Theatre Safety 101: Theatre Safety for Theatre Foundations III

Session Design by Preston Grover

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Content Standards
Utah Theatre: Standard 3 Objective 1B
o Articulate the required skills and responsibilities of a theatre designer; i.e., from the
viewpoint of set, costuming, lighting, sound, make-up, and props.
Utah Theatre: Standard 3 Objective 2A
o Articulate the technical skills required to implement a design concept; i.e., from the
viewpoint of set, costuming, lighting, sound, make-up, and props.
Utah Theatre: Standard 4 Objective 6C
o Create an outcome portfolio reflecting content and process from across the term;
e.g., notes, rubric assessments, process and production photos, programs, research,
published reviews, letters, advocacy statements, reflections, visual art, written
criticism, theory essays.
Enduring Understandings
Students will understand that safety is important in theatre because of the many potential
hazards and health risks that are presented by the tools often used in construction.
Key Knowledge
Students will know that dust masks are used to prevent the inhalation of dust, saw dust,
and other particles that can be found in the air during the construction process.
Students will know that goggles and other eye protectors are used to protect your eyes
during construction from things such as, but not limited to: saw dust, wood chips, shards
of metal, and other such materials.
Students will know that hearing protection is used when loud tools are being used, such as
saws, drills, etc.
Students will know that it is important to be even more attentive to your surroundings
when using hearing protection, as this will limit the ability to hear noises.
Students will know what materials are in the first aid kit, and when to use each item at the
appropriate occasion.
Skills
Students will be able to locate the first aid kit in the shop/construction area
ASSESSMENT
Performance Tasks
Students wear hearing protection and attempt to take notes on what the teacher is saying
in order to learn that it is important to be even more attentive to your surroundings when
using hearing protection, as this will limit the ability to hear noises.
Other Assessments
Students complete the Theatre Safety Worksheet to demonstrate that they know what
specific safety items are used for, and what each item protects from, and what the
common causes of accidents in a theatre shop are.
Students read through and sign the Safety Agreement Form to demonstrate that they
understand that safety is important in theatre because of the many potential hazards and
health risks that are presented by the tools often used in construction.
MATERIALS NEEDED
Teacher Materials
PowerPoint presentation on safety equipment (See Attached)

First Aid Kit

Stage Manager Paralyzed in London Article

Student Materials
Note taking items
Safety Worksheet/Agreement form (See Attached)
Hearing protectors
LEARNING PLAN
Framing / Hook
1. Article Number 1
a. Show the class the first news article in the attachments labeled, Stage Manager
Paralyzed in London Theatre Accident Awarded Millions in Historic Settlement
i. Read it out loud to the class or have a student read it to the class.
b. Tell the students today is day one of the short unit on safety, leading into learning
about tech.
Process
2. PowerPoint on Safety Equipment
a. Tell the class to take out writing equipment to take notes, as everything youre
discussing will be important and they knowledge they glean from this presentation
would be a good addition for their portfolios.
i. The first slide is about Eye Protection
1. Ask the students why eye protection is necessary in the shop. If no one
says this, tell the students that during the construction process of a
set, there are often many different types of particles in the air that can
be harmful to ones eyes and/or vision. This can include wood chips,
saw dust, the flame from a welder (for this they would use specific UV
eye protection)
ii. The second slide is about Dust Masks
1. Ask students why dust masks are needed in the shop. If no one says
this, tell the students that for a lot of the same reason you would wear
eye protection, you will want to wear a dust mask to keep harmful
particles from entering your lungs. This is just as much a health hazard
as if they enter your eyes.
iii. The third slide is about Hearing Protection
1. Ask students what items in the shop you would want hearing
protection for. The list should include saws, drills, anything in your shop
that can be considered loud.
2. At this point, pass out a pair of hearing protectors of some sort to
every student in the class. Ask them to put the hearing protection in,
and to not remove them until you put both of your hands up in the air.
Tell them that what you will be saying is part of the presentation, so
they need to continue taking notes while they have their ear-plugs in.
a. Once the students all have the protection in, say the following:
i. I lied about this part being part of the
presentation. It is in fact just a demonstration to
show how little you can hear while you have
hearing protection in. Im so confident that you
cant hear me while Im saying this that I promise
the first person to stand up and say Oh captain,
my captain, will get $10 straight from my wallet.
[Wait for a response] (If a student does stand up and
say Oh captain, my captain, tell them that they didnt

have their hearing protection in correctly and are

disqualified).
b. Raise both your hands after a minute or so of talking
c. Ask the students what they noticed while their protection was in
i. The students should come to the idea that it is harder to
hear with hearing protection is.
d. Ask why hearing aids can be their own hazard
i. Students should come to the idea that hearing aids can
limit what you hear around you, including other potential
risks
ii. Have students also come to the conclusion that it is
important to be aware of what going on around you,
especially while hearing protection is being used.
iv. The fourth slide should have the Theatre Safety article, listing the main
causes of accidents in a theatre shop.
1. Make sure students write this list down in their notes.
2. Discuss each item on the list with the class. Ask the students why each
item can be a hazard in a shop.
3. The location of the first aid kit
a. Have students follow you to where the first aid kit, telling them also to bring their
notes to take note of whats in the kit.
i. Tell students to memorize where the kit is, because if there is an emergency
and they dont know where the kit is, it can be the difference between life
and death.
b. Open the First Aid Kit and take the students on a tour of the various items that are
in the kit, explaining what each item is used for.
i. Your First Aid Kit should include the following:
1. Adhesive Medical Strips of various sizes to protect smaller cuts and
damage
2. Gauze Pads for large cuts that a Band-Aid wont cover
3. Medical Tape for holding gauze pads in place
4. Antibiotic/Disinfectant to prevent infections in a wound
5. Hand Sanitizer to prevent infections in a wound
6. Tweezer for removing splinters/ other types of shards from the skin
7. Salve/Burn Ointment For burn relief
c. After the tour, tell the students that if any sort of injury happens, no matter how
small but especially big, to inform the teacher immediately in order to assess the
situation and take proper procedures.
Reflection
4. Safety Worksheet/Agreement Form
a. Hand out the Safety Worksheet/Agreement form to each student.
i. Tell the students that the Worksheet and Agreement Forms are dues next
class, with their signature and their parent/guardians signature. Tell them to
be sure to read every part of the agreement form with their guardian.
ii. Also tell the students that this worksheet and agreement form will be good
additions to their portfolio, and it would be wise to create a copy of each
before turning them in
ATTACHMENTS

Stage Manager Paralyzed in London Theatre Accident Awarded Millions in Historic

Settlement
By Adam Hetrick
12 Dec 2014
Rachael Presdee, a London stage manager who was left paralyzed after falling ten feet
through an unmarked backstage door, has been awarded 3.7 million, according to the Guardian.
Presdee was working on the Headlong Theatre production of Boys at the Soho Theatre when she opened an unmarked
backstage door in search of a fellow theatre employee and walked through a black curtain, assuming it led to another
part of the stage. In fact, the door was ten feet above stage level and had been used for the Balcony Scene in prior
productions of Romeo and Juliet. It was never secured.
Prior to Presdees injury, the door had been identified as a potential safety hazard, but was never properly dealt with.
According to London Equity, the out-of-court settlement was the biggest in the unions history. Presdees settlement
will assist with her future care, including specially adapting her home, as well as wages lost due to her injuries.
The theatre was separately prosecuted by Westminster City Council for violating safety laws. A sentence will be
handed down Dec. 15.

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Theatre Safety Worksheet

Which safety items will you want to have on while you are working with
an electric saw in the shop?
a. Safety Goggles
b. Hearing Protection
c. Dust Mask
d. All of the above
Safety Goggles are used to protect my eyes from harmful particles that
can be found in any shop.
a. True
b. False
Hearing Protection does not compromise my awareness of what is
happening around me.
a. True
b. False
Which of the following are common reasons for accidents?
a. Insufficient Knowledge
b. Improper use of tools and facilities
c. Failure to safeguard hazardous equipment
d. Failure to remove faulty equipment
e. Carelessness
f. Being in a hurry
g. All of the above
Describe briefly where your shops First Aid Kit is located, and list five
items that are in it, as well as what those items are used for.

Theatre Safety Agreement

I, ______________, understand that there are potential hazards to my health
that are present in a theatre shop. I promise to uphold the rules of safety
laid out and enforced by my teacher at all times. Failure to do so can result
in anywhere from temporary suspension from equipment and shop time, to
an automatic failure in this unit.
Print Name:______________________
Signature:________________________

Date:_____________

I, ________________, guardian of the aforementioned student, understand the

potential risks that a shop can have. I also understand that my students
teacher puts the safety of the students above anything else. I also
understand the responsibilities that my student has in the shop.
Print Name:_______________________
Signature:_________________________

Date:______________