# Collapsing and Uncollapsing table Mary Poppins



## James Diemer (Aug 29, 2014)

Just going to throw this out there. Next up in our season is Mary Poppins and the table is giving me the biggest headache. I've seen several solutions, but most were just what I'd call "serviceable." 

What solutions have you come up with and what did you learn? What would you do differently if you had a do-over?


----------



## TheaterEd (Aug 29, 2014)

How far collapsed does the table have to be? In my mind, you could have one table of the leg 'off' and the table tilted diagonally towards that corner. Then run tie line up the diagonally opposite leg(hollowed out) across the table on the angle and through the 'off' leg. Pulling the tie line would then pull the table back onto it's three solid legs and pull the fourth into place.

I've never seen the show done, and have never done this trick before, but that's how I picture what I would start with if I wanted to avoid flying anything.


----------



## James Diemer (Aug 29, 2014)

In a perfect world, the table falls to pieces with an entire place setting (I think there is supposed to be cake) and then fixes itself - including the dishes and other things. 

The 4th leg idea might work pretty well, especially if the same line pulls the dishes back to position.


----------



## VCTMike (Aug 30, 2014)

James Diemer said:


> In a perfect world, the table falls to pieces with an entire place setting (I think there is supposed to be cake) and then fixes itself - including the dishes and other things.
> 
> The 4th leg idea might work pretty well, especially if the same line pulls the dishes back to position.



pneumatics an option?

_Asked about props which have misfired, Melton laughs about last year's collapsing table in Mary Poppins: "The butler is supposed to break it in half, and Mary is supposed to put it back together. It works on pneumatic pistons by hitting a button to collapse it and then again to pressurize it and have it come back together. On opening night the actor got a little excited and knocked the table off the wagon, so there was no way the trick was going to work. The design team was sitting in the theatre and they were all looking at me, and I was thinking, 'what do you want me to do from here?'" he laughs. Such mishaps are part of the game. "If one out of twenty special effects doesn't work, that's OK. We've created so many wonderful props like the oven that turns magically into a juke box in Patsy Cline – that one actually got applause."_

http://www.scene4.com/archivesqv6/2014/jun-2014/0614/carlasullwold0614.html


----------



## VCTMike (Aug 30, 2014)

motors?

The kitchen, a far more realized
set in New York, is the location where
“A Spoonful of Sugar” now takes
place. The Banks children have
wrecked the place in an effort to
learn cooking. Mary brings the place
back into perfect running order
during the number. “Everyone came
up with a shopping list of events,”
says Crowley, “which included
shelves righting themselves and a
split table instantly repairing itself.”

Steve McEntee, of Proof Productions,
says the kitchen transformation is
realized by wireless control; “The
table [which splits in two and returns
to a single piece] is controlled by its
own DC motors with commutators;
the rest of the kitchen effects are
pneumatic; they’re run through a
programmable control, through a
PCL, linked to the Hudson system.
The same automation guy runs
everything.” 

http://lightingandsoundamerica.com/lsa/article_archive/Mary_Poppins.pdf


----------



## James Diemer (Sep 2, 2014)

Hmmm... I hadn't thought of wireless motor control. I've cannibalized old screw gun motors and model airplane controls to do something similar before... Back to the drafting board.


----------

