Community Theater Green Room Discussion Board: "Breakaway Window"

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   A second question in regards to our "Beauty and the Beast" production...Our final scene is to take place in front of a "window" and then move to outside the window so Gaston's death makes sense...we would LIKE to have a window that Gaston and the Beast can fall through but the Director is fearful of the cost and safety of "breakaway glass"...This is a high school production so we need to be especially careful of the students...and of course money is tight...
My question is two-fold...first what material could we use to make the frame/mullions/grid that would be IN a window...Foam? Luan? Something else??? (I assume once the Beast and Gaston go through the frame it will be broken and will need to be replaced for each show...so I will need 7 of these...yikes!!!)

The "glass" itself...I assume if we made the window frame we could just "pretend" that it has glass in it...but maybe those of you with tons of theater experience can point a newbie in the right direction...

Thanks for sharing your expertise!!! 

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Jammer310 Walk-On Joined: 7/10/07 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 0	Topic: "Breakaway Window" Posted: 2/06/10 at 1:21pm
	A second question in regards to our "Beauty and the Beast" production...Our final scene is to take place in front of a "window" and then move to outside the window so Gaston's death makes sense...we would LIKE to have a window that Gaston and the Beast can fall through but the Director is fearful of the cost and safety of "breakaway glass"...This is a high school production so we need to be especially careful of the students...and of course money is tight... My question is two-fold...first what material could we use to make the frame/mullions/grid that would be IN a window...Foam? Luan? Something else??? (I assume once the Beast and Gaston go through the frame it will be broken and will need to be replaced for each show...so I will need 7 of these...yikes!!!) The "glass" itself...I assume if we made the window frame we could just "pretend" that it has glass in it...but maybe those of you with tons of theater experience can point a newbie in the right direction... Thanks for sharing your expertise!!!
	Jammer310

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vickifrank Celebrity Joined: 9/21/07 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 332	Posted: 2/07/10 at 5:43pm
	One way is with paper and wax paper/tissue paper 'stained glass'. You prescore the paper to break in the right way without the ripping paper sound and then of course have a sound cue of breaking glass to cover the sound it does make. To construct: First you cut the frame and mullions from a piece of cardboard . Second glue the stained glass in place from behind. The stained glass is made by sandwiching the tissue paper (color) between two pieces of wax paper. The more glue you use to sandwich the tissue the stiffer it gets, so the paper behaves more like stiff glass. Last step is to score the cardboard support and 'glass' from behind so that it give away in chunks, leaving a few shards of colored 'glass' hanging to the frame. Cost is low, but time consumed in making the piece can be high if you choose any elaborate window. Of course its more fun if the window is a stained glass castle window with the rose in it, showing that the curse is being broken. You could also print out the complex glass window pattern on paper then spray it with oil, to make it a bit translucent--or possibly a spray starch might make it translucent and stiffer.
	_____________ http://www.studio-productions-inc.com 1-800-359-2964 The theater scrim people
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Jammer310 Walk-On Joined: 7/10/07 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 0	Posted: 2/07/10 at 6:17pm
	Wow!!! I LOVE this idea and the "broken glass" = "broken spell" I am usually so good at picking those things up but I missed that one...I am trying to use a rose motif in many subtle areas of my set and would LOVE to do this...Time I fear is my enemy...we are in western PA and are currently socked in with snow...more coming...so we have lost and are losing at least two work days with more on the way!!! I will try this...hopefully for this show, but if not it will be in my bag of tricks for the future...My biggest problem is I would need to make seven of these babies...and I do not know if time will permit...but I sure feel inspired!!! Thanks so much!
	Jammer310
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Jammer310 Walk-On Joined: 7/10/07 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 0	Posted: 2/07/10 at 6:20pm
	Thought I might add...our Forest Scrim rental is coming from you guys at studio-productions-inc.com... Thanks again for the advice!!!
	Jammer310
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gelcat Celebrity Joined: 6/12/09 Online Status: Offline Posts: 106	Posted: 2/10/10 at 3:06pm
	how about a time saver for the window pieces by making the outer 'panes', surroundng the graphic, solid colored? You could do a full roll of tissue paper (tracing paper on a roll, with waxed paper on a roll), and be able to replace those sections more quickly. See if an art class at the school might want to take this on as a project to do the 'mosaic' items. M
	www.actorsguildonline.org Actors Guild of Parkersburg Parkersburg, WV
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Props, Scenery, Costumes and Makeup
Community Theater Green Room Discussion Board :Producing Theater :Props, Scenery, Costumes and Makeup

Topic: "Breakaway Window"( Topic Closed)