Fosshape & Wonderflex

For a theatrical production that came through, we were tasked with doing a statue. Instead of carving the body and clothes we used Fosshape. It’s a material that can be sewn or glued, and can be shaped with steam or heat, and when the material is cool it maintains its shape. The material can shrink up t 30% though, so allow for that when using the product. Below are a couple of photos from the shop showing the piece we built.

The same company can has a product called Wonderflex, which would work better in situations where you would typically use Fiberglas, carved foam, or paper mache. It is similar to Celastic, but celastic requires immersion in solvents to become moldable, and Wonderflex uses heat instead. For more information on the history of Celastic & props check out Prop Agenda.

Project Resource for Teaching Tools

I was browsing the internet looking for ideas for a project for my nephews to make over the summer when they visit. Complicated enough that a 13 year old would be interested, simple enough that I could help the younger kids in the neighborhood through it as well. I started off thinking about either a pine car derby or CO2 cars. Then I found Kelvin Educational. This sight has good prices on pieces if I do decide on cars,, but they have a lot of other cool things too, many geared towards classroom use. Bridges, cranes, catapults, hydraulics, robots, they have a bit of it all. Certainly a resource to use when thinking about how to teach concepts of engineering within the classroom.

Foam Coat

Rosco has a story about how they created a short article about how an entryway was carved from foam, covered with foam coat and painted. I think it is interesting that while the foam coat was wet, they sprinkled sand on top - I have mixed sand into paint before for texture / traction, but this works as well to help with the up-close realism that museums must offer guests.

Resources

Freeman Manufacturing Supply has a video library that is a free how-to regarding mold making, casting and laminating. They also sell a variety of sample kits and other supplies. Their video collect has over 2 hours of content, plus their technical library has some useful resources as well. These resources include a glossary of plastic tooling terms, shore hardness guidelines, viscosity guidelines, and conversion tables. Another section of their site has a variety of users guides, such as one on selecting the right adhesive.

One line of their products is called Renshape and is polyurethane foamboard for machining. This line seems intriguing for machining via the CNC machine.

Last but not least they have some alternative lumber products like a pre-primed white Masonite sheet and "armorboard" an exterior grade plywood with hardboard faces.

Making floors that are quiet

I found this site while looking for information about homasote or Celotex:
http://www.soundstopunderlayment.com/learningcenter/LearningCenter.aspx
The link has two things going for it – information regarding several different types of underlayment and sound characteristics. While we frequently don’t build stage floors the same way that we build homes, we do run into some of the same problems (sound), and with the prices on some of the flooring alternatives out there, using the real thing for the floor is a very real option.

Coroplast

I recently came across some plastic sign material. one variety can be seen at:
www.coroplast.com

The material I have was about a 1/4" thick, and very durable. Difficult to bend or cut with scissors, and resistant to bending.

I wish that I had paid more attention to this material during Pirates of Penzance this past spring. Pirates needed pieces of material that were as thin as possible, but durable. I looked at foam core, but the price was prohibitive and I needed larger sheets than what I could purchase, and laminating them together was cost prohibited. i went with a luaun / foam sandwich, which I have used on other productions. On some pieces we inserted steel or wood supports (for a cantilever section, and for attachment points), but the foam / luaun sandwich bonds well, has nice edges, doesn't require internal framing except for special circumstances (these were all used as flats not platforms). They are relatively economical, and can be laminated in a variety of shapes and configurations, making them ideal for solid odd shapes that abound in theatre.

But, this sign material could have been advantageous. It would have been lighter, came in colors, can be ordered to be flame retarded, could be directly printed on, and comes in a variety of sheet sizes. The edges would not have been solid (the material is like corrugated cardboard except it is plastic) but the thinness of the sheet would have made that irrelevant.

Something to keep in mind for the future.

Vannillacryl / foam coats

Add Vanillacryl to your list of products that coat foam. Its in the same price range as more typical products, but it seems to be marketed towards the special effects / haunted house crowd as opposed to the theatrical industry. (By the way, the haunted house industry and model railroad industry often produce some great products that are very useful for theatrical purposes). You can find more information about this product at http://www.fxsupply.com/vanillacryl/vanillacryl.html

A few notes: Its water based, weather resistant, you can mix texture into the product, and it may be thinned slightly. It doesn't achieve maximum hardness for several weeks, though it can be painted prior to that.

It would be interesting to do some side by side tests on the various coating products and various foams. Of course then the next step would be to have a wear test for them to see how they hold up after a month of use.

Foam 101

As I was working on updating some information on a few past shows, I ran into several shows where I used foam - different types and different coatings. I thought it would be of benefit to write down a few notes on the matter. However, it should be noted up front that this topic is a pretty large one, and 1 post will certainly miss alot of the finer details of working with foam.

Types of Foam
EPS (Expanded polystyrene) or bead foam. This foam is available in various densities.
A chart discussing each density and the relative strengths is at the following link:
http://www.achfoam.com/EPS/properties.asp
Generally speaking, if it will take abuse (such as being climbed on) or if it needs fine, detailed carving, a higher density will be needed. Of course, the higher density is more costly, and weighs more. In my latest show, I sandwiched thin sheets of commodity (the least dense) foam between 2 sheets of 1/4" luaun for great looking, odd shaped doubled sided flats.
While many densities can be manufactured, commodity board (the least dense), 1 and 2 are the most common.

Extruded Polystyrene foam (Dow is one manufacturer) is often sold in colors (blue, pink, yellow).
It uses a different blowing agent and a different manufacturing process. White molded EPS, unlike extruded, and is available in many different densities and thicknesses. Extruded foam seems to be closest to the no 2 EPS foam.

Then it gets more complicated:
AB foam, Spray foam, Handi-foam versus Great Stuff.....
Some you put on your self, some companies you will need to send your set pieces out to, and some will come in and spray it on your set while it is in the theatre.

Companies and products to watch for: Smooth On, Great Stuff, Handi-Foam, Moore products froth packs as well as many others.... In the phone book looking under plastic / foam should find a few places to start with locally.

Things to think about
Vertical or horizontal orientation
Result needed (some dry in beads, some are easier to carve)
Costs / labor for each
Available to truck out pieces, or to have time during load to have the set coated in place
Substructure (solid block of foam, frame with wire or muslin) I have had very good luck with large scenic pieces being very stable for a show, yet be movable for transitions being made out of large solid pieces of foam.

Adhesives:
3M Fastbond contact adhesive
White Glue
Spray or 2 part (ab) foam
Liquid Nails FRP in 1 gallon buckets

Methods for getting the foam paint ready. This is probably as problematic as choosing the method of using foam in the first place. Some foams will have a hard exterior and will not need anything more than a priming coat. Other foams will need to be sealed. Some inherently take paint, others like ethafoam (permaprep works very well on this material) inherently rejects paint. And on top of all of the ambiguity, it will depend on the show and the paint treatment on which method is ultimately best, as well as how the scenic element is used in the show (displayed versus abused for instance). Finally, the different coating have different flame retardant effects, so take care to test and confirm that your end product meets applicable codes. But the following are some basic ideas:

Foamcoat
Flexcoat
Sculpt or Coat
Super 88 (great food grade adhesive sold at http://www.aabbitt.com/)
Glue, paint and joint compound mixture (flex glue helps to keep it not brittle)
Wet blend tile mastic
Cheesecloth or muslin and glue
Elastometric roofing polymer
Perma Prep (a latex vapor barrier primer sealer)
Scrape coatings of drywall compound

While this entry is long, it is by no means a complete primer to using foam onstage. The capabilities of foam and its scenic uses are numerous, and subject to much debate over the best practices. However, as each scenic element has unique functions, all of these options can create a prop or set piece that performs well for almost any production budget.