O’Reilly Theatre, Keble
The O’Reilly Theatre’s Induction Pack, given out to each production company containing information and regulations for working in the O’Reilly can be found on this site as a PDF file, with the kind permission of the Martin Esslin Society. Click Here
The O’Reilly Theatre is a studio theatre based in Keble College. It is the newest theatre in Oxford (completed in 2002), and is run by the College as a theatre and conference venue. The management of the theatre is run through the college’s drama society (the Martin Esslin Society) and the theatre has its own independent technician.
The capacity of the theatre is variable depending on the seating formation, and can vary between as much as 130 and 220. As with the OFS, it is a logical step up from working in the BT but do not, however, think that it is an easy step to make, as all the jobs suddenly get a lot bigger when you move up there. The seating formations can take on many formats, from standard end-on (capacity 186), and various thrust, in the round and traverse formations. The extra seating is built out of rostra, and positioned by the college.
There is no theatre hire charge for this space. There is, however, a small charge (currently £70) to cover electricity and some maintenance. You are also required to pay the fee of the theatre technician (appointed by the college).
Lighting
The O’Reilly has a fixed grid structure, and also a set of flys at the stage end. The fixed grids come in 5 sections from right at the back of the auditorium to over the stage. There are 11 fly bars (operated by hemp ropes) over the stage. These can be used for hanging lanterns, and also your masking and some set items if required. All the sockets are 16A connections, which should be noted if you are bringing in any of your own equipment. There are DMX outputs at regular positions in the grid if you require them.
The lantern collection is excellent for the space, and, being so new, is all in excellent working order. The lanterns were bought as sets, so there is a lot of continuity i.e. all the profiles are the same make. House lights are normally provided by Coda 500 floods.
The control board is a Strand 520. This is a very powerful console, and very good at handling all the generic fixtures of the theatre. It also has a very powerful moving light section, allowing these to be plotted in with ease. Although it is slightly different logic to the control boards used in the other theatres in Oxford, it is very simple to learn the basic features. You can download a manual from www.strandlight.com
Sound
The O’Reilly has extensive sound equipment. The mixer is an Allen & Heath GL2200 24 channel desk. There are facilities for playback of all common sources ( MD, CD, CDR and cassette) and there is also an FX unit and a graphic EQ. There are many possible speaker configurations (FoH, subs and powered and non-powered monitors) and a stock of cables. There are 3 Crest Amplifiers.
The venue has 4 SM57 and 2 SM58 microphones, and 2 EMO passive DI boxes. It also has some very basic radio mics, which are really intended for conference use, but could be used for some simple applications. There are sound tie-lines running between the control box and the stage, and also between the control box and the balcony. These allow the sound board to be taken out of the control box if a better sound monitoring position is required. NB this is a time-consuming procedure, and must be done during your get-in.
Staging
The stage is designed as a flat stage on the floor at one end of the building (when in end-on formation) and the seats slope straight down to the stage. There are a series of rostra, but these are at pre-defined heights.
The floor of the venue is wooden, and so a stage flooring (harlequin) is provided and must be used by the companies. The companies must provide good quality matt gaffa tape, or dance floor tape to secure the floor in place. Please note, painting is not permitted inside the theatre.
There is a set of full blacks to mask the back wall, and there are 6 legs provided for masking. There are also 2 short borders for masking at the top.
The Theatre Technician
The Theatre Technician is appointed by the College, and you are required to pay their fee for the duration of the time they are working on your show. There are very strict rules as to when the technician must be present during your get-in and get-out, and you should consult the theatre regulations for full details of this.
As a guide, they must be present when any flying is being done, and also any work is being performed at height. They must also supervise the laying of the stage flooring, and inspect any equipment that you may bring into the theatre. He must also be present if you are moving the sound desk out of the control room and onto the balcony.
During the get-out, it is the responsibility of the company to re-set the space to it’s “default conference setting”. If this is not done, the technician’s time to do this will be charged to the company.
Crew Structure
The crew structure for the O’Reilly should be similar to that of the Old Fire Station. A common example may be as follows:
Production Manager (PM)
Set Designer
Lighting Designer (LD)
Sound Designer (may not be necessary depending on the show) (SD)
Costume Designer
Stage Manager (SM)
Assistant Stage Manager (ASM)
LX Op - may be done by LD
Sound OP - may be done by SD
On a simple show, LD and SD may be able to be one person, as may LX Op and Sound Op.
Typical Schedule
The PM is responsible for creating a schedule both for pre-production and production week. The creation of such a schedule can really help get-ins to run to time, and mean you run into less unexpected problems later on. The schedules given below are meant to be a guide. They are the sort of time scales that have been found through experience to work well. Obviously, things vary depending on the complexity of the show, but they are a good starting point.
Pre-Production Week
Time |
Job |
| By The Bid |
|
| 4 Weeks Pre Show Week |
|
| 3 Weeks Pre Show Week |
|
| 2 Weeks Pre Show Week |
|
| 1 Week Pre Show Week |
|
Production Week
Saturday:
Saturday should generally be used to move all of your set into the building, and then the rest of the day be used for rehearsal in the space.
Sunday:
| 9.00 | Crew Call |
| 9.00 - 1.00 | Move any stage blocks necessary Rig LX Rig Sound Start Construction of Set |
| 12.00 | Props call |
| 1.00 - 2.00 | LUNCH |
| 2.00 - 6.00 | LX Focus Sound Plot Finish Set Construction |
| 6.00 - 6.30 | DINNER |
| 6.30 - 9.30 | LX Plot |
| 9.30 | Tools down and clear space |
Monday:
| 9.45 | Cast and crew call outside O’Reilly |
| 10.00 | Cast walk around of O’Reilly and shown to dressing rooms |
| 10.30 - 1.00 | Technical Rehearsal |
| 1.00 - 2.00 | LUNCH |
| 2.00 - 5.00 | Complete Technical Rehearsal |
| 5.00 - 5.30 | DINNER |
| 5.30 | Cast call for Dress Rehearsal |
| 6.00 - 9.00 | Dress Rehearsal |
| 9.00 - 9.30 | Notes |
| 9.30 | Tools down and clear space |
Tuesday:
| 10.00 | Cast and crew call for 2nd dress (if needed) |
| 10.30 - 1.00 | 2nd Dress Rehearsal |
| 1.00 | Clear Theatre and set for opening night |
| 5.30 | Cast and Crew Call for opening night |
| 5.30 | Cast straight to dressing rooms |
| 6.00 | Notes |
| 6.20 - 6.40 | Warm up |
| 7.00 | HOUSE OPENS |
| 7.30 + | Performance |
Wednesday - Friday:
| 6.00 | Cast and Crew call |
| 6.00 - 6.20 | Cast and Crew notes |
| 6.20 - 6.40 | Warm-up |
| 7.00 | HOUSE OPENS |
| 7.30 + | Performance |
Saturday:
| 1.00 | Cast and crew call |
| 1.00 - 1.30 | Cast and crew notes, including get-out notes |
| 1.30 - 1.50 | Warm up |
| 2.00 | HOUSE OPENS |
| 2.30 | Performance |
| 6.15 | Cast and crew call |
| 6.15 - 6.30 | Notes |
| 6.30 - 6.45 | Warm-up |
| 7.00 | HOUSE OPENS |
| 7.30 + | Performace |
| 10.00 - 1.00 | Get-out |
You should make the cast call for performances based on the complexity of the show, and how much there is to do in that time. Also, it depends on the punctuality of the cast, 6.00 being about the right time, but you may need to push it back to around 5.30.
Please note that there is some flexibility as to when you put on your first performance, and this can be on the Monday night. If you wish to do this, the schedule will need to be adjusted accordingly.
The O’Reilly is a really nice studio space in Oxford, especially being such a modern and well equipped venue, but it is quite a step up from the BT. It is worth getting some experience in there before you take on a major role (especially PMing) at the O’Reilly. It is especially important here to create good schedules and stick to them, as time has a habit of disappearing very quickly. It is, however, very rewarding to work in this slightly larger scale venue, and you should definitely take the chance if you can.
