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The Ring of Steel is a troupe of performers capable of providing a wide variety of artistic and educational services. We offer theatrical shows, combat training, stunt F/X, lectures, demonstrations, costume and theatrical equipment rental, and F/X makeup design and consultation. We can provide any one of a combination of our many special services that will fit a need or venue. Given sufficient time, we can develop virtually any type of action or dramatic production. We have experience performing in festivals, conventions, films, television, stage and live-action stunt shows, parties and even weddings. (We've kidnapped the bride and staged her rescue!) The Ring of Steel is the largest theatrical combat, stunt and special effects troupe in the country and the fight/stunt arrangers for the Michigan Opera Theater.
The training cadre of the Ring of Steel is an experienced team encompassing all aspects of performance and design. In the past 26 years, this team has accumulated a combined 130 years of training with 18 feature film credits and over 320 stage productions. We subscribe to the standards of the Society of American Fight Directors. The SAFD is a non-profit organization of theater professionals, academicians, friends and supporters, all of whom share a common interest in the art of stage violence. It is led by the country's top fight choreographers and stands for the highest standards in effective and safe theatrical fighting.
Our Maestro, Christopher Barbeau, is the Fight Director for the Michigan Opera Theater and a theatrical combat instructor at the University of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University, and trains actors and choreographs theatrical violence for the stage, film, and television.
Initially trained as a Olympic-style fencer and martial artist in 1975, his career as a theatrical combatant began in 1980 at the Michigan Renaissance Festival. Maestro Barbeau holds a BA from the University of Michigan with majors in English Literature, History, Philosophy, and Physics.
He has appeared regularly at Renaissance Festivals across the country as a member of several different performance troupes including the Four of Swords, The Crossed Swords, The Flashing Blades, and most recently, with his combat troupe, The Ring of Steel Action Theatre. He has performed such combat roles as Cyrano, Hamlet, and Aramis from the Three Musketeers and has choreographed over eighty stage and screen productions including Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story, The Three Musketeers, As You Like It, King Lear, MacBeth, Hamlet, Cyrano, The Tempest, Wait Until Dark, Moon Over Buffalo, and Musical Mystery Murders of 1940.
What the Ring is Not...
The Ring of Steel does not currently engage in horse stunts nor provide animal acts. We are not a "living history" organization as per the Society for Creative Anachronism nor are we a Live-Action Role Playing group. We have musicians in our troupe, however we do not perform musical acts. We do have an extensive network of contacts, and we are happy to provide references if you do find yourself in need of a service we do not currently provide.
We have a repertoire of 3 to 40 minute original vignettes that are suitable to a wide variety of themes - broad comedy to interpretive dance and classical drama. We also have a large repertoire of 30 second to 5 minute fights that can be added to any type of show. We have our own outdoor stage and renaissance-style pavilion. As a stunt performance troupe, we run the historical gamut from medieval to futuristic.
We are trained in pyrotechnics including body burns, fire breathing, explosives and firearms. Our repertoire includes rappelling, zip lines and high falls. Light us on fire, and throw us through a glass window for a three-story fall and we're happy to oblige. We can place 2-30 people on stage, fully armed from a stock of over 260 weapons representing over fifty thousand dollars of equipment. Rapier, broadsword, quarterstaff, dagger, shields, smallsword, whips and hand-to-hand are just a few of the broad categories of weapons with which we can perform. We also have a stock of period and modern handguns and long guns.
Typical performance venues for the Ring include:
Theme parties/events for any age Science Fiction and Fantasy conventions Weddings School English and Drama departments Madrigal Feasts Summer Drama Camps Wassails Haunted Houses Film & Video Stage Productions in any venue Renaissance Faires Library Outreach Programs Themes the Ring is prepared to present concerning:
Hi-tech/Futuristic Haunted/Horror Fantasy Pirate Renaissance Wild West Cavalier Scottish Medieval Far Eastern (hand & sword) Modern Gothic
Our demonstrations are typically designed to fit a 1 to 2 hour format usually consist of our performing 2 to 3 two-person fights, allowing the audiences to hold examples of about 50 different weapon types, and discussing the history of weapons development from 500 AD to 1750 AD. We are experienced in working closely with teachers, directors and actors, and we are willing to customize our offerings to your needs.
The Ring's workshops are "hands-on" seminars of 1 to 2 hours in length. They typically consist of a presentation on basic principles of theatrical combat with historical commentary and 1 to 2 demonstration fights performed. Participants are invited to try their hand at swordplay and hand-to-hand under the guidance of our instructors. Emphasis is placed on safety and kinesthetic technique. We also consult on any staged violence or stunt for stage and screen. We will develop an individualized seminar based on the desires of your group, requirements of a particular theatrical production, or continuing training from previous workshops.
Lecture topics available include:
Shakespeare and the Theater Greek and Arthurian Ideals in the Renaissance Western vs. Eastern Marital Arts Martial Arts and Stunt Work on the stage and screen Arthurian Mythology A Historical Perspective on the Psychology of Violence The Historical Stylistic Development of Western Swordplay Zen and the Martial Arts Weapons and Armor Additional specialized lectures are available.
Theatrical combat is a multidisciplinary art that combines acting with elements of fencing, martial arts, dance, and music to develop a safe and effective performance. It is a distinct area of study; essentially a marital art where the focus is not to injure your partner. As with any martial art, years of training are needed before an individual is prepared to safely share their skills on the stage.
The Ring of Steel offers theatrical combat training in a wide range of weapons and combat styles, based in large part on Aikido and late period rapier. Our current list of available techniques includes:
- Smallsword
- Rapier
- Single Rapier
- Rapier & Dagger
- Rapier & Buckler
- Rapier & Cloak
- Case of Rapiers
- Broadsword
- Broadsword & Shield
- Two-Handed Sword
- Staff
- Polearms
- Hand-to-Hand
After training with the Ring, members may test with the Society of American Fight Directors (SAFD) for Actor/Combatant certification.
Those who train with us can join in the yearly certifications done at the University of Michigan for the SAFD but we are not geared around SAFD cert training. We certify trainees with our organization at any of it's chapters with much more stringent expectations for training and with certs that do not expire. We are confident in the "no expiration" aspect of our certification (15 different weapon combinations @ performer, trainer and choreographer levels) because of our training program.
We train you like stage combat is a martial art and at the end of approximately two years of regular training (which will cost you 1/2 of what a single SAFD class would cost) you couldn't forget what we hammered into your muscles and neurons if you tried. You'll understand the biomechanics of stroke production and the geometries associated with execution of different moves in a fashion that a 15-week course taught in a university setting can't effectively deliver. We can deliver this in a low-pressure, pay-as-you-go environment that is tailored to individual advancement. With your previous experience, you already have a good start on our training and our certifications are recognized across the nation in both the academic and the movie worlds (where, in the latter case, the SAFD has yet to penetrate).
The Ring can provide customized choreography for productions from any historical or modern period containing virtually any level of violence from the silly to the sublime. We will coordinate training for 2 to 120 performers and we are experienced in working closely with the director and actors to interpret scenic violence and to assist in the creation of a dramatic moment that enhances the presentation. We can provide the necessary equipment, extras for mass battles, and F/X for graphic violence. We consult on any aspect of staged violence: technical, interpretive and historical.
The Ring of Steel feels that the arena theatrical combat is not limited to the use of weapons. As part of our training and choreography, we employ the regular use of stunt work. This can range from the basic level of simple flips and rolls, to the more elaborate stunts of flying and falling.
Professional theatrical combat weapons and armor can be rented at exceptional rates for negotiated periods. We stock wooden and aluminum weapons for younger performers and firearms for modern productions. The Ring is also willing to provide a wide range of equipment and services in support of the use of our weapons and training or performance skills. (Please check here for current rental pricing information.)
Modular Stage (8'x12' to 16'x40') Plate armor, chain mail, and shields Canvas Pavilion (18'x28', set-up and teardown) 260+ Weapons (swords, black powder, semi-auto handguns), Realistic, stylized and stage/costume only Fogger and Hazer (OSHA approved for opera) Climbing/Flying rigging and harness Air Brush Makeup (6 brush unit) Zip-line trolleys and rigging 28' cargo bus/16' cube van/ 12' maxivan Stunt fall body padding Sound System (speakers, mixer, amp, wireless mikes) Squib vest Sound Production services (mixes, CD's burned, composition) High fall pit (24"x6'x12', rated for 20 feet) Lights (gobo scanners, color changers, pars, fresnels, scoops, pi spots, strobes, mirror balls, DMX control board) Flash Pot F/X (controller, cans, cable) 350+ costumes Mats (1"x6'x12' and 2"x3'x6') Bubble Machines Fire Stunts (performance only)
The Ring maintains a modest stock of hardware for use with the creation of special effects. Our equipment runs the gamut from sound production and makeup (via the use of a 12-brush air brush unit), to atmospheric effects (fog and bubble machines, flash pots, lights).
In addition to our repertoire of weapon and stunt performances, the Ring is also prepared to perform fire effects of varying levels. These range from the to simple use of flashpots to the more impressive body burns (due to the nature of this stunt, it will done in performance only by Ring members).
| For more information email the Ring of Steel at rosteel@umich.edu |
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