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A guy in a boat suit One of our long-term clients is LA Music Center Opera. They were doing a production of Count Bluebeard's Castle, which calls for a rowboat, carrying two singers, to move about onstage. LA's original request was for a motorised radio-controlled boat. As much as I love trick electronics and high tech gadgets, I lobbied for an on-board operator - a guy in a boat suit. I felt it was a safer and more reliable method for fulfilling LA's needs. A big problem with using radio-controlled products onstage, is the interfering radio waves from other electronics. Interference can cause the radio-controlled item to behave erratically. The image of the boat going out of control and heading full tilt towards the orchestra pit is not a pretty one. Besides, stagehands are much more reliable. All you have to do is wake him up, give him a donut, and send him on his way.