City Pages: "We spent two weeks making the most realistic eyeballs that you could also squish," reminisces Seán McArdle, talking about a King Lear production he once worked on. He and his colleagues made Jell-O eyeballs using a mold designed for Halloween parties, then added a red string to each to serve as an optic nerve. Each creation was then sealed in white plastic, and moistened to look true to life.
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I love hearing about the different experiences professionals have had throughout their theatre careers, and Seán McArdle definately has some fun stories to tell. Prop designers are some of the most inventive people within the theatre community and this article really highlights that. One thing I like so much about this article is that as McArdle reflects on his career you can read the passion and excitement he has for his work. I also love that he commands the respect he deserves as an artist while also giving the utmost respect to the collaborative process that is theatre. For example, his story about Kevin Kline with the chickens; McArdle respectfully asserted his authority as prop designer to insist to Kevin Kline that having a bag full of real dead chickens backstage was not a good idea. To the same token, he values the collaborative process. He expresses how much he loves that the Guthrie's artistic director allows him to engage in the rehearsal process. Anyone involved in the creative process of a show should be able to be openly involved throughout the rehearsal process as well. I think all directors should leave their rehearsal open to their designers. Overall though, I just love this article because it provides a peek into the life of one of the many theatre artists in the world who are doing what they love everyday.
I always love reading storied about how props get made and the thought process that goes in to figuring out how to make things looks real while also being safe. It’s a process that feels like it’s the very essence of what we do in theater. We are in the business of trying to convince the audience that they’re not in a theater and not watching actors (most of the time). We go to great lengths to make these fake worlds we create seem real. Props builders like McArdle do the same thing but they’re doing it constantly and for everything. Even things that at first seem like they wouldn’t need to be faked (ie a gun shot, just use a blank or a sound effect) it turns out they end up having to fake too. On top of that the things we ask them to make vary widely, like McArdle talked about in the article, one minute they’ll have to be making fake eyes and the next it’ll be fake food. It’s this wide breath of ability and ability to make assorted items seem like a real thing that belongs in the world of the show that makes props artisans to key to the theater process.
The world of theatrical props is so unique and interesting because, as this article stated, they have to work time and time again and be exactly the same every night. Because of this, I feel like the people in the field have to be both extremely creative and extremely practical-- equal parts artist and engineer. You have to think outside the box as far as materials and method of building, and try several different things that may not work. You also have to make sure it's safe, will work every single time, and will hold up regardless of how long the run is. The ones that interest me the most are the props that have to "do" something: light up, shoot smoke, move, or make a noise. I'd be interested to see how many props artists are skilled in robotics and programming, because I bet that some of the more advanced moving props at least have a rudimentary foundation in that. I also don't really understand why there are so few props artists in the industry-- most theaters I have been to have had their scenic artist or paint charge make the props themselves.
It's fascinating to hear these stories about the amazing things Sean McArdle has built. I think it's really interesting how he uses seeming normal items to make these extravagant props. He mentioned remote control helicopters and jello molds; I never would have thought that such intricate props were made with ordinary items. McArdle has an interesting point about how special effect in movies differ from TV. In TV the effects only need to work once or twice from certain angles. They can also manipulate the sound, light, cut to an image of something else or use CGI. In the theater, the props need to create the special effects every day. That adds to the magic because the audience can witness the action each night and each time it’s slightly different, giving the actors new ways to react and make the scene original. It’s amazing that there are people as dedicated and able to think as out of the box as McArdle to make theater even more magical.
Grateful for the time Seán McArdle gave to allow us a little peak into his life. my favorite part of the article talks about the real life demand of theatre and refers to the prop master as an inventor whose inventions must work every time. This to me captures the very essence of what technical theatre is. We don't have the luxury of cutting when something breaks, and I think that makes those who work in theatre stronger and more throughout workers. Typically, their work must be designed and functional all 360 degrees, not just the side pointed to the camera. This is why I respect theatre so much. It's amazing all the answers to wacky scenarios that Seán has come up with- who thinks of jello in place of an eyeball? This article reminds me that there's so many amazing little niche's in theatre, and inspires me to continue forward to find my own. There are so many roles that play big parts in entertainment that really don't receive the credit they deserve.
While i have never been wholly interested in being part of the world of props, i have always thought that prop-masters are giant problem solvers. I think they have some of the craziest jobs in the theater, whether it be constructing a dead horse as the centerpiece to a show or trying to find a convincing alternative to real chickens before an actor tries to keep a bag of them backstage. Prop workers have to be able to look at the props they build from both an aesthetic and a practical sense, because if something looks really cool but doesn't work, or vice versa, then it will stick out like a sore thumb. I also think it takes a lot of patience working with actors and making sure they're comfortable with the props, and they can use them every night performance after performance. As technology in theater advances, the technology used in props must get more advanced as well, and therefore the prop-builders must get more skilled with different technologies making them some of the most versatile and flexible workers in a theater company.
I think making props is really fun because it's in many ways just adult arts and crafts. You get to play with goop and plastic and seashells and glue - my kind of party. The part that I found really interesting was the part about the BMW Bugs covered in sea shells - often we think of props as being only a theatrical element or an element in film, but complex props are used in advertisements, window displays, photography, and so many other artistic mediums that I think the smartest and most employable job is that of a prop house owner. Everyone will always need fake arms and weird things, and they're way more likely to rent it out than try and make it themselves.
I would like to learn more about prop making at CMU, because I think it's a really employable skill. Prop masters are often unsung heroes to a show, as they have a hand or foot in almost every other technical field they need to collaborate with, as well as the acting side. I hope to learn more about different materials and "hacks" to making cool or weird props!!
Prop masters have one the most unpredictable jobs in the theatre industry, and this article did a really great job of giving an outsider a peek into it. My first crew call here at CMU was to create fake topiary roosters that could be rolled on wheels, which is only the tip of the iceburg when it comes to the craziness of props. One of my favorite things about McArdle's work is the great range that he has shown. From the Jell-O eyeballs to the seashell car, no two projects are ever exactly alike. One of the important things to note is that, as McArdle says," Our stuff has to work every night, every show, seven to eight performances a week, and it has to work flawlessly." In a movie you can always do a reshoot if something goes wrong or fix it in post production, but this is never an option in theatre. It just really speaks to the skill of the prop master that they are able to adapt to whatever is thrown at them.
Props is such a cool concentration. They are tasked to create the most interesting things. Props people are amazing problem solvers. My favorite thing to hear about in props is when they have to do consumable food and they have to deal with actor food preferences, dietary, restrictions, budgetary needs of the show, and storage and preparation issues. The things that they use to make the food is so intuitive and ingenious. This article brought in a new perspective to me. I only thought of props in movies, theater, and film, but this article talked about props in department stores. I never thought of props in marketing and now I’m thinking of props in music videos and other marketing devices like commercials and theme parks. Props are literally everywhere and they help create the world of the play and the life of the characters.
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