I have touched on this in the past in some of my writings but it is worth repeating , and even adding some additional tips. If you are a working vent, no matter if you a pro or amateur, you should think in terms of having an emergency kit with you to handle, well, emergencies. Let’s talk about this a bit in this installment.
The emergency kit can be custom made to your particular needs. I use exclusively soft puppets, so my emergencies are going to be different than someone using a hard ventriloquist figure. I always carry a glue gun, so I can plug it in and make a quick fix if something is torn open or falls off of one of my characters. I also carry a needle and thread and there or four small spools of different colored thread. I usually stock brown, black , gray, and a transparent thread. I’m not he world’s greatest seamstress but if I have difficulty usually someone at the venue will take mercy on me and help me sew something back if I am having trouble. But if I didn’t have these items , I would just be out of luck.
I also carry a backup microphone, in the event something would happen to my primary microphone, and some additional mic cord. In my car I carry 150 feet of extension cord so I will be able to get power no matter how far away the outlet might be.
It’s a wise thing to also carry some index cards and a marker or pen, in the event you have to take notes or have to MC a show. As I mentioned earlier, if you are working with a hard figure, a small bottle of touch up paint might come in handy in the case you get a scratch.
Now you can’t carry all of this if you are flying to a show, but this kit is a lifesaver if you drive to most of your dates. Take a few moments and think about what you use in your show and be sure you have backups and emergency items that fit YOU. Also a bottle of asprin and some bandaids is a good idea as well. This is going to be the little box you put under the seat that will insure you being able to carry on no matter what!
To contact Mark Wade: kidshowvent@gmail.com