Smash Plastic looked fun and we all wanted the chance to play with it but we didn't have the money or time to seriously consider it. Between the two locations that our show played there were over 70 performances and dress rehearsals meaning over 350 pieces of 'glass'. (We didn't break a piece in Act II).
The folks at the Chemainus Theatre suggested 1/8" plexiglas. After some experimenting at our end, we came up with pre-cutting the plexi into rectangles. This allowed the actor to punch (gently!) on the centre horizontal line and the pieces fell away. Even if they didn't all go there was room for the actor to reach through. And by staying with rectangles there were minimal sharp corners. The Burglars wore gloves so that was an extra safety precaution.
It happens so fast that it doesn't matter that the shapes are not realistic. The sound is mostly the plexi hitting the floor but again the speed of the business covers that.
The final innovation came from a modeller on our stage crew. He suggested Green Stuff which is a modelling putty.
This is much more manageable than the instant glue that we had tried. You can mix the Green Stuff into little balls so the quantity/ strength is easy to control and it doesn't smear the plexi like the liquid glue does.
Our window panes were about 8 x 14" (20 x 35 cm) and the outside strips about 1 1/2" (4 cm) wide. Wooden 'tracks' below and above the opening allowed the piece to slide into place.
You may want to hide a spare piece onstage so that 'Poppy' doesn't have to go off to get another if it breaks being installed.
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