post by sfsusan on Feb 15, 2023 16:39:05 GMT
What's the difference between a 'playtext' and the script of a play? I've tried Googling the answer but the sites I've looked at seem to use playtext and script interchangeably and primarily focus on the difference between 'script' and a 'play'.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Feb 15, 2023 20:38:09 GMT
What is the difference between a musical and a play with music? (Answers from TallPaul don’t count).
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Post by jgblunners on Feb 15, 2023 21:10:00 GMT
What is the difference between a musical and a play with music? (Answers from TallPaul don’t count). This is bound to be a divisive question, but here’s my interpretation: In a musical, the songs are a part of the narrative. They can propel plot and give us insight into characters’ thoughts or feelings that we wouldn’t get from a book scene. In a play with music, the songs do not form part of the narrative. They are complimentary to it. Remove the musical numbers and the plot works just fine, you’re not left with any holes. Here what the music contributes is a mood or atmosphere, something which helps to immerse you in the characters’ lives without necessarily describing them. I don’t think it’s really that binary, but that’s the best I can do to explain my thoughts on the difference.
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Post by cavocado on Feb 15, 2023 21:26:37 GMT
What's the difference between a 'playtext' and the script of a play? I've tried Googling the answer but the sites I've looked at seem to use playtext and script interchangeably and primarily focus on the difference between 'script' and a 'play'. I might be wrong, but I think the playtext is the published book version of a script.
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Post by firefingers on Feb 16, 2023 0:39:21 GMT
What's the difference between a 'playtext' and the script of a play? I've tried Googling the answer but the sites I've looked at seem to use playtext and script interchangeably and primarily focus on the difference between 'script' and a 'play'. So a playtext is the formal version as agreed by the writer. The script may well not quite match. A performer may go in rehearsals "I don't think my character would say mother, she would say something more casual like mum" and so change it for that specific run (even on a brand new work) but the published version may be what the writer really wants.
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Post by firefingers on Feb 16, 2023 0:44:18 GMT
What is the difference between a musical and a play with music? (Answers from TallPaul don’t count). I'd consider a play with music to be where all the music is diegetic, i.e. this is all literally happening. A lot of musicals are non-diegetic, i.e. they don't know they they are singing or that a band exists, it just a 'natural' thing. Some shows like Once or The Commitments have parts where they play a "gig", they know they are making music, so this is more akin to a play with music. But sometimes it is just snobbery on the creative team who look down on musical theatre and are looking for a term to claim they aren't working on a musical.
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Post by oxfordsimon on Feb 19, 2023 23:22:33 GMT
What's the difference between a 'playtext' and the script of a play? I've tried Googling the answer but the sites I've looked at seem to use playtext and script interchangeably and primarily focus on the difference between 'script' and a 'play'. So a playtext is the formal version as agreed by the writer. The script may well not quite match. A performer may go in rehearsals "I don't think my character would say mother, she would say something more casual like mum" and so change it for that specific run (even on a brand new work) but the published version may be what the writer really wants. Not necessarily I recently worked on the first revival of a script. We signed the rights contract to perform as written... We were lucky to have contact with the author and he came to a rehearsal. Turns out that the published version was not the version they performed. The script had to go to print before the end of rehearsals and so some sequences were edited and some cut completely. So we were the first to stage some of the script. So much depends on when the script is delivered to the printers...
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Post by sfsusan on Feb 21, 2023 18:25:47 GMT
Thanks to all who answered my question about a playtext. Is it possible to have one playtext for one run of a play, then a different playtext for a different run (especially if it's some years later)?
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Post by Dave B on Apr 10, 2023 9:49:04 GMT
What is the deal with 'house seats'? I've seen a few mentions of them on here recently. Are they seats generally not put on sale in case of a celeb or journalist, or someone with some stature (alleged or otherwise) turning up on the day or putting in a late request? Do they get released on the day if not in use or are those the occasionally good empty seats you can still see at a sold out west end show?
Thanks!
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Post by alece10 on Apr 10, 2023 10:02:17 GMT
What is the deal with 'house seats'? I've seen a few mentions of them on here recently. Are they seats generally not put on sale in case of a celeb or journalist, or someone with some stature (alleged or otherwise) turning up on the day or putting in a late request? Do they get released on the day if not in use or are those the occasionally good empty seats you can still see at a sold out west end show? Thanks! Theatres usually have house seats in case of any issues such as double bookings or other admin errors. They can be sold at last minute to people in the returns queue. I remember going to see Les Mis concert and I had an upper circle seat but wasn't able to climb all the stairs. I got offered a house seat in the stalls and just paid the difference.
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Post by properjob on Apr 10, 2023 22:09:32 GMT
What is the deal with 'house seats'? I've seen a few mentions of them on here recently. Are they seats generally not put on sale in case of a celeb or journalist, or someone with some stature (alleged or otherwise) turning up on the day or putting in a late request? Do they get released on the day if not in use or are those the occasionally good empty seats you can still see at a sold out west end show? Thanks! Yes as well as covering box office problems they are also used for the cases you listed, people who are important to the show or venue. Therefore they are generally good seats and are released for sale whenever the venue/company are confident they don't need them. That could be just minuites before curtain up.
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Post by TallPaul on Apr 15, 2023 10:36:33 GMT
A reasonable chunk of the Theatres Trust annual income comes from the sale of what it calls 'Proprietary Seats'. Alongside rent of £417,000, in the financial year to March 2022 this amounted to £75,000. It also received an insurance pay out of £34,912 for the loss of sales during the lockdowns.
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Post by crowblack on Apr 15, 2023 10:42:29 GMT
How far in advance are theatre shows cast? I take it if it's a big name it must be timetabled some time ahead but just generally I wondered about this and with TV and film. I notice with TV and film you often don't get names announced until filming has actually started.
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Post by Jon on Apr 17, 2023 14:39:14 GMT
I know there's often competition for theatres in London but is is similar on tour? I imagine a show like Wicked and The Lion King probably are able to decide which dates they want at what venues.
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Post by anxiousoctopus on Apr 17, 2023 15:25:59 GMT
I know there's often competition for theatres in London but is is similar on tour? I imagine a show like Wicked and The Lion King probably are able to decide which dates they want at what venues. Idk about how the competition works, but I saw someone who works at the Mayflower mention on Twitter that they weren’t able to book Beauty and the Beast for that theatre because they’d already filled the available dates the show was offering (mostly with standup shows, probably because it was only just post-COVID)
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Post by Jon on Apr 18, 2023 18:23:01 GMT
I have another touring query, is it deliberate for certain shows to only play one region? I understand for somewhere like Ireland, it's down to lack of suitable theatres and that people can travel to Dublin from both ROI and NI fairly easy but I wonder if producers of The Lion King for example know that people will travel to see the show no matter.
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Post by longinthetooth on Apr 25, 2023 17:49:48 GMT
Apologies if this has been asked before, but in this age of tickets being sent to your mobile, how does it work if one of your group is delayed in getting to the theatre? Is it acceptable to forward them the email with the ticket attachment?
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Post by alece10 on Apr 25, 2023 18:14:07 GMT
Apologies if this has been asked before, but in this age of tickets being sent to your mobile, how does it work if one of your group is delayed in getting to the theatre? Is it acceptable to forward them the email with the ticket attachment? I've done that before and usually tell the other person which seat I'm taking so that they know to get the other one scanned. Otherwise could cause an issue if one ticket has already been scanned. If that makes sense....
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Post by longinthetooth on Apr 25, 2023 21:43:13 GMT
Apologies if this has been asked before, but in this age of tickets being sent to your mobile, how does it work if one of your group is delayed in getting to the theatre? Is it acceptable to forward them the email with the ticket attachment? I've done that before and usually tell the other person which seat I'm taking so that they know to get the other one scanned. Otherwise could cause an issue if one ticket has already been scanned. If that makes sense.... Yes, that makes perfect sense. Thanks for the tip.
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Post by samuelwhiskers on Apr 27, 2023 10:08:12 GMT
How far in advance are theatre shows cast? I take it if it's a big name it must be timetabled some time ahead but just generally I wondered about this and with TV and film. I notice with TV and film you often don't get names announced until filming has actually started. Unless an actor has been 'attached' to the play for a while for some specific reason (celeb casting, director and actor pitched the project together, playwright wrote the character with that actor in mind) it's usually pretty short notice. Anything from two weeks to six months ahead of time, with smaller roles cast right up to the wire. I've cast shows where we were still calling agents on the Friday for rehearsals starting on Monday, but only for tiny roles or last minute emergencies. For leads, well how long is a piece of string. I'm currently casting a play that starts in November, partly because they're looking for a name for the lead, and partly because the casting has rigid requirements that won't be easy to meet.
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Post by crowblack on Apr 27, 2023 11:03:04 GMT
How far in advance are theatre shows cast? I take it if it's a big name it must be timetabled some time ahead but just generally I wondered about this and with TV and film. I notice with TV and film you often don't get names announced until filming has actually started. Unless an actor has been 'attached' to the play for a while for some specific reason (celeb casting, director and actor pitched the project together, playwright wrote the character with that actor in mind) it's usually pretty short notice. Anything from two weeks to six months ahead of time, with smaller roles cast right up to the wire. I've cast shows where we were still calling agents on the Friday for rehearsals starting on Monday, but only for tiny roles or last minute emergencies. For leads, well how long is a piece of string. I'm currently casting a play that starts in November, partly because they're looking for a name for the lead, and partly because the casting has rigid requirements that won't be easy to meet. Thanks! I used to live in a houseshare with theatre actors many years ago and it all seemed very precarious.
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