Chapter twelve from Technical Theater for Nontechnical People, by Drew Campbell is a great chapter that describes some of the basic techniques used by all stage managers. It explains the key elements to stage management by breaking the chapter into subsections entitled: Communication, Schedule Making, Lists, Running Rehearsals, Backstage Survival Guide, Opening Night Run, and The Payoff: Running the Show. Each one of these subsections explains how every stage managers' style should be the same. For instance, in the subsection concerning lists, Campbell states that "every stage manager should have basic lists including a contact sheet for the cast and technical crew, costume plots, prop list, scene breakdowns, lighting cue sheets, and sould cue sheets" (Campbell 105). These are the basic necessities need by all stage managers. From this point, depending on the stage managers style, a strict stage manager would make diagrams that would have labeled the focal length of each lighting instrument, along with sould levels of individual sound cues, whereas a "loose" stage manager would focus the lights in the load-in process just by looking at how the stage illuminates once the scenery is in place.
Personally, I live by the motto, "Be prepared for the worst!" So in my case, I would primarily make a chart of individual electrical rails, with focal length and gel color clearly labeled. That way if a situation occurred where a particular section of the stage was darker than the director expected, a solution could be drawn up in a fraction of the time it would take to fix the problem without specific diagrams and charts. Next, as I prefer organization over chaos, I would make a chart of sound levels to call with the sound cues. A stage manager's cues who doesn't make a chart of sound levels would say, "Sound Cue One-Go", relying of the sound-board operator to have previously set the sound levels into the boards computer, whereas a stage manager's cues who has made a sound level chart might say, "Sound One, Level 6-Go". Those few extra words added to each cue can make the difference between a smooth show, and the one that has many technical errors. As one can see, I prefer organization, as to avoid technical errors as I call a show.
Campbell, Drew. Technical Theatre for Nontechnical People. 2nd ed. New York: Allworth Press, 2007. 199-219. Print.
Personally, I live by the motto, "Be prepared for the worst!" So in my case, I would primarily make a chart of individual electrical rails, with focal length and gel color clearly labeled. That way if a situation occurred where a particular section of the stage was darker than the director expected, a solution could be drawn up in a fraction of the time it would take to fix the problem without specific diagrams and charts. Next, as I prefer organization over chaos, I would make a chart of sound levels to call with the sound cues. A stage manager's cues who doesn't make a chart of sound levels would say, "Sound Cue One-Go", relying of the sound-board operator to have previously set the sound levels into the boards computer, whereas a stage manager's cues who has made a sound level chart might say, "Sound One, Level 6-Go". Those few extra words added to each cue can make the difference between a smooth show, and the one that has many technical errors. As one can see, I prefer organization, as to avoid technical errors as I call a show.
Campbell, Drew. Technical Theatre for Nontechnical People. 2nd ed. New York: Allworth Press, 2007. 199-219. Print.
Perfect 50/50
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