Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Broadway Producers, Stagehands Battle Over Mops: Jeremy Gerard
Bloomberg.com: Muse: "Both sides acknowledge that progress on key issues has been made in previous sessions. Apparently, the final point of contention is a mop, which makes a perfect kind of sense: Broadway musicals cost north of $15 million to mount these days. But the 350 stagehands responsible for installing these complex behemoths and running them safely while maintaining the illusion of stage magic are planting a mop like a flag in battle."
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3 comments:
Yes, mopping can be very important. A screw left on the floor from fixing something can really hurt an actor. But I don't see why that job cannot be assigned to someone who has free time during the pre-show. And why this person cant do just a good a job as someone else.
or someone who actually knows can answer:
It may be helpful to actually work backwards. If curtain is at 8PM, everyone, cast and crew, needs to be in the theatre at 7:30 (half hour). That is the basic show call, 3 ½ hours to 11PM. Actors will arrive early to warm up but that is their option.
Depending on the requirements of the production, the show can be preset at that time. Generally however, electrics runs dimmer and focus check an hour before half hour (6:30) in order to do any quick fixes necessary (replace burn outs lamps, gels, etc). Carpentry and Props will check and/or preset the pieces that they need to do. Wardrobe is in at the same time. This hour abuts the basic call and is called the "continuity hour" which is paid at straight time. Because of the activity on the stage with electrics, carpentry, props and wardrobe moving about, it is considered unsafe to have them work on a wet floor to say nothing of the need of the prop man to have an open deck on which to work. So the mopping is done at 5:30PM. Because this is work outside of the basic call and the continuity hour, which is at straight time, the mopping is done at an overtime hour. So that fight is about the extra half hour of pay the prop person gets for coming in early. Kind of petty for a production that can sell over a $1 million in tickets a week. But it became a big deal in the press.
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