This eagerly awaited text from the United States Institute for
Theatre Technology Physics of Theatre Project provides a firm
conceptual grounding in physics principles along with a clear
guide of how to apply those concepts to numerous common
theatrical situations. How much power do you need to drive a
wagon or skid? Why do we use design factors and where do those
values come from? How does a rake affect the moving scenery
installed on it? The Physics of Theatre: Mechanics is a first
step to understanding why the machines in theatre work the way
they do.
The first half of the book uses theatrical examples to guide
readers through developing an understanding of kinematics,
statics and dynamics, rotational mechanics, and center of mass.
The second half applies these concepts to increasingly complex
theatrical machines: wagons and skids, static rigging, dynamic
rigging, turntables, and jackknives.
See the companion website, physicsoftheatre.org, for even more
examples and resources. Use the Physics of Theatre Forum to ask
your questions and get answers from us and other technicians.
For some theatre technicians, the idea of delving headlong into
physics might seam daunting, so a math primer is included to help
exercise those math skills again before diving into the text. The
examples and formulas used in this text are algebra and
trigonometry based. Theatre technicians do harder things than
this every day. You can do this math.
For instructors, this text includes a guide to pedagogical
techniques and resources which have been validated through
research and are known to increase student learning.
The examples in this book work up from first principles -
Newton's laws and basic truths about how the world functions. By
working all of the formulas from the ground up, students learn
how and why the formulas work. They can also make informed
decisions about how to change the formula to fit their specific
situations. Understanding first principles and having the ability
to derive equations is an incredibly powerful skill. There are no
mystery equations in this book. In each case, the reader knows
where the equation came from and what assumptions were made.
One of the great powers of working formulas from base principles
is that one set of concepts allows a user to create and adapt one
formula for multiple situations rather than trying to remember
numerous formulas, each for a specific case. For instance, this
text will walk readers through generating one formula to
determine the tensions in 2-point bridle rigging. Whether the
bridles are even or uneven, at the same height or different
heights doesn't matter. The tensions can be found for any bridle
if we know the angles off of vertical and the load.
The same advantage exists for linear motion. If we are willing
to do a little math, we can determine the force necessary to
drive a wagon or skid at a particular acceleration, stop a fire
curtain cleanly at the deck, or investigate why allowable fall
arrest distances are what they are. The process for all of these
situations is startlingly similar. It doesn't matter if we
generate the necessary force with cylinders, motors or humans. If
we start with the forces acting on a system, then we can choose
the mechanics that best fit our situation, rather than choosing a
type mechanism up front. It also gives us a straight-forward path
for combining machines.
The Physics of Theatre: Mechanics hopes to increase our
intuition as technicians and mechanical designers, so we can
create a safer, more efficient industry.