Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "Elly Noble of Greensburg has acted in many local theater productions, including several at Pittsburgh Playhouse, but her leading role in Stage Right's 'Peter Pan' is unique for one reason:
'It's my first time flying,' she says.
The young actress, a senior in Point Park University's musical-theater program, is excited about playing the boy that won't grow up — especially because she gets to be airborne in a few scenes."
13 comments:
I did a production of Peter Pan a few years ago, and the flying really made the show great for me. I had a great time, and it helped me develop a new skillset. Also, working with the ZFX guys is really a great experience. They are helpful and nice, and really have a great time. One of the things I really appreciated the first time I worked with them was their rep, Cap'n Stu, had a few minutes off as we were waiting on the actors, and we were working on some notes, and he came over to offer his assistance. He wouldn't get paid more for what he did, but he enjoyed being involved and wanted to help out. They are great guys. This production sounds very interesting because of the way they are handling Tinkerbell. That alone will make it worth seeing, although it does seem risky.
This sounds like a really interesting production. I wish the article had spent more time talking about Tinkerbell than Peter Pan. I've heard about that sort of live actor playing with pre-recorded actor situation and I'm really interested to see what it's like in practice. There were moments of it during the recent London and then NY production of Sunday in the Park with George and I have to say I felt a bit disconected. I don't know if that is the intention for Tinkerbell but it should be interesting no matter what.
I'm hearing more and more about ZFX and less and less about everyone else that does flying. Until the beginning of this year it seemed like 80% of what I heard about concerning flying was Foy with the rest mostly being things done in-house (often with a traveler track and 3 large guys on the rope). Now ZFX seems to be getting the news and the jobs. I can understand them getting it from the engineering that goes into their flying rigs, and from Calvin's comment above it sounds like they are the ones to go to for customer service as well.
I was at the International Thespian Festival this summer, and ZFX gave workshops every night, and one of the things that they said was that Peter Pan was one of their most popular shows to provide flying effects for. It would be interesting to work for them and work on Peter Pan productions, because each one would have to be different based on the set and the venue's space.
This production looks like it is bringing some new and interesting technology into a classic play. The addition of flying isn't really new technology as a whole, but the complex effects and rigs are technical marvels in this day in age and allows for even more spectacular stage images. The addition of the new style projections also makes this show a different show than one would expect. It will be interesting to see what the outcome of this technology is to this classic play.
This article is actually extremely close to me. I have actually been a fly harness operator for a local production of Peter Pan. The same ZFX company and equipment was used. From a technical aspect, the system is complex and complicated to set up and maintain, but as a whole is relativly easy to operate. As with all other aspects of theater. You have cues you have it hit and spikes you have to set and even equipment you have to maintain. But with this position of operating such a complex and vital piece of machinary, it is important to maintain control at all times. But from a actors stand point, I understand what she went through. During training, I had the opportunity to fly. It really was a once in a life time experience....I truly felt like I was going to Neverland.
This production sounds like it would be very interesting... I would love to get a chance to see it. I have worked on a show in the past that involved flying, and it really is a very cool experience. I've also seen a show with the effect they are talking about using for tinkerbell, with the live actors interacting with recorded versions. It was something that I hadn't ever seen before, and if done well, it really adds to the experience of the show.
I've never seen a theatrical production that included special effects like flying so I would be really interested to see something like that happen especially something as whimsical and colorful as peter pan. It fascinates me that the limitations for what can occur on a stage and in theatre are become irrelevant because of the technology and the advancing capabilities of theatres and special effects companies like ZFX. I've also never seen any characters projected on stage which seems really innovative
Stage Right's production or Peter pan deals with two types of special effects and each produces a different emotional reaction from me. Flight, an older but still impressive on stage effect, is part of the whole magic of the play. Flight is an experience most people only dream about experiencing, and captures the imagination.
The projections of tinkerbell are something which I feel somewhat more skeptical about. It seems a little Hollywood, too sleek for a production. Part of the beauty of theater, which sets it apart from film, is the level of suspension of disbelief required. I can't make a judgement without having seen the production, but I agree with Calvin in thinking it presents a risk.
It strikes me as odd to hear commenters on this article express their concern for projecting Tinkerbell as being too high tech for the theatre. Back when actors first began to fly on stage, the idea was also considered progressive and quite possibly a cheap distraction from the plot. When done correctly, in conjunction with a high point, any special effect can heighten the emotion of a moment. Therefore, I would hesitate to call an effect outdated or too Hollywood, rather the particular style of integration so.
This sounds like it is going to be an awesome production. It's awesome that they are going to actually fly Peter Pan (yay ZFX! they were awesome to work with for Into the Woods) and that Tinkerbell will be projected behind an actress Tinkerbell. I wish them the best of luck with their mixture of stage and film. It's definitely going to be an interesting production.
And after just reviewing the article to see when it was to be preformed, I see this show has already past...how sad. I wish I could have seen it.
While it is hard to imagine a production of Peter Pan without flying, I am glad that the flying companies and the members of teams retelling this story have been finding ways to incorporate new technologies into their productions. I hope that this actor/projection interaction will work out as this is still an element of theatre that is working out its kinks. I just hope that as in all productions, the technical elements aid the telling of the story instead of dictating it.
Side Story: During a production I was running the Foy effects flying (that they seemed to have choreographed a thousand times before… because they have), one of my fellow flying operators got a false cue from a member of the run crew and proceeded to jump from his perch atop a 10ft ladder causing Peter to fly straight into the bedroom window.
I am a huge fan of the story of Peter Pan, and really enjoy seeing it done well. That said, this particular production seems worth seeing, if only to see how the new concept of Tinkerbell works out. I would not be surprised at all if more and more theaters adopt this idea. It pleases me to see a play that was written over a century ago embracing technology in order to tell its timeless story.
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