10 Tips For Prop Money Vendors

This is the sort of job taken on by a real enthusiast. I requires the utmost patience and attention to detail because no matter what the length of the list you start with, it will have doubled by the time you go before an audience. Do not believe the Director who says. 'There's hardly any prop's in this particular one' because something may have been missed.

For this reason, what are 'prop's'? The word is short for 'properties' and means anything needed within the show by the actors which can't be screwed down and is just not constantly on the stage. So handbags are prop's, Little Red's basket is a prop, the champagne glasses are movie prop money [visit this backlink]'s and sometimes a scarf can be a prop as well as part of a costume. This would be in the matter of it being needed quickly sometime during the show.

Prop's are kept on 1 or 2 prop's tables, at the back of the stage or on each side, according to where the actors need to pick them up from. They go missing. Actors are begged to return them whence they came, but it will not always happen.

An excellent Prop's Person goes through the script with a fine tooth comb for the list of things needed. Additionally it is necessary to attend a rehearsal or two to determine if other things, not mentioned in the script, have come up. For an example, in 'Seussical, the Musical', circus skills are referred to in one scene, but not the specific skills, so until we saw who was doing what we did not determine what to provide. It proved to be a lot of juggling balls which we were able to get several matching sets of, some stilts, some recorders and some balloons. None tough to source, but without watching the rehearsal it could not have been clear.

A list then must be posted where everybody can easily see it, to ensure that people can indicate if they have, or could get hold of, any of the items. That usually takes care of about half of what is needed. That leaves the Prop's Person the job of sourcing the rest. Local museums can prove useful, helpful and free for an advertisement within the programme. eBay is amazingly good for sourcing odd things, and organisations like Freecycle - a local recycling organisation which has groups through the UK - is wonderful for finding that odd thing. As each thing is sourced the list needs to be updated so no-one busts a gut getting something someone else has already sorted out.

In real extremis you might have to go to a theatrical hire company - but keep in mind there is never enough money put aside for prop's - tell me something new - as well as the more you can borrow the easier it will be to afford those things you simply must buy.

The Prop's Person must keep a list of where things came from to ensure that it really is known where to return them to afterwards. People don't help two times if they don't get their stuff back pretty promptly. Your show insurance will cover any little accidents - but it really is better not to borrow something of any value unless it is desperately vital to the show. In 'Me and My Girl' three identical fob watches are required. The person I borrowed from was, to my relief, very relaxed about the one which had its chain broken. I felt very lucky.

For this reason, it is not difficult - just hard and time-consuming. As well as the Prop's Person needs to be present at the Dress Rehearsal and every performance to supervise the use and return of the prop's. If that will not happen something vital shall go missing. Oh, and of-course the prop's tables have to be set up each night ahead of the show, and checked item by item. Then it's going to all run smoothly.