Messages

31

The Green Room / Re: ARTICLE: Low Pay/No Pay (UK article, interesting read)

« on: Jun 12, 2013, 11:11 am »

These 4 students had to go straight into the "workplace". And when the Fringe show tanked, their careers effectively ended. This was demoralizing and frustrating and life-shattering in many ways: your first "real" production, and you blew it.

That's so sad! This is my worst nightmare as I was kind of thrown into stage management because everyone in this area (for the most part) wants to be an actor. I remember one really bad mess up I had as a SM during one of my first shows. It knocked me completely off the horse, and I remember being so sick to my stomach after arriving home. I kept going over and over the mistake in my head for days thinking about how easily it could have been avoided. Then a week or so later one of my SM mentors said to me "Sometimes the best thing you can do is let it go and learn from it." So that's what I did and it's helped me in the long run. I can assure you I have never repeated the same mistake twice.

It's still a fear of mine that one day I'll make a horrible mistake that I might not be able to bounce back from, but coming back shows true character and a will to succeed. My first day back I felt so embarrassed but despite everything I was glad I went back, and I threw myself into my job like never before. I know the situation was different with your friends but I felt like I should share that story to maybe help someone else in the future, who might be struggling with a mistake as an SM. "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again!" For me bouncing back from rejection, failure, mistakes, and problems should be the key words in the Stage Manager's vocabulary.

32

Introductions / Re: Noob to this Network

« on: Jun 11, 2013, 12:31 pm »

Hi and welcome to the site! As ejsmith3130 said this site can be extremely helpful, it has defiantly helped me over the last few weeks. I'm really new at this but if you have any questions that I might be able to answer please don't hesitate to let me know. Hope you enjoy the site!

~Caroline

33

Introductions / Re: Frosh to the site

« on: Jun 11, 2013, 12:26 pm »

Hey and welcome to the site! I'm pretty new too and have found it to be very helpful and I hope it helps you as much as it has me. If you have any questions that you think I might be able to answer feel free to PM me, if you think I could be of help to you.

34

Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: PEOPLE: How to keep kids *quietly* busy at rehearsal?

« on: Jun 11, 2013, 12:19 pm »

I'm working as Child Guardian/Wrangler for a show and had an issue with a previous one with people bring Ipads (scary moment when one was lost we did find it though.) I don't want to be responsible for anything being lost or broken but at the same time their such great occupiers for the kids complete silence for almost the entire show....What should I do? Should I include in the welcome E-mail something like this:

Your child is welcome to bring something to do quietly as there may be large periods of time during the rehearsal process, tech week, and the performances where your child will be asked to sit quietly and wait for their turn to perform. Expensive electronic items such as Ipods, Ipads, and Kindles are not suggested, and we will not be responsible for the loss or damage of these items. Some great things to bring would be books, coloring books, quiet board games etc.

Should I take the chance and see if they will be quiet with these new items or should I just let them bring the electronics?

35

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: Meetings?

« on: May 26, 2013, 11:48 pm »

Thank you both so much for answering! I really appreciate it. I think I'm finally set and ready for Tuesday . Hope all goes well your advice was awesome and really helped me with my preparation for this meeting.

36

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Meetings?

« on: May 24, 2013, 12:40 am »

I don't think this question has already been posted so I'm going to ask it and see what happens lol. I'm working as rehearsal ASM for a larger show at our regional theatre under someone whom I have never met before and I'm not sure how they work. I received an e-mail from this person (the PSM) today requesting that we meet to go over some pre-production things before rehearsals start. I really want to make a good first impression, but I have absolutely no idea if I'm supposed to bring anything and I'm unsure of what we'll be doing. I think it's supposed to just be a "Let's meet and talk about what you will be doing, give you paperwork, etc." kind of meeting. What should I bring? What does a ASM generally help the SM do in pre-production? Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

37

Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: New Poll: Students and Stage Managing

« on: May 07, 2013, 06:29 pm »

I totally know what you mean. For me It's help! Head spinning from the stress. The worse part is after a show getting yourself back in the swing of school studying for those tests and getting the homework done that just didn't happen during a show. My parents are such sticklers for straight A's literal quote: "Your theatre life will stop if your grades go down." I have to take and pass 2 CLEP exams (AP type tests) in about three weeks if I'd like to continue with my theatre....thoughts on how to really get yourself to get it done and study hard? Sometimes when I sit down to study I find myself staring at the book more than actually learning the information....Anyone else have this problem? What are some study tips you use to learn info quickly?

38

The Green Room / Re: Tony Awards

« on: May 04, 2013, 11:58 pm »

Yes, you're right of course. What was posted was more of a spur of the moment posting and I'm sorry for that. Yes, you're totally right there are lots of wonderful people that make the show work that never get awards. You're right no problems could be a boring show .

39

The Green Room / Re: Tony Awards

« on: May 04, 2013, 10:40 am »

I honestly don't know, the only real way I guess would be connected to the headset as you watch and see how the stage manager handles problems and such, neatness of prompt book, call board. Idk it would be a really hard field to judge because if we do our jobs right you never even know we're there.

40

The Green Room / Re: Tony Awards

« on: May 04, 2013, 12:48 am »

I think there should be a tony award for stage management.

This year, a stage manager IS receiving a Tony Honors of Excellence in Theatre - that distinction is going to career Broadway stage manager Peter Lawrence.

Yes! Thanks for sharing lol it made me happy .

41

Introductions / High School SM

« on: May 04, 2013, 12:15 am »

Well I just got a private message asking me to come over here and introduce myself so here I am . I'm a junior in high school I'm from Western NC, and have so much left to learn! I've really enjoyed this forum so far it has helped me grow as an "techie" in more ways that I can put into words. I practically live at our local theatre, and love it there it's amazing! I first started theatre in the Fall of 2011 and since then I have been able to help with a grand total of four great productions at that theatre. Including my first time as an SM, cue call the whole enchilada. All went well through the first two dress rehearsals, until our third dress on opening night I walked in and turned the lightboard on, tested a few of the cues and it didn't have anything past the 21st cue! This is not something you want to find out opening night. The backup disk didn't work either and we were stuck with only 20 cues and only a few hours till opening. The show must go on though right? I came in early and reprogramed some of the cue chains that we really had to have and ran the show that night with the sliders, and a few programed blackouts and important light changes. I don't know how that worked, but you have to do what you have to do sometimes. And that's my first official SM story .

I've had my share of mess ups too. Unfortunately, that's how you learn, and thankfully I haven't made the same mistake twice yet. To me the SM is the most important job in all of theatre we hold everything together. We do what we do because we love it, not because we get paid, or are even recognized, or rewarded. We do it because we love live theatre and the challenges that it creates. The show doesn't happen without the SM but when you tell people what you do, they just nod and say, "What's that?" Stage Management may not be for everyone, but Stage Management totally is for me! 

Thank you all for letting me participate in this wonderful forum. It has been so helpful, I've been able to find answers to questions and topics that are not on the normal internet. Thanks Again!


~Caroline Naveen

42

Introductions / Re: High school stage manager, craving to learn

« on: May 03, 2013, 11:43 pm »

Welcome to the forum fellow North Carolinian! It sounds like your incredibly passionate and excited about stage management and that's really awesome. It's really nice to see that from someone who is also in high school/just graduated who is that excited about theatre. Break a leg at your new school by the sound of things you're going to do an incredible job!

43

Introductions / Re: Greetings, Crew-bots!

« on: May 03, 2013, 11:23 pm »

You have as much right to be here as anyone else. Never apologize for doing your job."

I saw this in your signature, and I just wanted to say I love it! A really good SM friend/mentor of mine said that to me when I was really having trouble dealing with some actors that were my age/2 years older. It's kinda become a little phrase that I said to myself sometimes now whenever I get a hard time from actors.

Anyways sorry off topic, Welcome to the forum Q5GO! Also from WNC over here! Nice to meet some other people from around here on the forum.

44

The Green Room / Re: Tony Awards

« on: May 03, 2013, 10:59 pm »

I think there should be a tony award for stage management. They have Tony's for everything best direction, sound, orchestra, set, lights, etc. But why none for the stage manager? I mean the show doesn't happen without the SM. Is it because if we do our jobs right you never notice anything goes wrong? Because we completely fly under the radar? These are the things I thought about when I watched the Tony's....Well that and what has already been mentioned in this thread so I need not go over it again. lol

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The Green Room / Re: Desk/Sleeping area...for those long days

« on: May 03, 2013, 05:34 pm »

That has to be one of the coolest things I have ever seen