Health and safety in Theatre production

Risk assesment

Pre Production

Use of power tools - Wear safety clothing/ goggles
Cutting equipment - Use cutting mats/ cut awat from body/ dont carry open knives around
Use of paint & glue/ solvents - Use water based liquids, make sure u clean up spills
Using suitable materials - Check out fire retardency rules for particular venue.
Heavy lifting - Lift in groups/ lift using knees and not back to prevent serious injury.
Ensure that props are safe for performers - Make sure person in plant stays hydrated as they are going to spend a long time in a small area.

Production

Stage blackout, tripping, falling & colliding - Use of torches, all scenery positions clearly marked on the floor
Height hazard, falling of stage - Clear annoucments to the crew, pulling curtains during a blackout
Props being lost, misused - Keep props on a specific table, logged and under control of the prop manager
Moving scenery - All crew have specific, well rehearsed job roles
Crowd control - Controlled ticket sales, staff on the door, clear signs, research the seating limit of the venue, seating plan
Fire - Loud and clear announcments, signs and signals/ usual fire precautions.

Whilst planning a production we had to take into consideration the health and safety situations which can occur during a production. During the production we had to make sure everything was running smoothly and had to stay aware of dangerous situations, such as spills on the floor, props laying around, cutting equipment left open and to many people in one room. Making this risk assesment guide helped me to understand all the things which can go wrong during a production and also helped me to find a solution on how to solve these dangeorus situation.