Introduction:
So you want to go on tours, huh? That's Awesome! Enclosed herein are notes and tips about doing so. These come from my experiences in the Spring of 2019, where we performed in Hartford, CT, for the MIT Alumni Club there. It was fun, we learned a lot, and hopefully reading this will give you a sense of how to go about starting up this process.
Just one additional word before getting into the meat of it. Make sure you have support before really diving into this. Tours take a lot of effort, and you support is imperative to make sure you get the people power you need to make it happen without tearing your hair out. Now to the meat of the thing...
Logistics:
Why Go on Tours?
Tours can be really fun. You get to spend a few days with friends, putting on theater; it's why we're a part of the Ensemble. It's a great way to meet alumni, perform for new people, and experiment with how putting together a show in a short amount of time in an entirely new space. It's challenging, but definitely doable if you have the support (mainly the actors, someone to run logistics day of, and some prod staff).
How To Initiate the Process
When we initially toured in the 1980s and when we restarted the program in Spring 2019, we were working primarily with the MIT Alumni Club of Hartford. Leon Kaatz reached out to us and asked if we could perform for the alumni there. Leon really liked hosting us, although he was already getting older during my time, so he may no longer be involved with running the alumni club. I recommend that wherever you want to perform, you find some group to host you. Hosting here means less that you stay with them (more on that below), but more that they can help you find lodging, organize food, publicize your event to interested parties, and most importantly find a performance space. The guide below contains no information on actually locating a performance space because, luckily for us, the alumni were able to do that. We performed in a school, which worked well, but lower-key options include a public park, community theater, or someone's backyard even. It all depends what you and the alumni want. Additionally, some Alumni Clubs may be able to provide funding or support your trip financially, which is really helpful for renting cars and finding lodging.
To find Alumni Clubs, I recommend looking within a few hours driving radius of MIT and seeing what alumni clubs are active. Email them and just ask if they'd be willing to host you guys and your performance. Every Club you deal with will be different in what they want or can provide, but having a support in the location you are going to makes planning easier and ensures you have an audience when you get there.
When to Tour?
Fall Semester:
In my time, we never toured during the Fall semester since the on-campus show dates were right near Thanksgiving and a weekend trip (or Tour in general) didn't seem feasible.
Spring Semester:
In 2019, we performed during the second weekend of spring break (leave MIT the Friday of spring break, return Sunday, the day before classes begin). This timing worked well enough, but it resulted in what felt like a very short spring break. Now that the last performance of the spring semester is the Friday right before spring break, an alternative that we voted on for the attempted Tour of Spring 2020 was leaving campus that first Saturday of spring break and then returning to MIT by Monday, thus allowing people approximately 5 uninterrupted days after Tours to return home or relax on campus. Also coordinate with the alumni/performance location on this to match their needs, but at the end of the day, it matters more that people are available and willing to Tour the selected weekend rather than where exactly you are in performing.
Where to Stay
In 2019, we stayed with the alumni of the Hartford Alumni Club. The overwhelming response to this was that it was unnecessarily stressful, and it resulted in Tours being quite unfun since everyone was split up. I do not recommend doing this again. Instead, try and find reasonable (read: cheap) hotels near where you are performing. Alumni can likely help fund this as well. Book the rooms as soon as you have an accurate headcount of how many people are going (actors, production staff, extra hands if needed), and then record from those going rooming preferences. Some things, like how comfortable someone is rooming with a certain gender or individual, are really important to take into account. Also, it's generally good practice to keep couples separate. If you receive push back from Alumni who want you to stay with them, feel free to cite MIT Policy, which does say that the Institute does not like students staying in the homes of Alumni.
How to Get There
Rental cars are an easy way to get places. For 3 days you're looking at ~$150 for a 5-person car. People with personal cars are definitely valuable too as they reduce cost. Remember to also include the cost of gas in your budget. For help renting cars, check out this page I wrote a bit ago, it goes through all the details of applying the student discount at Avis/Budget. Also note that those who reserve a car need to have someone with a credit card there to pay for it; Budget and Avis don’t accept Debit cards when renting cars. Try and reserve cars as soon as you can.
Also, a note on car sizes, while SUVs could be helpful if you are moving large set pieces, they also tend to be quite a bit more expensive. If you NEED a lot of huge set things and have a thick budget, perhaps a UHaul is the way to go. Otherwise, 1 SUV to fit big props/small set pieces is probably all a budget can handle.
Now, time for the good stuff and how you actually cast/get prod staff for all of this...
Actors, Production Staff, Directors:
Directors:
In my experience, neither year we did this was the director available to go on tours, and honestly that was perfectly fine. For the most part, the difficulty of the Tour performance that a director could help with is in adapting blocking, and actors are good at that on their own. It also minimizes the number of people you need approval from for understudy casting, and lessens the number of rooms to book. All pluses in my view.
Actors, Understudies, and All That Jazz:
To do a performance, you need actors (wild, I know)! During my time in the Ensemble, Tours were always considered secondary to the on-campus show, meaning that an actor's ability to go on tours did not influence their on-campus casting. I think this is good to go by, but if times have changed, go with the times. Regardless, below are the steps to go through in order to determine who can/cannot go on tours and accordingly fill roles:
During Auditions:
First, the normal round of auditions are held. Included on the audition contract is this question: Indicate if you: a) don’t want to be an understudy for the Tour show under any circumstance, b) only want to be an understudy for the Tour show , c) if you are not cast for on campus show, would be okay being an understudy for the Tour show. Once the on-campus show is cast without consideration for the Tour show, an email should be sent out to all actors asking whether or not they can commit to coming on tours the designated dates. Actors are given until 1 week after read through to indicate if they can and wish to go on tours. Any actor who can maintains their role between the two performances. For those actors who cannot go on tours, it is time to cast a Tour Understudy.
Finding/Casting an Understudy:
Begin by looking through the audition contracts for anyone who auditioned only as an understudy or who was not cast but said they would be willing to be an understudy. Additionally, email out to the Ensemble to ask if anyone is interested in being an understudy for the tour show. If you do not have enough interest through these methods, send dorm spam like would normally be done for auditions. Once you have people interested in understudying, the decision of whether or not to hold formal understudy auditions for ensemble members is left up to the discretion of dirstaff and tourdirstaff depending on how much time and interest you have. If auditions occur, the director has first say for casting if they desire it (they often do not because they are not deeply involved in the Tour), otherwise it shall be decided by dirstaff and tourdirstaff in a 2/3 majority vote.
Understudy Rehearsals:
The decision of how much rehearsal understudies are expected/can have is up to you and the rest of dirstaff. Basic expectations are outlined below, and for small roles you can probably get away with very few, blocking-focused rehearsals. For those roles that are larger/more integral, the director may want to run a rehearsal or two with the understudy. It's just important to keep in mind both that this respects the amount of time the understudy indicated they want to put into the process, and that it doesn't interfere too much with the on-campus performance. Scheduling for understudy rehearsals would ideally be under the SM, but it may also fall on you. If this is the case, I found that a run through with the understudies during brush-ups was pretty easy to do since mainly you just need to run a few scenes.
Expectations of Tour Understudies:
- Go on tours
- Participate in tour Put-In, Strike, and other Tour-related activities
- Memorize lines and participate in Understudy Spaghetti rehearsal
- Participate in scheduled understudy run throughs (Suggest at least 2, even if only those scenes in which understudies participate are run)
- Notes will be given:
- Acting Notes: Given by Director, AD or some non-actor person will give notes to understudies (no actor to actor notes should be given)
- Blocking Notes: Given by SM or anyone familiar with the blocking
- Notes will be given:
- If the Director so desires, they may request an additional rehearsal with the understudies. Rehearsal of this type may not take up more than 3 hours a week unless the understudy explicitly approves of it and doing so does not detract from the on-campus performance.
- Attend one full run/show they do not participate in to get a sense of the show
- Shadow at least 1 rehearsal for each scene they will be a part of
Production Staff:
Now onto the process of finding production staff to help out with Tours! The first step here is identifying which departments are vital for tours to happen, and which can either be left out or easily transferred. As with actors, any department head who wants to go on tours is more than welcome to, and in such a case they would be given first dibs on running their department on Tours. To get a sense of who among prodstaff wants this, begin by emailing out to the crew seeing who can and wants to come on tours. I gave people 1.5 weeks from read through to come to a decision, at which point their department was up for grabs.
If a department has no one who wants to go on Tours, it's up to you to find someone to take point in ensuring that anything from that department needed from on-campus makes it on tours. For some departments, this can be as simple as tasking an actor with collecting all of the costumes at the end of the last show and making sure they get into the car. For others, this could mean having someone design a light plot ahead of time and program simple cues when we get to space. Below, I've outlined what I found to be useful for each department to do for tours, as well as highlighted a few new prodstaff positions you can search for if you need more hands.
Hair & Makeup:
The main thing here is just ensuring that any makeup/wipes/wigs/whatever used during the show is set aside during on-campus strike such that it can be easily found and transported into a car for Tours. The amount of tour presence of a H&M person scales with how active they are during the on-campus performances (i.e. if someone who needs to do complex hair/makeup change in a scene, may be worth trying to get someone designated for that on tours). Otherwise, you probably don't need a designated person.
One thing of great importance though is ensuring that understudies have their foundation/highlight/low light matched while still on campus. Work with the H&M designer to get this done.
Costumes:
Similar to H&M, need for this a specific person assigned to this department depends on the complexity of the show. Focus should just be ensuring that costumes make it on tours. Also, work with them before Tours to ensure that understudies, if they can't fit into the on-campus actor's costume, has something to wear. It can be simple, especially since it's more work for the Costume designer, but it needs to be done and shouldn't be done by you.
Props:
Same concept as the previous two, just make sure the props you need get on tours. Ideally, if whoever assigned to this can make a prop table backstage that's great too.
Pub:
Ideally, you will have a program specifically for the Tour show that lists understudies, tour production staff, thanks the alumni/location you are performing, etc. Ask the Alumni early on if they would like anything special in the program so that you don't spring this on the Pub Manager during Tech Week. Assuming you stay on top of this one and can go to Copy Tech to get them printed for free, and you should be golden.
Blood:
If present in a show, make sure you have blood packs and know how to apply them when the time comes. Otherwise, not much needed here.
Video:
If used, you will need to make sure you have someone who knows how to use the software present on tours, as well as all the equipment (cables, projector, laptop, screen) necessary to make it happen. Otherwise, unlikely to cause too much of an issue, just need specialized skills.
Paint:
Probably nothing, I don't expect people to be repainting a stage, but up to the vision.
Sound:
Assuming the performance space has built-in speakers, the main things that need to be brought are the sound cables and sound laptop. If you are performing somewhere outside a portable speaker will likely do the trick. The bulk of the sound person's tasks will be figuring out how to plug into the performance space's sound system, but once that is figured out shouldn't need too much set up.
Lights Team:
Lights is hard to do on tours, at least that was my experience. It is crucial to have at least 3 people who know what they are doing such that light hang, focus, and programming can all happen as quickly and efficiently as possible. If the LD can go on tours, that's amazing, if not, find someone who can program to lead the department. Whoever is in charge should be talking with someone at the performance space to learn what lights are there, the system they use, if there is a scaff, if there are gels, gel frame holders, cables, everything. Before you go, it is probably a good idea to have whoever is programming cues to have a list of relatively simple light cues they are going to do first before trying anything complex. Lights at other places can be a pain in the butt (our performance space in 2019 had 2 universes and lights randomly assigned to each, and only one universe was accessible with dimmer boxes number only 1-12. It can be very limited). Remember that it's okay for lights to simply go on/off depending on the scene and for there to only be one special. Schedule with the SM to make sure that time will be used efficiently for lights to focus as well.
Sets Team:
On Tours, the Sets Team is in charge of transporting and building whatever set pieces need to be used for the show. I recommend having the person in charge of this department (be it the on-campus TD or a volunteer tour TD) be in contact with someone at the performance space to learn about the space and what is there. Is there furniture that can be used? What about power tools, nails, and scrap wood? In 2019, this department had 3 dedicated people in charge of building stuff, and they picked up others as people in other departments finished up. This worked well, but there came a question of what would need to be done if the on-campus set was a two-story platform that was too complex to build in a few hours but too bit to transport. This leads to the idea that it may, depending on the on-campus set design, be good to have a new production staff role called Set Adapter whose job it is to take the on-campus set and turn it into something feasibly done while on tours. Additionally, this would alleviate any added tours-related work on the already over-committed on-campus TD who is also going on tours.
SM/Logistician:
I would argue this is the most critical person to have on tours because they run the show once you get into space. They are GOD, more powerful even than an SM during tech week. This could be you, the Tour Coordinator, but if you are an actor I recommend it is someone else. The job of the SM on tours is to run an entire tech week in the span of a few hours, adjusting blocking as needed, keeping departments (especially lights and sets) on track time wise, and making sure that the actors are comfortable in the new space. It is imperative this person understands the schedule of the day, they should probably craft it. Having the on-campus SM be this person makes life so much easier, but if that is impossible to have, you need someone who really understand the show. Also, this person should make sure that gaff tape, extension cables, the SM binder, SM kit, first aid kit, etc. make it on tours. This person will also likely call the cues during the actual show, with the LD and sounds person in booth as well.
For a more specific breakdown of how departments were tasked for 2019, check out this document: Department Head Roles.docx
Tour Day Logistics:
Overview:
The Tours I planned were often 3 days long. One day for travel and initial set up, one day to build the sets/lights/do a run through and then perform that night, and then leaving the next day. This can definitely change depending on what people want, but I don't think doing something in under 3 days is feasible. The main things to balance when scheduling Tours are alumni interaction time (often the main reason the Alumni are willing to host us), time to actual prep and put on the show, and Ensemble bonding time.
A sample schedule used in 2019 for an evening show is here:
Friday, March 29th:
- Sarah, Collin and I go to pick up car at 12:00
- Drive cars to Kresge Lot or Amherst--cars ready at 1
- Meet at Ensemble Office at 1:30 to help move supplies to the cars
- At latest, show up to office at 2/2:15 to prep for leaving
- (ACTUALLY LEAVE BY 3PM)
- Arrive to Leon’s 111 Oak St # 2, Hartford, CT 06106 by 5pm
- All cars but the SUV will be left at Leon’s lot (transfer all things into that car)
- Students driven to homes of alums, where we will be fed and stay the night
Saturday, March 30th:
- Arrive at space by 9am
- Get to work in your designated department
- Lunch provided at some point
- Run or walkthrough of show--up to Kacie (SM)
- Showtime: 7:30pm
- Reception after show
- Strike after reception
- Returned to homes to sleep
Sunday, March 31st:
- Driven by hosts back to Leon’s office
- Leave by 11am
- Arrive back to MIT by 2pm
- NO ONE LEAVES UNTIL EVERYTHING IS PUT BACK AND STRIKED
The above schedule worked well enough, but making the alumni wait for us to strike after the show to take us home definitely strained them.
Below is the proposed schedule for 2020, assuming a matinee performance and more explicit alumni time given the fact we were not staying in there homes:
—DAY 1—
- Leave campus in the morning
- Arrive to CT middle of the day
- Shorter meet and greet with alums (possibly a lunch or just afternoon snack)
- Everyone goes to space to drop off costumes, props, etc.
- Tech crew (lights and sets) does their put in
- Actors spend the time relaxing, either at the hotel or at performance place
- Dinner just as an ensemble, maybe minus those doing lights and sets depending on their timeline (yay bonding!)
—SLEEP, DAY 2=SHOW DAY—
- Finish tech in the morning (if it’s needed, ideally go straight to a run through)
- Dress rehearsal minus costumes, makeup, etc
- Matinee show (3PM? 4PM?)
- Strike?
- Dinner/reception with the alumni
- Sleep again at the hotel
—FINAL DAY 3—
- Possible breakfast with the alums
- Drive back to MIT
It would also be possible to rearrange timing to add in an ensemble bonding event, either on the drive there or back. It could be as simple as stopping somewhere all together to get ice cream or lunch, just something fun for us to do. Although it was never tested, the above schedule satisfied the alumni in terms of interaction with us, and seemed like it'd be less stressful for all involved.
Finally, for a schedule of what actually goes on in the day you make the show happen...
SM Sample Schedule for Day-Of:
Here is the schedule crafted by the amazing Kacie (the SM) for the 2019 tour performance date: TOUR DAY OF SM Notes and Schedule.docx
The main points to stress are that it's really important to do a run of the show, even if it's just a quick walk through, such that the actors and understudies can run the show together in the new space. Blocking will inevitably change, light cues may not exist that once did, just really roll with it and be flexible without losing the schedule. It's a crazy day, but if you have a plan you'll get through it.
When Things Aren't Going Right:
When shit hits the fan (or the fan has never been working properly) and you're not finding any way to pull it together, first, take a deep breath and remember that this is really hard, but you're doing a great job. Find those who can support you, both in terms of what needs to get done and mental-health wise. There are some times, though, when things are not going well and it is time to pull the plug on the Tour show. This decision is hard and it sucks, but we needed to make it in Spring 2020 and it was the right one. Below are some scenarios for when it may be appropriate to consider canceling Tours, and guidelines on how to move forward:
The Tour Cast is Not Filled:
All actors for the on-campus show will be given 1 week from read through to indicate whether they will or will not be acting in tours. After this week has passed, the Tour Coordinator will work with the dirstaff to cast tour understudies from the pool of actors who auditioned for as understudy roles. If this pool is not of sufficient size or interest, members of the Ensemble will be surveyed, as can members of the general MIT community need be through dorm spam. If, after all of these efforts or the allotment of 3 weeks, the Tour cast is not set, a meeting should be held between the dirstaff and tourstaff to discuss the casting issue and vote on a resolution. A 3/4 majority vote of dirstaff and tourstaff is required to cancel tours.
The Tour Crew is Not Filled:
All production roles for the on-campus show will be given 1.5 weeks from read through to indicate whether or not they will take their department on tours. If, after the allotted time, any of the lights, sets, SM, Director, or TD departments are entirely unable to go on tours, a meeting between dirstaff and tourstaff will be held to discuss whether or not these departments are vital for tours to occur. A 3/4 majority vote of dirstaff and tourstaff is required to determine the specific department’s necessity. If the department is determined not to be vital, the Tour Coordinator is under no obligation to fill the department. If a missing department is deemed vital, then the Tour Coordinator has until 3 weeks after read through to find a replacement, at which time a meeting should be held between the dirstaff and tourstaff to discuss the issue and vote on a resolution. A 3/4 majority vote of dirstaff and tourstaff is required to cancel tours.
No Performance Location:
Ideally, the alumni you are working with will be able to find a reasonable location for you, and they will do this in a reasonable time frame. If, 3 weeks after read through, the alumni have no leads, the Tour Coordinator, tourstaff, and alumni will speak on the phone to discuss contingency plans such as performing in someone’s backyard, a public park, etc. If, a week after this phone call takes place, there are still no performance space options, a meeting should be held between the alumni, dirstaff, and tourstaff to discuss the issue and vote on a resolution. The alumni may phone in for the beginning of the discussion to state their points and answer any questions, after which time they will leave and the remaining members will continue to discuss and vote on a resolution. A 3/4 majority vote of dirstaff and tourstaff is required to cancel tours.
Cost:
If, at any point in the process, the cost of going on tours is growing to such an extent that it would be financially impossible or irresponsible to go on tours, the Treasurer may call a meeting of the dirstaff and tourstaff to discuss possible alternatives, including but not limited to: grant applications, alumni financial support, scaled-back costs. Upon conclusion of this meeting, if the Treasurer does not see an improved financial situation within 1.5 weeks of initial meeting, they may call a second meeting with the dirstaff and tourstaff at which point discussion and voting on a resolution will take place. A 3/4 majority vote of dirstaff, tourstaff, and Treasurer is required to cancel tours.
In Conclusion:
I just wanna close by saying you can do this. Tours is a lot of work, but I found it really enjoyable. You get to have your hand in every aspect of the process, you essentially are the producer and some of the SM, of the tour show. Remember to just communicate with the other dirstaff and ask for help when you need it. Other than that, roll with things when they get a bit funky and enjoy it, it's a fun time.
Useful Documents:
Documentation Spring 2020.xlsx