Technical Design Solutions for Theatre

A Pneumatic Floor Lock System

Delbert L. Hall, Ph.D.

There are many solutions to the problem of locking rolling units in place following a scene change (see Mark Stevens’s Technical Brief “A Simple Lift Jack” for one method). However, the solution to this problem becomes more difficult when all sides of the unit must be faced, the unit must be moved quickly and easily by a single person, and the unit must remain stationary under the movement of actors performing stage combat. We faced this set of conditions in a production of Romeo and Juliet at East Tennessee State University. The solution we selected was a pneumatic floor lock system.

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