Saturday, September 06, 2014
‘Throwback Thursday’: 1960 Stagehands at Work
www.aflcio.org: This week’s “Throwback Thursday” feature takes us back to 1960 in an AFL-CIO film that goes backstage for a close look at the work the members of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) perform from “play in” to curtain up.
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This video made the rounds last year and I love getting to watch it when ever possible because it makes me incredibly thankful for the commodities that we have today. At the same time it makes me giggle a little bit at how little we've changed things since the start of theatre. From the road cases, to army of stagehands to move the cases off the truck into the space. Of course there will always be miles of cable to run all over the place. It makes me curious as to what it is that we are doing right with some of these practices and what we are missing that could make it better for ourselves. I am not referring to improving on old ways like moving from Hemp houses to Counterweight Fly systems to automated fly systems. Im talking about the possibility of inductive power and Wireless DMX for lighting fixtures.
As soon as I saw that it was 13 minutes long I grabbed myself some lunch and plopped myself down. By far the best idea I had all day. What a delightful and informative video! I feel like I actually learned so much.
Some general comments I had while watching:
1. Road cases have not changed since 1960. And really, why should they?
2. The clove hitch and the bowline really are all you need to be a stagehand.
3. Theatre crews smoke just as much today as they did in the 60’s. (no surprise here)
4. If you’re a camera guy filming someone raise a flat, don’t stand under the flat.
5. If you need to build a show you need to hire a carpenter, electrician, rigger, propmaster, etc… Or you can just hire “THE STAGEHAND”. Seriously, that guy can do it all!
6. Running a light board in the 60’s takes more coordination than brain surgery. #somanylevers
7. An average show in the 60’s used as much electricity as a small town. Todd, tell me we’ve fixed this. Please.
Overall I actually really enjoyed this video. I sat there thinking why there was nothing like this series anymore. I would love to see a day in the life of the average American worker in every industry. Then I remembered about Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe.
It's quite amazing to compare the backstage of the 1960's with what I know of backstage today. I love how the statistic on how many trucks it took to move shows. I'm sure the six trucks the voiceover spoke of were an incredible number for the 60s, but its not uncommon for traveling productions to travel with 60+ trucks today. It's also rather humbling to see generations past backstage, and know that I am part of their legacy. Perhaps the most impactful part of the video, however, was how similar aspects of the load in looked to load ins I have done today. Some things never change, even as the industry advances as a whole.
This video was a wonderful glimpse into the past. Its so cool to see that theatre hasn't actually changed that much, but at the same time has changed beyond belief. The flats back then were relatively simple, mostly made of wood. Now we use the craziest materials to make sets sturdier or achieve a certain effect. Besides drops, we can now use projections. And then there's the lights. The lights nowadays can use the same power and be much, much bright than they were back then. And just think about it- we now have lights that can move by themselves!
But in the end, we haven't changed at all. I'm so proud and thankful to be able to be part of an industry that operates much the same way now as fifty years ago, thereby linking all the stagehands together, past and present.
This video puts a fantastic new perspective on working in a theatre. In the past, they had approximately the same work to do, but without the modern tools that make it easier today. I thoroughly enjoyed watching the old processes of flying drops and hearing how the sets an props must be moved around to tour. Hearing about the old lighting styles is also very interesting, because it is still a crucial part of creating moods of the piece. Having everything on a non-electric system seems insane to me, and seeing how it was developed is so interesting. I also like the feel for teamwork that is still prominent today, but is less necessary in terms of manpower on individual jobs.
I found it very insightful to watch this video especially as a young artist looking to make a future career in this long established industry. Although as technicians we often find ourselves looking ahead to build things better, to light everything more efficiently, and to generally keep up with the constant push to look towards the next great technological innovation in the industry, its kind of humbling to remember that you can still create theatrical magic as they did in the past with some basic materials, knowledge of knots and pulleys and the collective teamwork of a skilled and driven crew. Just as important I think its also valuable to remember how this industry was created and has evolved over time. We are so often wrapped up in the present and the future that we forget to examine our past which is really the foundation for everything this industry is and will be. I for one didn't know that many of the original stagehands in America were once sailors who were able to adapt themselves to the industry and to advance it with their own knowledge of knots and rigging. Information like this which we often find as trivial and obsolete is extremely important and interesting in my view as it gives us a sense of self understanding as descendants of these original technicians, while also providing us with insight in the evolution of the industry and a prospective on how we might advance it ourselves.
This might be the third time I've seen this video but I love watching it none the less. I never really knew, before watching this video, that so many terms were derived from the naval industry. It now makes sense with words like boom and baton. Currently in rigging we are working on knots which is fitting with nautical theme.
Another interesting fact that I hadn't realized was how much has changed since this was recorded, but also, even more, how much has remained the same. We still, in most theaters use the same technology for lighting (Lekos) but now we can use electricity more reasonably. The biggest change in the clip is the lighting board. Obviously we don't use manual dimmers anymore and instead have extreamly high tech computers to run our shows. The fly rail, while slightly modernized still basically works the same. I loved the way the guys were dressed, you would never see today's stage hands wearing a button down shirt and khakis to a load in. It was also funny how they commented on how we still call a props man a properties man, while now a days we have reverted to the short props man or more appropriately, props master.
It was really cool to see all these skilled professionals hard at work and I would wonder what they thought of how we did things today.
What a cool video! It is so much fun to see what our jobs were like almost 60 years ago. I loved to hear them refer to lights that are moved up and down on a batten as "movers," thinking of how hugely technology has changed. The really interesting thing was, though, how the fundamentals are all still there, both in method and in intention. At one point, the narrator said, "A good stage crew can convert a great American desert into the canals of Venice." And really, isn't that still what we pride ourselves on? I love that then, stagehands loved to create new worlds, and that's exactly what we love to do now.
Only sad part was the lack of estrogen, but that's a different conversation.
This was a really fun video to see. It was kind of funny to see how much things haven't changed. I guess the adage "if it ain't broke don't fix it" applies here. There did seem to be less people standing around "supervising" though. It also seems that people did a bit of everything then as opposed to now where there are more specialists. Perhaps a good thing that's gone bad?
This video was really cool, in that it provided a new perspective for me as to what life in the theatre was like. It certainly does point out some things that I think we take for granted, like steel cables for fly and an increased possibility for transportation. It gives me a greater appreciation for the amount of work that goes into a show, and the engineered materials that we have to work with today.
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