[SML] Use of weapons in production

[Chad Croteau]

Hi Nathan

I'll leave fire arms to those who have more experience with them.  However, with regards to blade weapons, it is 
my personal opinion that they should all be stage-combat worthy regardless of how many ways the director/choreographer/whoever swears they won't be used for anything but show.

I don't care how cool the collector swords and knives look at the funky store in the mall, if it's not usable for fight, I wouldn't buy it.

Oh, and don't allow anyone to talk you in to "trick" knives and such...  When they jam, they can really cause damage.  A good fight choreographer and a good stage weapon is way safer.

And on that note, you need a fight choreographer.  Someone with the training and experience to make it as safe as possible for your cast and crew.  And a qualified weapons master who knows how to inspect and maintain the blade weapons daily.  And they must be inspected daily: they will get little nicks and dings in the blade edge over time that need to be dealt with.

With regards to handling, the same rules largely apply: only those who need to for the show handle the weapons, and they go under lock and key when they're not under direct supervision of the weapons master.

Others will likely add more.

Cheers!

Chad



Sent from my iPhone

> On Oct 27, 2015, at 4:03 PM, nathan best via Stagecraft <stagecraft at theatrical.net> wrote:
> 
> Hello All,
> 
> I have never worked on a production or had a production in my space that used firearms or weapons of any kind really. I recently found out that a production next year will be using weapons of some sort (not confirmed what exactly yet) but I have some super concerns (as I should). Where do I even begin. I know that someone needs to be put personally in charge of the weapons etc, but what kind of training should this person have? Are there things I should look for with these weapons, especially firearms? I know that I should ideally have someone who does this for a living dealing with the weapons, but I also want to be knowledgeable enough to head of problems before they begin, especially when I have the discussion with Campus Safety about the presence of weapons on campus and their use. Any help would be most appreciated.
> 
> Thank you
> 
> Nathan B.
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