# The Neccesities



## ColbyAtTroy (Jul 8, 2010)

Going into College as a Technical Theater major, I would greatly love some advice on what supplies I should bring. Ruler, graph paper, the obvious ones, of course, but what about more critical ones that one wouldn't normally think about?


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## Footer (Jul 8, 2010)

Don't go out and buy anything until you need it for a class. When you do, a supply list will be on the syllabus. Get a decent laptop and the usual dorm stuff. Good notebooks, a good backpack, and a good pair of headphones will go a long way. Drafting supplies, prismacolors, art paper, model supplies, and the rest will come with time.

sent from my HTC Incredible


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## erosing (Jul 8, 2010)

Are you paying for supplies now or are your parents/others offering to set you up a little?

Past that only thing I wish I had had right away were good workboots that were already broken in. 

Might also pick up The Backstage Handbook if you don't own it already. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## gafftapegreenia (Jul 8, 2010)

Well, every Freshman coming into my department is required to take a Stagecraft class and aside from books their syllabus requires:

Safety Glasses
C-Wrench
Tape Measure


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## Footer (Jul 8, 2010)

gafftapegreenia said:


> Well, every Freshman coming into my department is required to take a Stagecraft class and aside from books their syllabus requires:
> 
> Safety Glasses
> C-Wrench
> Tape Measure


 
Many programs that is handed to you your first day. The school I attended bought us all that (and billed us....) plus a scale rule, ears, drafting triangles, and a few carpentry pencils from what I recall. My wife still uses her "stagecraft" wrench to this day.


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## erosing (Jul 8, 2010)

Footer said:


> My wife still uses her "stagecraft" wrench to this day.



+1 on using the wrench you recieved in stagecraft still, I have about 4 go to adjustables that I keep handy, my favorite is still the stanley maxgrip 8" I was given then, good wrench (as long as you glue the grip on well). 

Only thing that was required in my stagecraft syllabus was, Safety Glasses - ANSI Z87 approved, outside of that it was reccommended to have an 8" wrench (which they gave us) and tape measure of adequate size (16'/25').


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## Bogo1229 (Jul 8, 2010)

Along with the safety glasses, a pair or two of corded ear plugs would also be helpful. One thing that I found out from experience, working around tools, machinery, and kickin subs is that your hearing can get damaged very quickly. A spring carabiner would be good so oyu can make a lanyard for your c wrench. Find some tie line and add your biner to it so that you wont drop your wrench.


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## MrsFooter (Jul 8, 2010)

Quarters. Lots and lots and lots of quarters. You think I'm kidding? No. Quarters. And pudding cups.

I'd like to second the suggestion that you not go nuts with the buying things until you get there and scope things out. You'd be surprised how many things (even things on the syllabus,) you don't actually need. Make sure you have a good backpack, good computer, and a good collection of DVDs, since that's how everyone makes friends during the first week.


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## ruinexplorer (Jul 8, 2010)

I agree that for most of your supplies, wait until they are required for a class, especially since professors can be quite particular in exactly what they want you to have. 
I also agree that a good set of school supplies are essential and that laptop will become quite useful. However, I'd recommend getting a good lock and maybe "lo-jack for laptops" to help prevent your laptop from getting stolen and help you recover it if it does.

If you don't already have your basic tools, I'd recommend that you check out this thread and get some before you go. Even if they get you more tools, then you can always have a backup.

When I sent my daughter off to college last year, we got her one of those cheap Kodak printers which turned out to be an invaluable addition to the laptop. And on top of that, you might find that a good thumb drive will help you if you need to transfer files from school computers to your laptop.


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## gafftaper (Jul 9, 2010)

1) Go down to Home Depot and find a good pair of light weight gloves that fit you well. Something like Mechanix. Or if you want to really be stylish get a pair of Setware gloves. They are essentially the same but your technician friends will be impressed that you spent a few bucks more on the Setware logo. 

2) There's no time like the present to shop for a good Leatherman and belt pouch. They can be pricey so maybe pick out the one you want and leave a note for Mom to pick it up for Christmas/Birthday. 

3) Get a copy of the Backstage Handbook. 

4) Go buy a nice 6" WIDE MOUTH crescent wrench (search here for debates on wrench sizes). I like the craftsman pro with the rubber grip. Get some telephone handset cord (Black at home depot $5, it looks like this for those too young to remember) , black shrink tubing, and a carabiner. Cut off the plug from the handset cord. Tie it onto the wrench with a good knot. Slide the shrink tubing on and heat it up to make a nice clean tight connection. Now hold the wrench in on hand and reach as far as you can. Pull the rest of the cord to your waist to stretch it out and figure out the minimum length of cord you need for your waist. Attach the Biner to the other end of the handset cord with a knott and shrink tubing. You've got a really nice wrench. 

5) Two Flashlights WITH belt pouches. 
a) A cheap incandescent Mag AA with a little dark gel under the lens for use during shows.
b) A small but powerful LED. While Streamlight and others make some killer lights, I'm a fan of finding a light that uses AA or AAA batteries for easy replacement mid show. Costco recently had a killer deal on two 200 lumen LED's (3 AAA batteries required) for $20! Look around. Search here and other places for ideas on the best flashlight you can afford. While I initially loved it, I'm no longer a fan of the MAG LED, I can't get mine to reliably work after a couple years of use because of corrosion or some sort of build up deep inside the tube at the back of the lamp.

6) Finally a set of Blacks: Head on down to your local work clothing store, Wal-mart, or K-mart
a) I like the cheap black Wrangler or other no-name brand jeans. $20 to replace so I don't ever have to worry about ruining my nice pants. Also great on a college budget. 
b) A couple of good short sleeve black work shirts. I like Dickies. You can usually wear black T-shirts in college but if you go working any side gigs, a nice Dickie's shirt will make you look much more professional than the guy next to you. Remember impressing people is VERY important to your future career. 
c) Wait to find out what is expected at school, but a couple of black T-shirts will probably come in handy as well for long runs of shows. 
d) Black work socks. Some nice comfortable ones that have lots of padding in them. 
e) Good STABLE, COMFORTABLE, QUIET, black work shoes. My recent pair are a set of Sketchers which I'm liking pretty well. Be sure to put them on and find some tile in the store to walk on to see how they sound when you are sneaking.
f) Don't forget to pick up a good black leather belt to support your tools. 

7) Eye protection. If you don't wear glasses, just get a good pair of glasses and forget the rest. A trip to your local industrial safety and supply dealer or construction work wear store will result in you finding some REALLY cool looking safety glasses. If you wear glasses and you think you are going to be doing a lot of carpentry work, look into getting a prescription set made. I got a pair of Uvex Genesis safety glasses last year with the lens insert for about $30. Went to Walmart and they put in a set of lenses for about $40. Now I just walk in the shop and put them on for the day and never have to worry about protecting my glasses or my eyes. It's just done. 

8) Hearing protection. I prefer "the band" style of hearing protection. Again I just snap them around my neck when I walk in the shop and wear them all day. No hassles I can slip them on in seconds.

9) Get a small canvas tool duffel bag and start building the rest of your kit. Things like first aid supplies, office supplies, a couple granola bars and juice boxes for when you are starving and don't have time to reach the vending machine, deodorant, mint gum, Tylenol... You don't need to buy it all right now, just get the bag. When you start working on a show and think, "that would be useful" pick it up and throw it in. As you specialize and grow in your skills you'll need a bigger bag with more specific things in it. For now, its just stuff you want to have in the car or your cubbie in the shop that might not be available. Wait until you get to school before you start filling this with anything but the really personal stuff (i.e. you don't need gaff tape, or spike tape, the college will have it).


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## shiben (Jul 14, 2010)

ColbyAtTroy said:


> Going into College as a Technical Theater major, I would greatly love some advice on what supplies I should bring. Ruler, graph paper, the obvious ones, of course, but what about more critical ones that one wouldn't normally think about?


 
I was there about 3 years ago. Like others have said, the college will usually have most of what you need or charge you for it as a materials fee. I brought all my own tools, but that was because my dad likes buying tools and so sent me to school with enough gear to build a small house. Most of the supplies you should bring are personal supplies:

Gloves - I like setwear ones hot hands for LX work and Camian for carpentry. You dont need to buy nice ones though. Just make sure they fit. 
Safety glasses - Need these
Ear Plugs - Even if you like going to loud shows, you need these. I have ones from Surefire that are open up to 80 dB and then at that point cut off all other noise, so I can wear them all day and no one notices I have them in. No reason to have these, I just like them. I would say if you dont like having things in your ears all day, just go ahead and get a set with a string holding them together, this seems to work fine. 
+1 on having blacks when you go. This means your parents are likely to have bought them, not you. College budgets suck. Trust me. 
+1 on good shoes. I have a pair (ok, multiple pairs) of black boots in safety and non safety toe versions, as well as brown boots in the same plan. Dont do this unless your like me and need to have your shoes match your outfit. 
Some sort of bag to carry books in. 
Some sort of bag to carry tools in 
+ 1 on the laptop, but I would recomend making sure it will run VW, AutoCad, or whatever your prefered programs are. Mac or PC will probably serve you fine, get what your comfortable with. 
An external hard drive (or 2) - Loosing stuff sucks. Loosing an entire laptop worth of stuff really sucks. I have 2 primary physical backups and an online backup as well. 
An iPod or your prefered brand of MP3 player - so as you can listen to music on the go
+1 to Mrs Footer on the DVDs. I met all the guys Im living with now by watching every episode of Futurama with during the first month of college. Bring as many as college people might actually enjoy. 
+1 to Mrs Footer again on quarters. Everythign useful takes quarters: the washer, the dryer, the advil dispenser, pretty much anything that dispenses anything on campus, Tacco Bell, the carts at Aldi, etc. Quarters are useful.
Headphones and speakers - so as you can listen to music and watch youtube (2 of the most common things you will be doing in college) either with others or without others. Dont get too big a sub, seeing as people tend to dislike it when your thumping Ke$ha at a wild party at 3 AM. The RA was not pleased with us. 
Hoodies - College students wear hoodies a lot. Actually, pretty much most of the time. To fit in, you will want a selection of hoodies in solid colors, not solid colors, college logos and ones with witty sayings on them. 
A selection of stylish but functional clothes - Dont bring too many however. No one likes that guy/girl with 50000000 clothing items. Plus, its acceptable to wear the same shirt twice as long as it does not smell bad. Pants can be worn for a week or so before they get bad. I like my wardrobe to be nice enough that i can throw on a cool hat and go out, but functional enough that before I go out I could be in the shop. Again, dont bring too many clothes.
Power Strips (multiple) - your dorm room wont have enough outlets for all your stuff. This is a given. Compensate with power strips with fuses and surge protectors. 
Something to make ramen in whilest in the dorm, generally not requiring a stove - this is important.

Some other notes: Bring more socks and underwear than you think you need. Both get smelly fast, and are one of the few things you cant wear twice (or more) without smelling funny. Socks are good. You should have a lot of socks. Underwear is also good. Lots of good. You should also have enough clothes so as you dont look like you just woke up all the time. Im also a fan of the GPS, because you can tell friends exactly where to pick you up. This is, however, expensive, and will most likely get stolen rapidly, thus leaving you at the mercy of the driver. If you are going to college somewhere in Michiga, Wisconson, Minnesota, New England, etc, bring a lot more socks, hoodies, fleeces, scarves, gloves, etc. than you think you will need. It gets UNGODLY cold up here. Also remember, most of your time at college will be spent hanging out with other people, usually in the dorms, at parties, or at parties in the dorms. Try and meet non-theatre people, as its always good to have people to bring to the killer theatre parties. Thats all that I can think of at this point, or at least that I can think of thats forum appropriate. Except for the most important thing: You MUST bring an interest in learning, meeting people, having fun, and working hard to college. Otherwise, you will get depressed and have no fun. Make sure to get out, meet as many people as possible (unless they have spray on tans. Thats a good indidcation that they are a, an oompa loompa, or b, a guito. Stay back 500 feet. Also stay away from frosted tips.) from as many different departments as possible. This is good practice networking, and can help a lot on future shows. Meet someone in video, well, when you need to create a ton of content for a show, a good video person can help you, and its cheaper if they are your friend. Also, study hard, but get out there and hang out. Dont be the creepy techie kid. Those people freak me out. Have fun in college!


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