I'm a REAL Stage Manager!

[Funny Girl]

I'm sure I'm not the only one that knows the feeling. After a hard year of stage managing in college, you go out into the real world for summer vacation and something feels just a little bit off. For me, it's the lack of a prompt script to work on. I went from working on 2 shows at once to working on none. The first month of not taking my cell phone and charger with me everywhere was nice, but now that the monotony of my summer job has sunk in I wanted nothing more than to throw myself into another show. Desperate, I e-mailed the Barksdale Theatre's Managing Director and asked him if there was any volunteer work for a rising college Junior that needed something to worry about over the break. When I met with him the next day, he threw out the option of being an ASM for the production of On Golden Pond that's about to start rehearsals and I was beyond excited. I was just expecting to be thrown into the shop and toil away for hours making props and painting sets, but an actual ASM gig!

Then the Director e-mails me this afternoon, informing me that the production doesn't have a Stage Manager for me to assist... and then asked if I was interested and available to do it. To be the Stage Manager. For a professional theatre. All by myself.

I'm kind of, sort, really so excited it's difficult to breathe Naturally, I left all of my SMing stuff under the couch in my dorm 6 hours away and had to go buy all new dividers and a binder and office supplies and other Kit things, but EEK! I'm a real stage manager in the world! I'm not getting paid, but I don't even care!

So, yup. That's what I'm working on right now

[ericjames]

Congrats on the job and have fun! 

You would be surprised how often stories like this happen in our industry.  To a certain degree, it really is about being in the right place at the right time and who you know.

Good luck!

[rpicket6]

For my final year at college, I decided that I needed a semester of from SMing my college shows (mostly to complete the requirement of at least 4 different areas of participation). Partway through the semester, I see an email sent out among the department that a local theatre company needs a stage manager for their production at a festival at the nearby regional theatre.

Well, it just so happen to fit exactly between my conflicts for school stuff. I applied, and got the job. It was a great experience because the crew consisted of me and two board ops. In a prop-heavy show, I became very attune to prop-tracking, and thinking on my feet when something went wrong and I was stuck in the booth still calling a show. (It was also nice that it was a paid job.) Because of my work with this group, another company involved with the festival contacted me and requested I work for them as well. Unfortunately, I was unable to due to conflicts with school.

It's funny the way things pan out.

[VSM]

DO IT !!!

[late_stranger]

This is AMAZING. I'm so happy for you!!  Have fun!!!!!