Accidents Happen, Chill

 
            “Why did that gun just go off?” is probably not something the average person would like hearing. It’s also not the most ideal for an assistant stage manager.
            In our last production, we had a lot of variables. Extension chords, perishable food, and a blank firing gun to name a few. Each of them came with their own complications, and almost none of them went perfectly.
            Let’s start with the extension chord. In our scene, characters had to blend a piece of paper in a magic bullet. In a perfect world, we would have installed a power source into the unit it was placed on. The downside: we didn’t have time. It resulted in a 30’ extension chord across the floor. At first we just wound it up and brought it out during the scene change, but it kept getting tangled and caught and caused the magic bullet to either be unplugged or worse, fall out of the unit which would have ruined the gag.
            I started basic, I tried shorter chords, coiling it differently, everything. It was hell. Finally I took gaff tape and lined the side of the chord that was visible to the audience with gaff which made it less likely to be caught within itself. Then I took some tie line and coiled the other side. Tying it actually made it almost impossible to move and it helped very much. It solved that issue.
            Our perishable food struggle came directed from eggs. In one sketch our protagonist was Wacky, the waving inflatable arm man who stands outside of car dealerships. It was a day in the life of wacky, starting with breakfast. Since he had no control of his arms, he ends up flinging raw egg into a frying pan. Our struggle came from the assurance of it actually landing in the pan. Each day it did, but our first day with costumes got egg all of the sleeve. We had to hold and quickly clean up before eggs were flung all over the stage.
            Our last mistake came from the blank firing gun. Regardless of the fact that I could hardly ever load the gun on my own, it gave us super anxiety. The one instance was when it was fired offstage.
            Again, Wacky, comes onstage kicking an old cardboard box. We later find out he has decided to kill himself. The box contained the gun. One of the runs, the gun mysteriously went off in the box. After examination we tried to figure out what happened.
            Our speculation was that it got caught on the side of the box, there was a hole just a few inches above the mark of black powder.
            The real purpose of this was to discuss the panic that ensues from situations like this. A lot of times, first time stage managers and assistants freak out from these scenarios. They do not know how to handle this overwhelming issues. Also, even when they do find solutions, things do not always go perfectly. Accidents happen, like guns going off, eggs splattering, and extension chords getting unplugged. The important thing is to stay calm. Panicking makes the entire ensemble panic. Instead keep control and you’ll be in control.
            So remember, Accidents Happen, Chill.

We Think It's Funny at Plymouth State University Photo by Kaleb Hart