preface

When I first wrote The Prop Building Guidebook, I had little to draw from. Very few prop building books existed to compare this to. So I had to take a lot of leaps as to what information would be useful, and what kind of organization made sense.

Now that the book has been “out in the wild” for a few years, I have a much better idea of what this book should be. It is found in prop shops throughout the industry and used in classrooms all over the world. I have received so many comments about how people use it, what parts they love, and what parts need work. While the first edition still stands on its own, I am very proud of this second edition. It is one step closer to the perfect prop building book that exists in my head.

This is a book for the prop building professional. While I love all the prop hobbyists and amateur theatre makers out there, they already have books and websites geared toward them. The working props professional needs their own book; something that accurately describes the industry and presents the whole range of materials and methods used. The student of props needs a guide to the best practices in the industry they are entering. And our teachers and managers should know we are not just making things up as we go along. Sometimes, but not always.