As Live Production: Rehearsal 10/04/18

As Live Production: Rehearsal 10/04/18

Today was one of our last rehearsals, and (after some initial teething) was one of our most successful. Today was also the first time we were able to run through the entire show from start to finish. 

With our actual presenters, models, and proper stand ins we had almost everything we would have in the live show. As a result today was heavy on building communication skills. After the last rehearsal myself and Sonia had an in depth chat with the directors (George Lock and Gavin) about how the role of the floor manager should be split. Since Del suggested it should be a shared role and not split, and in practice myself and Sonia found this to be very useful, since there is a lot of work for one person to do. However this was causing some confusion with the directors as they were unsure who was in charge if the floor. After some discussion and negotiation it was agreed that I should take charge of Alfie, and Sonia should take charge of Adaline. And while we would both be managing the floor at all times it would be Sonia who would vocalise the gallery's instructions for the first half and myself for the second half. Apart from that, whoever was in the best position would be the main focal point. 

After the first run through we found that this actually made sense and worked well. Having had several rehearsals to practice I found my listening skills were more developed and I was able to act on the directors words quite efficiently. 

However the first run through we did was quite rough, this was due to several factors. Firstly we hadn't had a rehearsal in nearly 3 weeks, meaning much of the information about the show and its staging had been forgotten or had to be recalled. One problem I encountered was that the presenters had forgotten what my hand signals meant. So when I was trying to get them to wrap up or stretch out a section they would get confused and just stop all

together. To fix this I sat down with them to go over where I would be standing, what my signals meant and that they could come to me if they were ever confused. There was an instance where the presenters stood up too early and went to walk over to the catwalk prematurely. But thanks to quick signals from myself and Sonia they passed until the time was right. After this we sat down together to note down the exact lines they should move on.

Another communication issue I faced today is that sometimes the director would say "role VT" instead of "sting" which caused confusion as to how much time we had between sections. Sometimes it was also unclear when models should be queued and

which camera presenters should look at when heading in to the audience. However despite a little confusion we were able to complete a full run through that was to time.

After the first couple of rough takes, Del came out to talk to us all as a group and give feedback. This was where we spoke as a group to work out some of the issues we were having. The main feedback myself and Sonia received was that we need to be louder, and have more of an assertive/clear presence on the floor so that everyone was clear on what was happening. We should start each section with as long of a countdown as possible and make sure everyone knows which camera we are starting with. We also discussed the logistics of the audience interview. Since Laura goes handheld for this part it is difficult for her to pan and dismount at the same time (in order to follow the presenters) without it looking rough and unprofessional. After some discussion that I contributed to it was agreed that a different camera should pan to follow the presenters initially while Laura dismounts (and we can then switch to her feed). I had to make sure this was communicated to the presenters so they knew where to look at all times.

Feedback from the contributors was that they wanted more direction and attention from us as floor managers as well. Since although they knew when to walk on they were unclear on where to look and when to walk off. After some discussion with Del and Jack we worked out some positioning between us so that the Talent and contributors could all see us when they needed to, and we could guide them when to Walkman/off and where to look (simply by standing next to the appropriate cameras). 

I was particularly grateful for this feedback and got to work on it in the next run through. This run through went a lot smoother however there was still a little bit of confusion that we had to work through. For the section where our presenters head in to the audience the contributors had to be sat in specific seats which we struggled to get right first time around. For this section the presenters also use a handheld mic. I had to get that from the sound department, learn how it works and work out when/where is most appropriate to give it to the presenter. Looking at the script I found the best place to do this was during one of the VT's. I spoke with the presenter briefing them on how/when to use it and where I would leave it for them. Unfortunately on this occasion the presenter forgot to bring it so I had to give it to them on the way to the interview. Although it cut out for some reason we decided to still keep using it so the presenters could practice using it. 

This section was also a little held up as I was unsure where best to stand to direct the presenter but stay out of the way of the cameras. We also found that we had to move the audience further back to give Laura enough room to move (which caused further confusion over where contributors should sit). 

But we were able to get a clearer idea of how this section would play out. The rest of this take went relatively smoothly with the only issues being confusion between myself and the gallery as the director was telling me to queue the presenters when there was still  time left on the countdown. But I went with my better judgement and followed my director (after some initial hesitation). 

Towards the end of the day we had time for one final rehearsal. We had a slight setback in this run through since Sonia had to leave, leaving me as the solo floor manager for the whole show. And weirdly enough although it was a struggle, it was by far our most successful run through. The biggest problem I had was trying to be in two places at once since I didn't have Sonia. To resolve this I tried to give Jack some more responsibility (which didn't really work as he was too distracted dealing with the other contributors). As such I had to make sure the presenters were in the correct positions and order, then queue them from the front of the set (since if I was at the back I wouldn't have time to run round). Which although caused slight delay, it did work. 

The rest of the run through however was a huge success. The models and presenters were all queued at the correct times (since Jack was instructed to use his own judgement more as well as listening to the director), and I stood next to the "Live" camera at all times making sure I could be seen and signal the models when to walk off. 

When it came to the audience interview this also went a lot better. After the last time, I decided I would place the hand held mic in the presenters hand during the VT so they had it on them (although this made it difficult for them to hold their script this won't be a problem in the Live show). I also ensured the guests we speak to were sat in the correct seats and that I stood out of the way but was still visible to the presenter. Since Sonia wasn't here I couldn't look after Adeline and Alfie at the same time during this section, but I made sure while we were in the audience that she knew exactly what camera to look at, and that she could call me over if she had any problems.

The rest of this take went very smoothly and I was able to keep it to time nicely. I was loud, on the ball, and stood in the right place to give clear direction. The only other issue we had was that we forgot to remove the mannequin after the Etsy seller interview. But apart from that everyone finished the take contempt with the overall success of the run-through.

I was very pleased with the progress I made, and we made as a group today and next week I look forward to working more closely with Sonia, and having our actual contributors and runners in the studio as well.