Props, Scenery, Costumes and Makeup: Jumping Dolphins

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Jumping Dolphins

Printed From: Community Theater Green Room
Category: Producing Theater
Forum Name: Props, Scenery, Costumes and Makeup
Forum Discription: For how-to's and where-can-I-find
URL: http://www.communitytheater.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=4671
Printed Date: 5/13/25 at 7:09pm
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Topic: Jumping Dolphins

Posted By: myhopeishim
Subject: Jumping Dolphins
Date Posted: 6/17/10 at 2:16am

I'm not sure that I'm in the right place, but I need some help! We are doing a stage for a High Seas themed VBS and have a ocean backdrop, with 3 ft. gunwales coming out, so that the stage is the front of the boat. What I'm trying to figure out, is how to have some (fake) dolphins on something that rotates and position them so that they look like they are jumping over the edges of the gunwales. I thought of using a record player and turning it on its side, attaching one of the inflatable dolphins to a dowel rod, but have been to every thrift store in town and can't find any. That would be about the right speed though. Any help???

Replies:

Posted By: vickifrank
Date Posted: 6/21/10 at 3:07pm

If you used a scrim that was printed with the seascape, you could rear project the dolphins onto it--yes, it works even if the scrim is printed as long as the projection is strong enough.

Or, you could instead rear project the seascape on a plain scrim, then of course you again project the dolphins. (Or you could shadow project them on the printed scrim)

First choice rents two weeks for $ 295, the second rents two weeks for $195. The printed scrim is 15' x 30' and is not shown on the rental page, but here's alink to the thumbnail image. http://www.studio-productions-inc.com/images/seascapethumb.jpg - http://www.studio-productions-inc.com/images/seascapethumb.jpg

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http://www.studio-productions-inc.com
1-800-359-2964

The theater scrim people

Posted By: JoeMc
Date Posted: 6/21/10 at 7:58pm

With 3' gunnals you would need to allow at least 6'+ for the rotation.
You could use an old ceiling sweep fan on low speed, by removing the 3 fan blades & attatching the dophin rod. But you would need to mask the fan system.
Or utalise an old lighting colour wheel as an alturnative.
I think scrim projection would be much easier.
{what's a 'high seas themed VBS' mean?}

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[western] Gondawandaland
"Hear the light & see the sound!
TOI TOI CHOOKAS
{may you always play to a full house!}

Posted By: LMT Players
Date Posted: 6/22/10 at 12:17pm

My wife's church did a high-seas themed VBS (Vacation Bible School) presentation a few years ago. They had a similar dolphin idea for their staging, and encountered the same challenge.

Rather than attempt rigging up a mechanical contraption to achieve the cutesy effect, I suggested stationing a few of the smallest children where the contraptions would have been. Each child had a cardboard cut-out of a dolphin attached to a stick. The kids, each wearing a cute little "seafoam" hat made of crepe paper, were coached to manipulate their cardboard dolphin cut-outs to leap above the "waves."

Advantages: more kids were involved, even some of the smallest, their parents were delighted, the older kids enjoyed helping with the little ones, and most important, the whole point of the VBS lesson was exemplified during the rehearsal process and performance, and a good time (and learning experience) was had by all. Might work for you, too.

Best of luck!

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The whole world acts out a farce, because everyone is afraid to say "I don't know."
-Paraphrased from Isaac Bashevis Singer