Through the Eyes of the Property Director

Through the Eyes of the Property Director Bland M. Wade Jr. The following remarks are excerpts from his Theatre Symposium address. Let us start at the very beginning with defining a prop. If you were to go into your living room at home and take out everything except the bare walls, ceiling, and floor, you would have left what we call scenery. All of the other things in the room would be props, including the ceiling fixtures, rugs on the floor, and trash in the trash can. You may ask yourself, “Who would want a job working with props?” My friends and family ask me what it is that I do. When I reply that I am a property director, they immediately think I manage real estate. It can be very confusing to those not in the world of theatre. I have found that using what I call the “house analogy” puts it in terms they understand. The director is the homeowner (also the client, the one with ideas); it is the director’s family (the actors) that will live in this space. The de­ signer is the architect and interior designer. The technical director is the engineer and contractor, the one who actually builds the house. The property director is the interior decorator, the plumber, the cabinetmaker , the upholsterer, the gardener, the handyman. He or she cooks your meals, washes your dishes, takes care of your pets, and so on. There is not much difference in props for theatre, television, and film. A coffee cup onstage is a coffee cup on television, is a coffee cup on the big screen. There are definitely different responsibilities and different vocabulary, but a good property artisan can move in and out of these dif­ ferent worlds fairly easily. I use the term property director as opposed to property master. There is a movement in the industry to change the name from property master to property director, because the latter term more adequately describes what the position has become. Historically the property master was a part of Through the Eyes of the Property Director      9 the scenery crew, who had mastered the various crafts and finished carpentry . His or her job was to procure, repair, and build the props needed for a particular production. The technical director oversaw the budget needs, staffing, and work schedule. Today, property directors usually have their own shop, where they manage their own budgets, staffing, and work schedules. This is in no way implying that the term property master does not exist: it still does, both out of tradition and out of the established structure of organizations. As a prop person, you have to read between the lines. If a stage direction reads, “Bob enters stage left with a cigarette,” what does that mean to props? A simple stage direction could lead to a half page of props and a plethora of questions. Is the cigarette lit? Does the facility allow smoking ? Does the actor smoke? What kind of cigarette? Is it in a soft pack, hard pack, or cigarette case, or is it a single smoke? How is it lit? How does the actor dispose of it? What are the materials of the costumes? Are they flammable? Asking as many questions up front will eliminate many additions to the prop list during the rehearsal process. I like to keep in mind what I call the “property triangle,” which consists of three points: quality, fast, and cheap. I refer to this quite a bit with both designers and directors. You may pick two points and only two. You may choose quality and fast, but it will not be cheap. Or, cheap and fast, but it will lack quality. Or, quality and cheap, will not be fast. Property artisans approach properties like sculpture. More often than not, you are attempting to re-­ create something from found objects. Many times one can be overwhelmed by the size and complexity of a piece and not know where to start. First, look at the individual shapes and what they remind you of. Focus on solving one problem at a time, and by the end you will have a completed piece. However, one...