Frequently Asked Questions and
Frequently Heard Complaints
- How do I become a Wings judge?
- Contact one of the performing groups (see Members).
Many groups are eager (and some are desparate) for judges. Sorry, you can't just "be
a judge"; you have to represent some group.
- Are there any qualifications for a Wings judge?
- You have to be breathing and masochistic enough to sit through one
performance of every show for an entire season. There is an ongoing argument as
to whether a judge should be "technically qualified" (i.e., a "theatre person") or
simply someone who attends plays. The former might bring some objectivity to one
or more facets of a production, e.g., recognizing the difficulty of a dance step
and observing how well it was performed. Often, however, these people are not
technically qualified in all aspects of theatre. The casual theatre-goer
will judge a performance on the basis of obvious errors and entertainment value.
The latter, of course, is why we do this in the first place (or should).
- Why is the ballot so complicated?
- Politics. "Gaming". Experience. There are no hard-and-fast qualifications
for a Wings judge. Some people take their judge role very seriously. Others do
not. (Kinda like ushing in the Concert Hall just to get in to see the BTL shows
for free.) So, we try to make the ballot so that the judge has to think about
the answers. Unfortunately, every year someone comes up with a "special case"
production that doesn't fit into the Wings mold. So, we try to warp the rules
yet again to solve the problem, only to find some other problem the next year.
If you want your input to be heard on this subject, join one of the groups and
offer to be one of their representatives on the Wings Steering Committee. We
love new blood (especially O-positive, yum!).
- What is the Wings Steering Committee?
- If I told you, I'd have to kill you. OK, actually, every group is supposed
to have two representatives on the WSC. We plan the annual production, handle
the ballots, and fuss over the judging rules.
- Aren't you comparing apples and oranges with the productions?
- Yep. Then again, so do the Tony Awards. Is a Shakespearean "Othello" a
better or worse actor than the guy playing a talking mushroom in a Fantasy
production? Well, that's up to the judges.
- My director submitted my name as a nominee. How come I'm
not on the list?
- There is a huge misunderstanding about the list that gets published in the
paper. These names are finalists, not nominees. Your director can
nominate anyone in any category (subject to the rules). Those nominations go
onto the ballots sent to the judges. The judges rate each nominee, and the
ballot scores are tallied. If your name didn't show up at the top of the list,
well, sorry, but the judges didn't think you were as good as the other people.
- When will the list of finalists appear in the newspaper?
- That would be a good question to ask the newspaper people. We submit the
list of names early enough so that it should appear about the time the
invitations to the banquet are received. But, the Times won't print
the list until they decide it's "newsworthy" and they have sufficient space.
That often doesn't happen until the Sunday right before the awards. Check this
web site for the finalists list.
- I didn't receive an invitation to the banquet. Why not?
- Did you move since your performance? We sometimes send out the invitations
using bulk mail, which means that if you've moved, it won't be forwarded. But
the most common problem is that your director or producer didn't submit your
name and address to the Wings Steering Committee. Some directors are awful
about submitting techies' names, and some just can't be bothered to send in a
list at all. You can print out an e-nvitation from this web site (when they
are available) and a replica of the reply card. If you don't want to eat
dinner, you can just show up on the night of the event and pay your money at the
door.
- My name wasn't listed on the invitation I received.
- Don't be sad, you can still go. We only get the names that the director
or producer gave us. Often we can't tell if a name is a child or an adult,
and if the adult has a spouse. You're all invited. Come one, come all.
- I'm not an actor or a techie. Can I go to the banquet?
- One question: Do you have money? If so, you can go. If you didn't get
an invitation and you want to hob-nob with the stars over dinner, print out the
reply card available on this site (when applicable) and mail it in with your
money. If you just want to go for the program, you can show up at the door
with cash in hand.
- Why are the awards on a weeknight?
- It is extremely difficult to schedule the awards banquet. There is something
going on with one more groups virtually every night of the year (auditions, rehearsals,
performances, etc.). We try to pick a date when everyone is dark. If you have a
rehearsal that night, well, talk to your director. A weekend night would be nice for
out-of-town students to attend, but there just aren't any "free" weekends.
- Why does the banquet cost so much? After all, it's just
"rubber chicken".
- When has anything in the VBC been cheap? Not only do we have to pay for the
food, we have to pay for the facility, the tables, the chairs, etc. The VBC would
charge us for breathing air if they could find a way to measure it. We also have
to pay for printing and mailing the invitations, decorations, and (sometimes)
microphone and lighting rental. Suffice to say that we do not make a profit
on the dinners.
- OK, so why are we at the VBC? How about some other venue?
- We've tried. We've been to the Roundhouse and the Holiday Inn at Research Park.
Neither venue was any better than the VBC North Hall. If you have a good idea for a
place that is (a) available on the appropriate date, (b) allows/provides catering,
(c) allows/provides booze and a bartender, (d) provides tables and chairs, (e) has
a raised stage with lighting and sound, and (f) is big enough, please let us
know. Cheap would be nice, too.
- Why aren't we in the Playhouse any more?
- Too many people. There's a maximum number of people that we can cram into the
Playhouse for dinner. It's a Catch-22: When we announced the move to North Hall,
attendance at dinner went down, so that we would fit into the Playhouse. When we
talked about moving back, attendance went back up, and we didn't fit any more. Besides,
it's a long walk from the "cheap seats" in the loge to the stage, and that just made
the program take even longer.
- Why does the awards ceremony take so long?
- More awards = longer ceremony. We've tried a number of things to "tighten up"
the ceremony. 27 awards x (say) 3 minutes for the presentation and the tearful
acceptance speech is 1:21 right there. The eight performing groups are supposed
to keep their presentations to 5 minutes; that rarely happens, but even if they
did, that's another 40 minutes. Add initial comments, an opening skit, and an
intermission, and the program can run well over three hours. We've had a number of
suggestions to make the program shorter, such as presenting the technical awards
before the banquet, which went over like a lead balloon with the techies. In 2003,
we had fewer presenters presenting more awards; that seemed to help a little.
Starting earlier would be nice, but on a weekday, it's difficult if not impossible
for most people to get to dinner any earlier than 6 pm, so the ceremony can't
start until 7 pm.
- How about eliminating dinner?
- That has been suggested. Some people thought hors d'oeuvres would be a cheaper
substitute (and quicker). Unfortunately, they aren't cheaper. (If you don't
believe that, check the VBC price list.) When polled, the
majority of the attendees said they wouldn't attend if dinner wasn't offered. It
is supposed to be primarily a "social occasion" rather than just an evening
of awards presentations.
- What "entertainment"?
- Each performing group is asked to present a short (supposedly five minute)
presentation from one of their shows. Most of the time, the groups do a musical
number, dance, or scene from a past show. Since there are children present in the
audience, each presentation is supposed to be "suitable for all audiences". In
addition to the group presentations, we often have a short comedic skit at the
beginning of the ceremony. Of course, the acceptance speeches can be amusing as
well.
- What should I wear?
- People have shown up at the Wings ceremony dressed in everything from T-shirts
to tuxedos. Some people "dress to impress", others "dress like a mess". The
suggested attire is coat and tie for the men and "cocktail dress" for the
women. But no one will stop you at the door if you're dressed otherwise, so long as
you've bought a ticket.
Got another FAQ? E-mail it
to me.