Looking to upgrade a stage effect we use. I "throw" magic at on-stage furniture and they "flies" off stage and out of the way.

Well, that is the goal, but the effect is currently more like they just get dragged off. We simply have stage hands pull on ropes today and the result is a very unsatisfying effect (at least to me).

I have been toying with idea of using pullies with a block and tackle lift that is married to a heavy monofilament fishing line leader. The monofilament would be attached to the props and actually lift them to "fly" them up and off stage. Each item is ~40 or 50lbs tops. I am thinking 300 to 500lb test monofilament...using heavy snap swivles attached to eyebolts on the chairs...mono transitions to nylon braided ropes (of the 500 to 1000 lb rated range), and simple snatch pullies and inexpensive block/tackle lifts provide a 3-to-1 or 5-to-1 advantage to the FX hands. The block-and-tackle and snatch-pullies would be rigged to overhead pipes between scrims and curtains in the fly area of the stage. My thought is with proper setting (45% off set?)...the furniture would fly up in the air and then swing to the wings. Good line control by FX hands required for authentic effect and safe/gentle landing!

Good plan?
Bad plan?
Concerns/ideas?
How important is lighting in this scenario and how do I work with the stage director to ensure I get good results?
(the scene is darkly lit...do you avoid backlighting, downlighting, spots?)

Any advice or input would be extremely helpful and very welcome! Especially since we get limited access and theater time to rehearse. Want to walk in very prepared and with a very good idea of what to expect so that rigging goes easily and I can train the FX Hands in maybe one session and a couple of rehearshals.

Thanks!

Should I have posted as "Help with Rigging"?

Should I have posted as "Help with Rigging"?

You want the furniture to fly up and then to move off stage. So it must be a curve, not a horizontal movement. If you can hide a steel wire above you stage I would propose this solution. On the steel wire you have a small slider. Fastened to this slider is a pulley wheel. The chair is fastened to a fishing line. The line goes through the wheel and to one side of the stage (for example stage right). Another thicker rope is fastened to the slider so that the slider can be pulled to stage left. If you now pull the slider to stage left, then the chair will move up because the fishing line is fastened stage right. Lightweight furniture is absolutely necessary. Provide some soft stop like a net to prevent smashing your props and breaking them.

Ask a lighting designer. You will want the scene to be as bright as possible. Have a lot of light in front of your threads and on bright shiny objects to provide contrast.

Hi Abrel!
Thanks for the response and the great ideas. I agree...the effect desired is up and off. So it is not strictly a horizontal movement. Your idea to use a slider or "trolley" to actively achieve two points of motion is probably the best. However, I am wondering if I can achieve an adequate effect by simply using a lift at a fixed point and "pendulum" action. Do you think this would work and be as effective?

I was thinking of taking advantage of a "pendulum swing" to get the necessary horizontal movement and to keep the whole rigging simple. In detail: if a 30 to 50 pound chair was positioned on stage approximately 12 feet from the stage right...and a fishing line was connected to the chair...and the fishing line ran up and connected to a braided rope (above the line of curtains)... and the braided rope ran through a block and tackle lift that was secured above at a horizontal distance of about 6 feet stage right...when I pull the rope and cause the chair to lift...I would get a pendulum response of the chair swinging in an arc towards stage right....the arc of the pendulum swing should nearly equal the distance from chair's original point of rest (the chair is acting as the "bob") to the fixed point (where the block and tackle is secured). So the chair would travel ~12 feet in an arc from starting point to nearly off-stage. And the block and tackle 'advantage' would mean that the 30 to 50 lb chair would only require 10 to 17 lbs of effort to lift it.

Is this a viable solution and would it yield a good effect?

As for lighting...the scene is a dimly lit living room at night after everyone is in bed. Would this keep the fishing line invisible?

Maybe you should make a mockup with a cardboard chair and some ropes. A pendulum movement is always detected as such by the human eye. With the slider you will not need a tackle adavantage that slows down the movement. You want the curve of the flight.
I would think of a chair of maybe 3-5 kg (6 to 10 pounds). Polystyrene or cardboard or corrugated cardboard could be useful, balsawood too. Otherwise you would need a complete trussing instead of a single wire. Calculate the bridle and the physical forces of a nearly horizontal wire...
Nothing gets invisible by less light - the eye will adapt and will see it. When it gets dark in a magic show, spectators are immediately thinking of hidden threads and will look for them. Contrast is the solution. Use as much light as possible. Imitate moonlight with strong and narrow beams shining through an imaginary window. Gobos are fine and Full C.T. Blue color gels will help. Direct the light where there are no threads and the threads will become invisible because of contrast.