I'm working on a musical that requires smoking onstage. How do we do this without hurting the actors' voices?

Question

The actor's can't actually inhale the substance, but we need the smoke for the effect, has anyone ever had to do this? Is there a way to give the illusion of smoking without the actors ever having to do it? Help!!

I should have said it's not actually a cigarette. We're doing Reefer Madness. ;)

Answer 1

The best (and legal) way to go is buying herbal, tobaccoless cigarettes. You will have to go to a smoke shop to find them. It is illegal to use real cigarettes on stage. They have to be non-toxic, and remember to post signs that indicate non-toxic cigarettes will be smoked during the performance.

We would buy the cigarettes, then add rolling papers to the end to create a joint look. Do not cover up the filter or the smoke will not work.

The herbal tobacco will not harm the performers voice (its as dangerous as incense). Also, there is no need to actually inhale. Teach your performers to pull on the cigarette, then hold the smoke in their mouth before blowing it all out. No inhaling needed.

In all honesty, get a smoker to teach them. Nothing looks worse than non-smokers trying to smoke onstage. Teach them how to handle, light and use the cigarette properly.

Answer 2

This is actually a very tricky issue. There are some extremely mild herbal cigarettes available; I've used them myself with little ill effect on my voice.

BUT...I'm warning you right now. If you try to have actors smoking onstage WITHOUT actually smoking (that old nonsense where they hold some smoke in their mouths, and then puff it out), there is NOTHING that looks worse than that! Audiences know right away that it's a fake, and it'll be laughable. If the actors aren't really going to SMOKE, there's no point in lighting up. Just have them hold unlit cigarettes and mime the action of smoking. It's also fake...but, since there's no attempt to disguise the artificiality of it, it would be easier for an audience to handle.

Fake smoking is like sub-standard dialect work; it's terribly irritating.

Answer 3

In general, it's best to avoid actual smoking on stage. Fire has a way of causing accidents (burned props and costumes and occasionally sets), and lit cigarettes are like sharp knives on stage. You also risk annoying your audience; if even a single audience member is allergic to smoke you can upset the scene.

You can use gag cigarettes. They're filled with a bit of powder; when you blow out you get a small puff of smoke. They have a little thing on the end that looks like a lit cherry.

If you absolutely must have puffs of smoke, you can smoke like a cigar, taking the smoke into your mouth without taking it into your lungs. (The famous smoking-without-inhaling thing).

If your actors don't smoke, I strongly recommend getting somebody who does to teach them. A novice with a cigarette is very distracting. Put them in the actors hands as soon as the scripts are out.

Answer 4

That's because you are used to smoking and when you stop your body does not perform as well. My advice would be to quit so that in the long run you will have a better voice overall. Even though your voice is good now because you smoke, it most likely won't be if you keep on smoking and who knows when that will be?

Answer 5

i haven't done it myself, but i've heard of actors having straws with baby powder inside, then they lightly blow on them and the powder looks like smoke, but i'm not sure exactly how realistic that looks, especially if you have an intimate performance space. i suppose you could have them use regular ciggarettes (ultra lights would probably be best) and just hold the smoke in their mouths without inhaling then blow it out. or if the script doesn't call for certain inhaling or exhaling cues, then they could just hold lit cigarettes and hopefully nobody would notice that they don't inhale. try calling a theatre supply store to see if they have any tips. break a leg!

Answer 6

I hear that phony cigarettes are available for stage use, but have no details. You can get by by having people handle cigarettes and wave them around without actually ever lighting them.

Answer 7

When we do plays and musicals at my high school we use gag cigs. they are filles with a powder that can be puffed out like smoke and it dosent damage the vocal chords. I sugest them. Ask your prop people. They really look real even as close as a few feet away. Look into them.

Answer 8

Just puff on the cigarette, but don't inhale and blow it out immediatley after dragging on it.

Answer 9

one year for halloween my moms freind was a 20's flasher and she had this real cool fake cig and it looked really real and it smoked. try a party city type store