::facepalm::

rails? 

you want RAILS?! 

 

Whence the thrill of danger, the dash of derring-do, the folderol of falling?  Dammit, it's not a _real_ choir tour until some lock-kneed soprano strung out on two solid weeks of Mountain Dew and Pez candy takes a backwards swan-dive off row 5 during the climax of "Geographical Fugue"!

 

(Translation: as a chorister, I suffered the peril of rail-less risers, so everyone else should embrace said endangerment as a rite of passage)

 

My vote: get the rails--the back one at least.  If you have enough riser space for breathing room and a bit of a buffer between the last person and the riser edge, the side rails can be omitted--and if you don't have room, buy an extra segment instead.  Your choir will thank you!

 

~Adam Cole (always the tall bass condemned to stand on the top row, with oblivion yawning behind and less side-to-side space than you get flying coach these days)

I am very surprised that you are allowed to use them without. You wouldn't be in the UK.

Hi Philip: I am not sure what the rules are like in the USA, but in Ontario we have safety codes that have to be adhered to. This requires rails after we get up to a certain height.I woould imagine it would be different in each state.

 

Good Luck,

Melissa Stephens,

Haliburton, Ontario

My daughter sang for a number of years in a children's chorus.  Since she was always one of the tallest in the group, she was always placed in the back row.  They had an afternoon concert one day and, in the rush to get to the venue, fix her hair, etc., she never got around to eating.

 

I'd noticed her color was rather light during the first half of the show and in the second part, she simply vanished from sight and a loud thud resounded through the church.  When I reached her she was groggy but waking up.  Another dad who was a doctor gave her a quick look over.  She'd landed primarily on her butt so, aside from her pride, there were no serious injuries.  Had there been a music stand or folding chair behind the risers the story probably would have ended differently.  The choir immediately bought railings and never again performed without them because they realized the liability that they'd exposed themselves to by not having them.

 

I firmly believe that railings should be used whenever risers are unless the risers are against a stage.  It's simply too easy for someone of any age to pass out or, caught up in a performance, make a misstep and topple off the back.  Remove that element of worry for yourself and your singers and just get the rails!

Philip:  You can see the concensus!  But if your school has an attorney, I would suggest checking on the OSHA requirements (which would be the NATIONAL requirements comparable to Canada's).

 

Of course OSHA requirements are written by beaurocrats who don't actually know anything.  When they inspected our theater they complained that all the wiring should be contained within metal tubing, obviously not understanding that in a theater the wiring CHANGES with each new setup.

 

But for safety, of course get the back rails.  Side rails, maybe, maybe not.

 

On the other hand, my university show ensemble always used a custom-designed and -built stage set with different levels, and every time we put a new one into use the kids would worry about stepping off the back.  But within a week or two on the practice set they learned where they were on the set and KNEW where to step safely.  But this was a very physically-active show, and no one ever got lock-kneed!

 

All the best,

John

 

Thank you all.  The clear message is - and always has been - get the rails.  I've known this all along, but was hoping someone would write to say, "Awww...don't waste yer money!"  No worries.  I shall order them today!  Thanks for the input.  (BTW - no OSHA or other requirements for rails here in the states - or at least not in Hawaii where I live.  Aloha!)