Thanks.
Generally what I do is run a shift once, and see what happens. Then depending on how well it went, I'll assign certain tasks to everybody, and make sure everybody knows never to run during a shift, and once you're done moving an item get off stage. I find that giving people a time goal keeps them from hanging around on stage once they've moved an item, and by saying 30 seconds, people don't run because everything can fit into that time, no problem. Of course, if the shift is just moving a chair, we don't take 30 secs.
Some people have brought up good points about not interrupting the flow of the show by having super fast changes or leaving an empty stage while cast members change costumes. I'll definitely take those points into account with this show.
Kate