health and safety

for the show and my job role health and safety was really important. ways in which we ensured the safety of performers and back stage crew were:

Taping all wires down with gaffer tape, reasons for doing this are that wires and cords sticking out would be a tripping hazard for performers and stage crew in the rush and dim lighting back stage.

putting white gaffer on the edges of the curtains to outline exits for the audience so that if in case of an emergency the exits are clearly visible

blue parcans were placed backstage the purpose of this was to give some light back stage so the preforms wouldn't injure themselves and help to make backstage safer

props tables were set up backstage the purpose of which was so that the props were not scattered around backstage causing tripping hazards and for the fluidity of the show that all props were in standardised places

backstage there were also bits of staging sticking out behind the curtains so to tackle this issue we placed strips of gaffer on them to caution performers

bubble wrap was also wrapped round the stage supports to stop any injuries that may be caused between the performers heads and the metal supports

caution and no entry signs were placed over certain gaps in staging that were unsafe that we noticed performers trying to use as shortcuts during the performance to stop any possible injuries we placed these caution signs

at the end of act one there was a confetti cannon so before the interval came on we swept the excess confetti clear of the audience path out as the confetti had a glossy quality that could be considered as a slip hazard and cause injury to the audience if it wasn't swept away

props

here is the timetable for the show period and the acquiring of the props, complete with deadlines so the team would not fall behind in the sourcing of the props

below is an image of the props table upon which we placed the props required for the show in total there were three props tables so that certain props would be closer to exits for actors ease, in this picture the table is dimly lit with an led par can angled away from the set

 

 

 

 

yet another example of a props table ..to keep the items separate we taped the props into separate articles

 

set photos

Here is a photo of the finished set with the finished painted bridge in the background I worked upon

here is an example of part of my role during the show period was to trash the set mid show by throwing paper bottles and rubbish all over the set, overturning the deck chairs and the salon chairs

at the back are the side railings with their spindles needed repairs as the spindles were made of LX tape and snapped under the duress of the show period

 

 

 

 

 

an example of the set before the bridge was completed

 

 

 

after bridge completion

 

synopsis

Act 1

At the crack of dawn, on the hottest day of summer, Usnavi chases away a graffiti artist from his tiny bodega in Washington Heights, opens the store, and introduces the major characters ("In the Heights"). Last to appear is Nina Rosario, back at last from her freshman year at Stanford University. Alone, Nina ponders her struggles at college and readies herself to give her parents some bad news ("Breathe").
Meanwhile, Nina's parents, Kevin and Camila, seek an emergency loan to keep their struggling taxi dispatch afloat, temporarily leaving Benny, a young employee and friend of Nina's, in charge ("Benny's Dispatch"). Meanwhile, at the hair salon across the street, Vanessa, Usnavi's potential love interest, dreams of escaping to a studio apartment in the West Village, remaining optimistic despite her own financial insecurity ("It Won't Be Long Now"). When Vanessa stops by Usnavi's bodega, Usnavi's younger cousin Sonny asks her out to a romantic evening on Usnavi's behalf, and she accepts.
When Nina's parents return, she reveals how she lost her academic scholarship and dropped out of Stanford. Nina's father, Kevin, is devastated that he cannot provide for his daughter ("Inútil"). Nina seeks comfort from Vanessa, but the salon owner and local gossip, Daniela, sits Nina down for a makeover, coercing Vanessa into admitting that she cares about Usnavi's sexual decisions; Nina then reveals to the salon that she has dropped out ("No Me Diga").
After Usnavi discovers that he sold a winning lottery ticket worth $96,000, everyone on the block dreams of how they would each spend the small fortune ("96,000"). Later, Abuela Claudia—the beloved neighborhood matriarch who "practically raised" Usnavi as a young orphan—reflects on her childhood journey from Cuba to New York in 1943, showing the audience that she secretly holds the winning lottery ticket ("Paciencia y Fé").
Nina and Benny take a tour of the neighborhood and reminisce, gradually sharing romantic feelings ("When You're Home"). At a dinner party, Kevin announces that he has sold the family car service to pay for Nina's tuition. Vanessa and Usnavi enter a dance club for their date, followed by a furious Benny, who is now out of work, and an apologetic Nina; tensions rise on the dance floor because Vanessa and Usnavi are attempting to make each other jealous, while Benny drunkenly hits a man dancing with Nina ("The Club"). The entire club breaks out into a huge fight when, suddenly, the power goes out throughout the city, probably due to the intense summer heat. The neighborhood erupts into chaos and Usnavi, Vanessa, Nina and Benny all look for each other in the darkness. Meanwhile, Sonny and his mischievous friend from the opening of the show, Graffiti Pete, attempt to distract the bodega from any potential looters by setting off fireworks; at the same time, Abuela Claudia reveals to Usnavi that she won the lottery, while Nina and Benny find each other, argue, and then kiss ("Blackout").

Act 2

Benny and Nina have spent the night together and, the next morning, Nina teaches Benny some Spanish phrases, while he shares his stress over what Kevin will think of their new relationship ("Sunrise"). Down on the street, Usnavi's bodega has been looted. Abuela Claudia convinces Usnavi they should use her lottery winnings to move to Usnavi's homeland: the Dominican Republic. Usnavi agrees to pursue this lifelong dream at last ("Hundreds of Stories").
Nina's parents have been searching for her all night, and when they learn that she has been with Benny, Kevin is furious. Kevin vows that Benny will never be a part of the Rosario family because he is not Latino, but Camila ends the family fight ("Enough"). It is high noon and all are frustrated by the extreme heat and continuing power outage. The locals, led by Daniela, muster enough energy for a last celebration before the bodega, salon, and dispatch shut their doors forever. Usnavi publicly announces that Abuela Claudia won the lottery, and he and she will soon leave for the Dominican Republic; the neighborhood celebrates, though Vanessa is heartbroken ("Carnaval del Barrio"). Kevin makes a sudden announcement over the taxi radios: Abuela Claudia has died ("Atención"). The neighborhood holds a vigil for Claudia, while Usnavi, attributing her death to a "combination of the stress and the heat," makes an impromptu eulogy ("Alabanza"). Usnavi and Nina rummage through boxes of Claudia's keepsakes ("Everything I Know"). As Nina discovers photographs from her own high school graduation, she decides to accept her father's sacrifice and return to Stanford.
Across the street, as Daniela closes her salon, she reveals one last bit of juicy news: she will co-sign on Vanessa's dream apartment in the West Village, thanks to a little convincing from Usnavi ("Piragua" – Reprise). Vanessa brings a bottle of champagne to thank Usnavi and, though she flirts with him, he is so flustered by Claudia's death that he is unable to appreciate Vanessa's attempts; Vanessa finally kisses him and leaves ("Champagne"). Meanwhile, Benny worries about his relationship with Nina, since her decision to go back west, and they stand together while the sun sets, uncertain of their future ("When the Sun Goes Down").
The next morning, Usnavi wakes up early to begin closing up shop. In just a few weeks, Usnavi imagines that the block will be completely changed. Sonny, however, has commissioned Graffiti Pete to paint a mural of Abuela Claudia on the bodega's grate. Sonny now rolls down the bodega grate in front of Usnavi, revealing the memorial. Usnavi is stunned that they completed this all in one night; he tells Sonny to spread the news that he has changed his mind to stay, promises to pursue Vanessa, and realizes that this block is his true home ("Finale").

intitial production plannings meetings

Minutes – 1/4/14

Ashleigh Gow
Gemma Johnstone
Lucy Andrew
John McDermott
Sophie Brown
Jordi Williams
Drew Turner
Joel Murray
Jordan Simpson
Matt Elliott

·         The set goes up the first Friday back. 29/4/14.

·         Gemma, Me, Anna - We need to LX tape the size of set ASAP. Performers need to rehearse in the correct space / exits.

ASM – Jordi/ Matt : liaise with the Stage Management team.

John – Mike Granger. Work with set designer now to sort where speakers are. Use a lighting plan to rig. NOT Qlab. Very complex sound software –John must have sorted with Mike Granger and Sarah. Getting the tracks is the priority.

Lucy – costume, performers wearing on clothes and source their own stuff. Lucy will get group stuff. No personal costumes, today talking to Nancy.

Gemma has a script and will be in rehearsals from after the Easter break. She can film them and report back to show the others what is happening.

Drew- has thought about some of the props and where to source them. Mark can answer some of his queries e.g. about the fridge. SM need to make a list, priorities. We will meet separately to discuss this today / tomorrow.

Sophie -  FOH ideas have begun. PA will do programmes. We will make FOH look as authentic as possible. Need to speak with JPS for effective communication. Meet with SM to discuss deadlines asap.

Jordan – work with Anna & Lucy, effective communication and work to deadlines. He will have help from the SM team (join our meeting.)

Joel – helps with rigging, focusing, plotting. Can possibly attend some rehearsals with Gemma when possible. 

 

  In this meeting due to the absence of my managers in a prior lesson I stepped up and presented ideas and timescales for the sourcing/purchasing of props so the process of sourcing would flow easier

hierachy

stage manager

potential equiptment list

props:

• a props table
• duct tape
• LX tape
• clipboard/checklist

costume

• costume table
• sewing kit

Job Role props/costume assistant manager

The job role I've been given for this production is costume/prop assistant manager the responsibilities of which are to help with the acquirement of props/ costumes during the production planning process through means of hiring, borrowing, or purchase of the props or costume to the given budget the assistants report directly to the costume/props manager, whose job during the process is to liase with the artistic director and the stage manager to ensure any props/costumes are sourced before show date, the prop/costume assistant managers may also be required to alter or help in the construction/alteration of said articles or in the very least oversee the alterations/construction to ensure the prop/costume fits in with the artist directors vision and is also practical/robust enough to last the duration of the performance period.
during the performance period it would the costume/prop assistant managers job to help manage the prop tables and help with quick changes to ensure the fluidity in the running of the show, the assistant managers may also be in charge of any repairs or alterations to the props or costumes during the performance duration.

after the performance period it would also be the responsibility of the prop/ costume assistant manager to ensure the safe return of any of the borrowed/ rented articles(prop or costume)to their original sources.

detailed main character analysis

Usnavi is the narrator of the play's story and a major character throughout; he is the owner of a small salon in Washington Heights. He was named after one of the first sights his parents saw when they arrived in America: a US Navy ship. He dreams of returning to the Dominican Republic, a place he was born but too young to remember. Abuela Claudia, the neighborhood matriarch, "practically raised" him when his parents both died during his early childhood. He is in love with Vanessa.

"Abuela" Claudia is the loving matriarch of the neighbourhood who knows everybody and is like a grandmother to all  She is the one who looked after Usnavi when his parents died. She and her mother moved from Cuba to New York in 1943 while she was a child. She worked as a maid for several years but never earned the money for her and her mother to travel home.

Vanessa is Usnavi's love interest who works at Daniela's salon. She is very pretty and catches the eye of every guy in the Heights, however she takes interest in Usnavi. She lives with an alcoholic mother and dreams of getting out of the neighbourhood and getting an apartment downtown, but cannot yet afford it.

Nina Rosario is the first in her family to go to college, and everyone in the neighborhoor admires her as the "one who made it out." However, she returns home from school for the summer to reluctantly tell her parents that she has become overburdened and dropped out. She is the typical "good girl" and always got along with her parents. Now, though, she loses patience constantly over her father's overprotectiveness and his refusal to accept Benny.

Benny works for  Nina's father, Kevin. Perhaps the only character in the play who does not speak Spanish and is not Hispanic, he falls in love with Nina. He dreams of opening his own business.

Sonny is Usnavi's sassy,  lazy, yet ambitious younger cousin who works with Usnavi in the salon. He is typically the jokester of the neighbourhood, but he also has an intelligent and thoughtful side that yearns for and wants social equality

Daniela is the overdramatic owner of the salon where the neighborhood girls come to gossip. She is very bold and loud and loves to banter.

Carla works at Daniela's salon along with Vanessa, and is Daniela's close friend; young and pretty, but a little slow to get the others' jokes and innuendos, she is of Chilean, Cuban, Dominican, and Puerto Rican descent.

Kevin Rosario is Nina's overprotective father, who, coming from a long line of farmers, but worked hard to break tradiction. He now owns his own taxi cab service: Rosario's.

Camila Rosario is Nina's strong-willed mother, who wants what is best for Nina. She is typically tolerant of Kevin's control issues, but in the course of the show, reveals her real feelings.

The Piragua Guy (Piragüero) is the owner of a small restaraunt stand that competes with Mister Softee.

Graffiti Pete is a graffiti artist and friend of Sonny. Usnavi believes he is a trouble-making vandal, until Pete reveals his skills as an artist.

title of play,name or playright,premier dates and where

title: in the heights
music & lyrics: lin -manuel miranda
book: quiara alegria hudes
premier dates and where:20th april 1999 small scale