Dracula break away daybed/couch help??

[Standby]

Greetings, I'm new to CB and I did post on the newbie board.

A few questons. I have to build a break away daybed/psychiatrist couch type of thing for a production of Dacula. The director wants dracula to fall off of a 45" tall platform and land on the daybed/couch and have it break into two and have blood squirt out as if coming from dracula...with a steak in his chest ofcourse..........any ideas on how to build a daybed/couch that needs to support other actors during the show and then break in two when dracula falls on it?

[Footer]

Build 2. I would be really hesitant to do this in a high school situation. 45" is a pretty decent fall and if he has something sticking out of his chest.... that really would concern me. A person who is qualified with stage combat/stunt training could probably pull this type of thing off... I am not sure if a high school student can. A 45" fall is in the rang of needing a real crash bag. I don't know if your going to be able to build something that will be able to decelerate him enough to make this happen safely. Added to that, I don't think that he will be able to do the fall consistently enough to make it safe.

Break away furniture works in two ways.... either you have to replace a part every night or its going to look like a cartoon. For thing, it would be possible to just get the legs to collapse or something like that, but once again the fall thing concerns me. And I just re-read... does he have to fall forward onto this couch?

[derekleffew]

Originally Posted by Standby

...with a steak in his chest of course.........

Stakes Through Hearts Cartoons

[photoatdv]

What if instead of falling he kinda sinks down onto it and the legs collapse and/or it flips over? Like in movies/ tv shows sometimes where someone gets shot or stabbed and kinda sinks down?

If he's going to be falling or whatever the "stake" needs to be foam (soft kind!) or stuffed (sew one and fill with polyester?). It could have velcro and stick onto a patch on his costume.

[MNBallet]

Does the fall have to be seen? I would think a safer and better way to go would to do a double. build a broken bed and put a dummy with the stake in it. It doesn't have to look real, just a human shape. Then have the actor approach the falling point, blackout....scream...crash..(switch beds), light come up to reveal the damage has been done.

I'm thinking along the lines that the stake is from the fall right, like he lands on it? Or does he fall with the stake already in him, and you're just looking for a broken bed?