Props, Scenery, Costumes and Makeup: Stacks of Paper

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Stacks of Paper

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=5100
Printed Date: 5/12/25 at 8:25pm
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Topic: Stacks of Paper

Posted By: TwinHits
Subject: Stacks of Paper
Date Posted: 6/18/11 at 11:52am

Hello everyone!

For the Capital Fringe play that I am working on, I need to build 1'-4' tall stacks of paper, notebooks, etc that are lightweight and won't fall apart when quickly loaded in and loaded out. Does anyone have any experience with this or have some ideas?

My first thought is some of kind structure with a cardboard box in the center and just the edges of the paper glued on, but I don't know how I would glue the paper on/make it look realistic.

Thank you very much!

~TH

Replies:

Posted By: gelcat
Date Posted: 6/20/11 at 1:50pm

hmm....... blocks of styrofoam with the edges hot knife cut?

there is a product called padding glue that is used for 'tear-off' pads of paper. This would at least corral the edges of paper, and give you something to glue onto another surface - maybe check with a bindery near you about doing skinny 'pads' for you for this?

make the stacks from the real thing, then cut the middle out to take away the weight?

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www.actorsguildonline.org
Actors Guild of Parkersburg
Parkersburg, WV

Posted By: MusicManD
Date Posted: 7/24/11 at 4:22pm

I would find a cardboard tube, maybe 6" across (the bigger the better). Then trace its outline on all your pieces of paper and cut out the circle. Slide the paper over the tube until you get a stack of the desired thickness, and secure it on the ends by gluing on some posterboard cut to paper size.

You might also try some sheets of 1/2" foam cut to paper size and stacked. I was able to create an oversized book to be held by the smallest girl in the cast using these sheets, and they looked great, despite being much thicker than "real" paper.

Posted By: David McCall
Date Posted: 7/24/11 at 6:21pm

I have no idea if this would work, but here goes :-)

Get 2 pieces of good plywood a little bigger than your stack then cut away one side about 9"x 6". Make a sandwich of a couple inches (perhaps more) of stacked paper with the pieces of plywood on the top and bottom, then clamp or screw the sandwich together.

Using a band saw or other reciprocating saw, cut away the paper in the middle leaving just the outer edges of the paper.

While still clamped, paint the inside cut edges with glue and let it set up.

When done you will hopefully have a U-shaped block of stacked paper. You would build several of these and stack them together.

To make it rigid you could glue wood of foam core to the inside of the stack.

This may not make any sense without pictures.

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David M