I've done something similar to Mark, and it worked like a charm! Think of them as being hung on two nails, you pull them off, turn them around, and replace them. The trick is getting them to wiggle off easily enough, but also not so loose that they fall off on their own, especially as the unit gets carried/rolled onto the stage.
To add a nice touch, start with having a couple that ar "half" whitewashed that Tom is working on as the lights come up, and then start the actual changing once you have a few kids onstage doing it, covering the pulling off and rotating the pieces.
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Josh Feder
Education Director, New London Barn Playhouse
New London, NH
Theater Director, Kingswood Oxford School
West Hartford, CT
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Original Message:
Sent: 09-22-2015 08:33
From: Mark Zortman
Subject: Tom Sawyer's Fence Painting Scene
We did the show a number of years ago. I can't claim credit for this - the director of the show came up with a great way to deal with this. We had the pickets mounted on 2 nails (one on top and one on the bottom - or a rod through the picket). One side was dirty and the other was 'whitewashed'. The boys painted the pickets with large brushes (there was nothing on the brushes) and they simply rotated the pickets as they went. Some in the audience missed what actually happened and some probably saw it, but what does it doesn't matter even if they do see it. I guess the biggest challenge is mounting the pickets so that they are easy enough to rotate, and yet not loose enough that they turn 'on their own'.
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Mark Zortman
PA Chapter Director
York PA
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Original Message:
Sent: 09-21-2015 17:24
From: Christa Danner
Subject: Tom Sawyer's Fence Painting Scene
Help! Our school is doing The Adventures of Tom Sawyer this fall, and I am stumped on an easy way to do the fence painting scene. I have a couple sections of picket fence already on wheels, but I am not sure how to transform it during the several performances. I want to avoid having the cast members actually wielding paint on stage.
Does anyone know of any paint techniques that might be effective using different light colors? Or maybe any other suggestions for avoiding liquids of any type on stage? My school was gracious enough to give my stage a fresh coat of paint this summer, and I want it to last as long as possible.
Thanks,
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Christa Danner
Speech/Drama Teacher
Blue Valley School District
Stilwell KS
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