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=**Theatre Safety Procedures - Khathu**=

Armory (Stage Weapons)
In stagecraft, no combat is allowed in class or on production unless you have received proper training and total approval from theatre faculty that is responsible or the faculty Fight director (if one is present). Props, especially prop weapons are **NOT** toys. Props and prop weapons are **NOT** to be handled by unauthorized people and the props, all of them, are the responsibility of the Props master or one who is assigned to be the weapons handler. **NOBODY** **ELSE** **IS ALLOWED** **TO HANDLE THE PROPS AT ALL!** Prop weapons shall be tightly secured when not in use and will be distributed to actors **ONLY** when required to work with, after use, the prop weapons will be immediately given back to the prop master who shall secure them again. All prop weapons **SHALL BE TREATED AND HANDLED LIKE REAL WEAPONS!** This means, all prop guns should be treated like they loaded and all edged weapons must be treated as if sharp. **BATED WEAPONS CAN KILL TOO!**

In Alburquerque, a Director asked a Technical Manager to use a gun as a prop for a little skit addressing the high school he was working in, he presented a live .45 pistol that was fully loaded, the techinical reminded the Director that this gun was not acceptable unless the firing pin was removed and to never mix live and blank ammunition. He apologized for the live rounds and said the gun wasn’t his and he couldn’t get permission from the owner for the modification. Considering his proven inability to obtain a safe stage prop, the Technical Manager suggested they use a small starter pistol he had had. The Director wanted the look of a larger gun so they both settled on a full sized toy gun painted black, with sound effects through the on-stage sound system. They brought the prop gun for their first rehearsal, ran the sound cue and it all worked out fine. His job was done... or so he thought. Two actors had taken the toy gun from the prop table and gone out behind the building to rehearse their fight scene choreography, which must have been a bit too realistic for someone in the building across the street who called the police and the SWAT. They both could have been killed over a squirt gun! We sent their Stage Manager back for retraining and amended our rules about prop weapons: "They are to be locked up at all times when not actually on-stage." That right there just shows how important proper safety procedure for props in necessary. Prop weapons such as a stage guns or a stage swords that read well but lack the intentional harmfulness of the corresponding real weapon are necessary. In theater, prop weapons almost either non-operable replicas, or have safety features to make sure they are not harmful towards actors. Guns fire blanks or sound effects from theater sounds are used, swords are dulled, and knives are often made of plastic or rubber. In film production, not theater acting, fully functional weapons are occasionally used. The safety and proper handling of real weapons used as movie props is the prop master's premiere responsibility, often monitored by an off-duty policeman, fireman, and/or ATF agent.

It is very important to get familiar with the props so you know how to handle them during your play, that way, nobody gets hurt.

__Theatre Safety Manual__. Author. 28 September 2009 <[]> __Prop Weapons__. Author. 10 October 2009  __Theatrical Property__. Author. 10 October 2009  __Props FAQ__. Author. 10 October 2009 