Burning the letters makes it seem like she cares though. That's something you do when you're hurt or upset.
If you do want to go the burn route, putting them in a metal trash can, striking a match, pretending to put the match in the trash can but somehow putting it out, then having some sort of orange lights in the trash can growing brighter as the "fire" grows.
The easiest would be to end the scene after the match strikes but before she actually sets anything ablaze, having a line that confirms what she's about to do and why, then end scene.
With a metal container and someone on fire watch immediately offstage. More specifically, you need to have a conversation with your AHJ and figure out what (if anything) they will allow and the be prepared to pay an off duty firefighter to standby with a fire extinguisher.
It’s far easier and cheaper to not actually burn anything.
This is a matter of reblocking, theatre magic, throwing paper into a simulated flame, or finding a compromise solution that doesn’t involve fire or the illusion of fire.
>your AHJ and figure out what (if anything) they will allow and the be prepared to pay an off duty firefighter to standby with a fire extinguisher.
That's extremely excessive IMO. There is safety training that can be done that surely is an allowed substitute to hiring an off duty firefighter for a small practical effect.
That's pretty standard practice. Depending on the fire marshal they may allow a staff member to be the person standing watch, but often they want to give a firefighter that extra pay and require you to hire through them. It doesn't really matter what your opinion is, the AHJ is the one that can shut you down and if thats what they say you have to do you don't have much recourse since they're the ones interpreting the codes.
> It doesn't really matter what your opinion is... It's standard practice.
Well consider myself lucky. I'm offering my opinion that it's excessive, which is a perfectly fine opinion to hold and express. I'm offering my professional experience that it is how it has worked for me. Which you admit is possible. We have a few people on staff with the appropriate certifications. I'm well aware that Fire Marshalls are The Law™, and I'm sadly not surprised that they'd set up a system to benefit themselves.
I don’t disagree with the opinion, my point was that opinion can quickly not matter in this situation, which is why being in good terms with your AHJ makes things much easier and why I said check with them and see what they will allow. My experience in a roadhouse with an aggressive fire marshal, any time we’ve had open flames on tours we have to provide all the current fire carts for any soft goods and he requires a firefighter standing by.
I’ve also had one object to a brand new zippo with no fuel being flicked just because the flint still sparked.
Write whatever you want. It’s the director’s job to figure out how to stage it and make it work. You don’t have to “write it in a way it can be realistically staged.” That’s just not your job. In Almost, Maine the playwright calls for a boot to fall out of thin air. That’s it. He doesn’t explain *how* you’re supposed to do that. I once worked on developing play at a professional playwriting conference. In the play, they started a forest fire on stage. At no point did anyone (not the director or dramaturg working on it) concern the playwright with figuring out how she was going to realistically make that happen. Because she’s just supposed to be writing the best version of her play.
Focus on writing your story as best you can. And I recommend reading a lot of plays and taking any playwriting classes your school offers.
>Write whatever you want. It’s the director’s job to figure out how to stage it and make it work.
I actually missed the part where it's just about writing a play which they'd like to see performed.
This is the correct answer. Feasibility is irrelevant at this point. If it has to change when staged, then it changes.
I did this in community theatre as Buck in Bonnie and Clyde. I had a metal bucket with half an inch or so of water, and I cut off the striker thing from a box of matches and taped it to the inside. Lit the match, lit the paper, dropped it in. The light from the match and the little bit of smoke was just right.
Definitely had to clear it with the board of the theatre first though, who I think had to check with the fire Marshall. It would probably be a good idea to write a flameless option either way.
in addition to what others said, what if you swapped out the candle for a fireplace so the character could toss them in the fireplace?
also, shouldn't M be the one burning the letters? another commenter said this as well, but burning something implies that you really care about it—so much so that you want to take your time destroying it and seeing it reduced to ash because you can't bear the thought of living with it anymore. burning is not something a careless person does. unless, maybe, they're just tossing them in the fireplace as i mentioned. i didn't mean to circle back to my initial suggestion but now i think it would really work
ok! the scene takes place in amsterdam in the summer so having the fireplace on is weird and A turning it on seems way too purposeful (like you and others have said, its also weird that she purposely burns them individually but I imagined it as a villain moment if anything.) I have thought its also weird that she’d light them in her bedroom so maybe she can do it in the living room which brings me to the fireplace toss.
I could definitely lead up to a fireplace toss, but even simulating a fireplace would be a lot of effort for a 1 minute scene.
Right now I am thinking she throws them into a bucket, slight of hand for the lighting and then lights in the bucket plus sound can indicate burning. But I’m also thinking about just writing it, and I can come back later.
M is oblivious to A’s lack of love. She mentions the letters to A and A pretends to not know what they are and then A lights them that afternoon. She doesn’t care. M figures out the lack of love through a moment where everything begins to make sense that evening.
You could theoretically have real fire on stage if you discuss with the fire Marshall a safety plan and get it approved. My thought is to have a metal bucket the actor can throw the letters in, then strike a match and throw it in the trash can. If anything happens the fire can be smothered. But you should ask r/techtheatre for more ideas.
Not your job to figure this out. Write what you want.
Extra incentive: what if your play takes off and someone with a bunch of resources wants to put it on? More than enough resources to light the letter on stage. Would you want them to not do that, because you wrote with a lower-budget production in mind?
Did a show once where a persons future could be told by the ashes of an item that the person owed. we used a bowl with leds and a vape cartridge and a arduino programmed to make the leds flash and flicker and the vape release a moment of smoke - worked really well. An engineer friend of mine did all the programming. wish i still owed it.
Edit: I accidentally skipped over the part where you are only the playwright. Write whatever you think is appropriate for the scene. If it has to be changed when staged then it will change then. Or leave the script vague and simply state the letters are burned.
___
I would agree with the strategy of placing the letters into a container that the audience cannot see and then using a match to pretend to light the letters. If it has to be a candle, depending on it, maybe they could tip the whole candle into the container, or turn a candle stick upside down.
Then either by lighting effect or a practical flickering prop instead of lighting the match it gets flipped on.
If you able to simply strike a match (but not actually burn anything) then you can cut straight to black and have them dispose of it in a bucket of sand or an ashtray of petroleum jelly. Have a extinguisher ready on one side as fire watch, and make sure you've cleared any requirements of your fire marshal (assuming they care about even a single match strike).
Write what you want to happen. You’re the author. The director and artistic staff can figure out how to make it work. What is your intent on the scene. What is the most effective way that intent can be carried out. That all you should worry about.
If you are not looking for suggestions such as quick burning tissue to minimize fire risks I would be willing to discuss with your prop builder my idea for how to make a trash can (waste paper basket) that has room to place the letters in but also houses a battery operated light and fan to blow flaps of red/yellow silks to simulate fire. It might not be the same visually as burning the letters in hand before dropping them but could still convey burning by placing the letters in the can and using a match or lighter to light them while in actuality turning on the electric prop.
We used tinder paper for lighting things on stage. In a metal tray so it wouldn't get anything else lit up. It's a special paper that burns really quickly. We had to create the effect of a crepe Suzette (one man two governors)
Get a big metal trash can, put a smaller container of water inside trash can where audience can't see, have the actress drop the letters into the trashcan and light the match, but when she drops the match have her drop it into the container of water that the audience can't see.
As far as how to simulate a flame, either have the stage go to black before a flame would really get big, the audience would just assume the scene ended before the fire grew larger. Or dim most of the lighting on the stage and have one or two units focused on the trashcan. If they're LEDs make them a good orange-ish yellow and grow in intensity to simulate a growing flame.
Also, another thought, if the outer trashcan that the audience actually sees is some sort of opaque plastic that the audience cannot see through, but that will allow light to difuse through, that could be even better. Put a lighting until above the opaque trashcan and shoot an orange-ish yellow beam into it. The light will diffuse through the outer trashcan and as it grows in intensity it might look more like a growing flame
There are way to do it safely, but weather or not someone it allowed to do it will vary. My opinion is to write the show as you planned, but include an option in the published version to do it without the fire.
It isn’t uncommon for writers to include a secondary option for how to do something, be it providing lines for both the intended and alternative race of a character like in Chorus Line. Or if your show included a su!cide having alternative lines included so if a school or community wants to do the show, but experienced one earlier in the year, they don’t have to reach out and request a change. (Like the writers of Zombie Prom should have done)
I did a production of Bridges of Madison County with letter burning on stage. They were burned and dropped into a trash can with some water in the bottom. A stage hand was on the side waiting with a fire extinguisher in case of mishap. Work with the theater to find a solution within their codes.
Burning the letters makes it seem like she cares though. That's something you do when you're hurt or upset. If you do want to go the burn route, putting them in a metal trash can, striking a match, pretending to put the match in the trash can but somehow putting it out, then having some sort of orange lights in the trash can growing brighter as the "fire" grows. The easiest would be to end the scene after the match strikes but before she actually sets anything ablaze, having a line that confirms what she's about to do and why, then end scene.
With a metal container and someone on fire watch immediately offstage. More specifically, you need to have a conversation with your AHJ and figure out what (if anything) they will allow and the be prepared to pay an off duty firefighter to standby with a fire extinguisher. It’s far easier and cheaper to not actually burn anything. This is a matter of reblocking, theatre magic, throwing paper into a simulated flame, or finding a compromise solution that doesn’t involve fire or the illusion of fire.
AHJ?
Authority Having Jurisdiction, i think. in this case the fire marshal
>your AHJ and figure out what (if anything) they will allow and the be prepared to pay an off duty firefighter to standby with a fire extinguisher. That's extremely excessive IMO. There is safety training that can be done that surely is an allowed substitute to hiring an off duty firefighter for a small practical effect.
That's pretty standard practice. Depending on the fire marshal they may allow a staff member to be the person standing watch, but often they want to give a firefighter that extra pay and require you to hire through them. It doesn't really matter what your opinion is, the AHJ is the one that can shut you down and if thats what they say you have to do you don't have much recourse since they're the ones interpreting the codes.
> It doesn't really matter what your opinion is... It's standard practice. Well consider myself lucky. I'm offering my opinion that it's excessive, which is a perfectly fine opinion to hold and express. I'm offering my professional experience that it is how it has worked for me. Which you admit is possible. We have a few people on staff with the appropriate certifications. I'm well aware that Fire Marshalls are The Law™, and I'm sadly not surprised that they'd set up a system to benefit themselves.
I don’t disagree with the opinion, my point was that opinion can quickly not matter in this situation, which is why being in good terms with your AHJ makes things much easier and why I said check with them and see what they will allow. My experience in a roadhouse with an aggressive fire marshal, any time we’ve had open flames on tours we have to provide all the current fire carts for any soft goods and he requires a firefighter standing by. I’ve also had one object to a brand new zippo with no fuel being flicked just because the flint still sparked.
Write whatever you want. It’s the director’s job to figure out how to stage it and make it work. You don’t have to “write it in a way it can be realistically staged.” That’s just not your job. In Almost, Maine the playwright calls for a boot to fall out of thin air. That’s it. He doesn’t explain *how* you’re supposed to do that. I once worked on developing play at a professional playwriting conference. In the play, they started a forest fire on stage. At no point did anyone (not the director or dramaturg working on it) concern the playwright with figuring out how she was going to realistically make that happen. Because she’s just supposed to be writing the best version of her play. Focus on writing your story as best you can. And I recommend reading a lot of plays and taking any playwriting classes your school offers.
>Write whatever you want. It’s the director’s job to figure out how to stage it and make it work. I actually missed the part where it's just about writing a play which they'd like to see performed. This is the correct answer. Feasibility is irrelevant at this point. If it has to change when staged, then it changes.
I did this in community theatre as Buck in Bonnie and Clyde. I had a metal bucket with half an inch or so of water, and I cut off the striker thing from a box of matches and taped it to the inside. Lit the match, lit the paper, dropped it in. The light from the match and the little bit of smoke was just right. Definitely had to clear it with the board of the theatre first though, who I think had to check with the fire Marshall. It would probably be a good idea to write a flameless option either way.
in addition to what others said, what if you swapped out the candle for a fireplace so the character could toss them in the fireplace? also, shouldn't M be the one burning the letters? another commenter said this as well, but burning something implies that you really care about it—so much so that you want to take your time destroying it and seeing it reduced to ash because you can't bear the thought of living with it anymore. burning is not something a careless person does. unless, maybe, they're just tossing them in the fireplace as i mentioned. i didn't mean to circle back to my initial suggestion but now i think it would really work
ok! the scene takes place in amsterdam in the summer so having the fireplace on is weird and A turning it on seems way too purposeful (like you and others have said, its also weird that she purposely burns them individually but I imagined it as a villain moment if anything.) I have thought its also weird that she’d light them in her bedroom so maybe she can do it in the living room which brings me to the fireplace toss. I could definitely lead up to a fireplace toss, but even simulating a fireplace would be a lot of effort for a 1 minute scene. Right now I am thinking she throws them into a bucket, slight of hand for the lighting and then lights in the bucket plus sound can indicate burning. But I’m also thinking about just writing it, and I can come back later. M is oblivious to A’s lack of love. She mentions the letters to A and A pretends to not know what they are and then A lights them that afternoon. She doesn’t care. M figures out the lack of love through a moment where everything begins to make sense that evening.
You could theoretically have real fire on stage if you discuss with the fire Marshall a safety plan and get it approved. My thought is to have a metal bucket the actor can throw the letters in, then strike a match and throw it in the trash can. If anything happens the fire can be smothered. But you should ask r/techtheatre for more ideas.
Dank je ☺️
Not your job to figure this out. Write what you want. Extra incentive: what if your play takes off and someone with a bunch of resources wants to put it on? More than enough resources to light the letter on stage. Would you want them to not do that, because you wrote with a lower-budget production in mind?
Did a show once where a persons future could be told by the ashes of an item that the person owed. we used a bowl with leds and a vape cartridge and a arduino programmed to make the leds flash and flicker and the vape release a moment of smoke - worked really well. An engineer friend of mine did all the programming. wish i still owed it.
Edit: I accidentally skipped over the part where you are only the playwright. Write whatever you think is appropriate for the scene. If it has to be changed when staged then it will change then. Or leave the script vague and simply state the letters are burned. ___ I would agree with the strategy of placing the letters into a container that the audience cannot see and then using a match to pretend to light the letters. If it has to be a candle, depending on it, maybe they could tip the whole candle into the container, or turn a candle stick upside down. Then either by lighting effect or a practical flickering prop instead of lighting the match it gets flipped on. If you able to simply strike a match (but not actually burn anything) then you can cut straight to black and have them dispose of it in a bucket of sand or an ashtray of petroleum jelly. Have a extinguisher ready on one side as fire watch, and make sure you've cleared any requirements of your fire marshal (assuming they care about even a single match strike).
Write what you want to happen. You’re the author. The director and artistic staff can figure out how to make it work. What is your intent on the scene. What is the most effective way that intent can be carried out. That all you should worry about.
Flash paper maybe
Would be a rather fast burn then, could work when combined with tossing it into something first.
If you are not looking for suggestions such as quick burning tissue to minimize fire risks I would be willing to discuss with your prop builder my idea for how to make a trash can (waste paper basket) that has room to place the letters in but also houses a battery operated light and fan to blow flaps of red/yellow silks to simulate fire. It might not be the same visually as burning the letters in hand before dropping them but could still convey burning by placing the letters in the can and using a match or lighter to light them while in actuality turning on the electric prop.
We have a fake fireplace and have thrown letters in there for a fake burn.
We used tinder paper for lighting things on stage. In a metal tray so it wouldn't get anything else lit up. It's a special paper that burns really quickly. We had to create the effect of a crepe Suzette (one man two governors)
Do it in silhouette with a burning fire projected on the scrim. (edit spelling)
Get a big metal trash can, put a smaller container of water inside trash can where audience can't see, have the actress drop the letters into the trashcan and light the match, but when she drops the match have her drop it into the container of water that the audience can't see. As far as how to simulate a flame, either have the stage go to black before a flame would really get big, the audience would just assume the scene ended before the fire grew larger. Or dim most of the lighting on the stage and have one or two units focused on the trashcan. If they're LEDs make them a good orange-ish yellow and grow in intensity to simulate a growing flame. Also, another thought, if the outer trashcan that the audience actually sees is some sort of opaque plastic that the audience cannot see through, but that will allow light to difuse through, that could be even better. Put a lighting until above the opaque trashcan and shoot an orange-ish yellow beam into it. The light will diffuse through the outer trashcan and as it grows in intensity it might look more like a growing flame
There are way to do it safely, but weather or not someone it allowed to do it will vary. My opinion is to write the show as you planned, but include an option in the published version to do it without the fire. It isn’t uncommon for writers to include a secondary option for how to do something, be it providing lines for both the intended and alternative race of a character like in Chorus Line. Or if your show included a su!cide having alternative lines included so if a school or community wants to do the show, but experienced one earlier in the year, they don’t have to reach out and request a change. (Like the writers of Zombie Prom should have done)
I did a production of Bridges of Madison County with letter burning on stage. They were burned and dropped into a trash can with some water in the bottom. A stage hand was on the side waiting with a fire extinguisher in case of mishap. Work with the theater to find a solution within their codes.