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1246

Articles from the Old Site / Tips: Toys on the Tech Table

« on: Nov 04, 2006, 06:39 pm »

I've found that keeping little toys on the tech table helps kill the stress during production meetings and particularly gruesome rehearsals.  I usually keep a little slinky, a couple of hacky sacks, some silly putty and a miniature etch-a-sketch in plain sight for frustrated people to pick up and play with.  Playing cards don't hurt either, especially if there are large casts or children about who need to be kept entertained and quiet when they're not being staged in.

1247

Articles from the Old Site / User Question: How do you balance work and family?

« on: Nov 04, 2006, 06:39 pm »

A user asked:

How do stage managers balance their work and their family?  Is it possible to even have a family and work in stage management?

Please consider and comment as you'd like.

1248

Articles from the Old Site / User Question: Production Management

« on: Nov 04, 2006, 06:38 pm »

Do you feel that the role of the production manager is still necessary in modern theatre?  What do you consider to be the job description of the Production Manager?

What would your ideal PM be like?  Please discuss in comments.

1249

Articles from the Old Site / ASM and SM: Completely Different Jobs?

« on: Nov 04, 2006, 06:37 pm »

Okay, here's one that has always puzzled me about Stage Management.  You look at the job of the Stage Manager, and the job of the Assistant Stage Manager, and sometimes you wonder why the two positions have anything to do with each other besides the title.  As I see it, the Stage Manager is a combination of a Director, a Production Coordinator, and a Company Manager.  He/she deals with designers and Production chiefs.  Meanwhile, an ASM combines a Deck Crew Chief, a Props Master, and a Backstage representative for the management, and deals primarily with objects and actors.  What do the two have in common?

Well, first of all, there is the hierarchy.  If the Stage Manager cannot call the show, the next best substitute is usually the Assistant Stage Manager, as they know the show the best.  And in union houses, the ASM is not allowed to take on permanent deck duties for just this reason.  But when you look at it more closely, the way that an SM learns the show is completely different from how the ASM does.

While calling the show, prompting actors, and assuaging tempers are the standard cliches of stage management, looking at it from a professional standpoint the first commandment is to preserve the director's intent and artistic vision through the run of the show.  They are a judiciary, they watch the show, and make sure that it's being executed in a manner comparable to the laws laid out by the director and the design team.  Calling the show is the main way of ensuring that it stays together, but it's the notes and the modifications made by the SM that really hold the thing in place.  They need to take a global view of the production: while details build up to the full picture, it's important not to lose sight of how the production works as a total artistic experience.

Meanwhile, the ASM has more of an executive role.  Instead of watching the show and keeping and eye out for the whole experience, they're in the trenches dealing with the details that make that experience possible.  The SM formulates the plan, but the ASM carries it out.  While the two work well as a team, ASMing takes a completely different mindset.  The plan must be broken down into details.  Jobs must be sorted into departments, and departments notified. 

In addition to the difference in mindset, there is also the difference in the inter-office social circles that emerge.  Quite often, the board operators become very close to the SM, as they are in constant contact.  In my experience as an SM, though, I don't get as close with the deck crew as I do with the board ops.  Meanwhile, as an ASM I tend to form stronger bonds with the deck crew, and barely learn anything at all about the board ops.  Were I to have to shift from booth to backstage or vice versa, I would feel more like a tourist than a substitute.

In the end, the SM and the ASM may work as a team, but very different personalities are required for the two jobs.  Personally, I have learned that I work better as an SM--gaining the global image is easy for me, while the detail-oriented work of ASMing is not really my style.  I do wonder though if I'm selling myself short on my options, and if I'm the only one who has experienced this same ongoing division of labor from theatre to theatre.

1250

Articles from the Old Site / The Lonely Stage Manager

« on: Nov 04, 2006, 06:36 pm »

I've been to a few "stage manager's nights" at the local pub.  I've worked with stage managers. One thing I've noticed is this: we rarely get along with each other.

As I'm trying to build a community of stage managers here, I'm trying to learn why.  Is it the innate competitive aspect?  After all, while a good stage manager is worth their weight in gold, the positions are still somewhat limited.  Is it a personality quirk? 

Also, to tie this in with the Topic of the Month, does this make it difficult for stage managers to work well as a team?

I've rarely had friends who were also stage managers.  In my case, my own "take charge" personality gets in the way when I'm confronted with another person of similar demeanor.  There winds up being just too many chefs.  Meanwhile, there's the cultivated need to keep people happy even at my own expense, and when both parties in a relationship are catering towards the same goal, it's hardly the basis for a solid friendship.  Someone, if not both individuals, winds up feeling used.

Stage Managers are some of the most easily able to recognize personality quirks in others.  We're trained on the job in as seat-of-the-pants psychologists, and it means that we can easily spot in other stage managers the same traits that we see in ourselves.  For me, this self-recognition drives me nutty.  The self-denial and the bad social habits I've picked up as a stage manager, which I can generally ignore or pass off as job requirements, become glaringly apparent when I see them in someone else, and I suddenly want to change both myself and the other person.

We all know that such change is not possible.

So, all of this esoterism leads to nowhere but a quandary.  How can I go about learning to be friends, or at least a civil supervisor, with other stage managers, especially on my team?  What techniques do you use?  Please feel free to comment, I'd like to see a good discussion here.

1251

Articles from the Old Site / "Techie" vs. "Technician"

« on: Nov 04, 2006, 06:36 pm »

I have often heard derogatory comments made towards those who refer to themselves as "techies," generally made by highly experienced theatre folk who believe that the term degrades the art.  To these discerning folk, the true name for the career is "technician," while a "techie" is a mere hobbyist.  Once upon a time, I engaged in these debates, and generally leaned towards the side of the technicians, but as time has gone by, I have come to realize that both types of individuals exist in all areas of theatre, whether you are in the professional leagues, high school, or somewhere in between. 


As a Stage Manager, the trick is to recognize which you are working with, and plan accordingly.  After all, it is one of the most common sources of abrasion within production teams when a technician meets head on with a techie, even if the debate never actually gets down to semantic terms.  Here, I've tried to map out the differences for you, so that you can more quickly erase the borderlines and work with each kind of personality in the best way possible.
 

The Techie	The Technician
Is highly aware of the limited budgets that restrict theatrical endeavors.	Is more concerned with most effectively presenting the artistic concepts of the designers than in saving on costs.
Can fix any technical element quickly, with some combination of string, gaffers tape, and a multitool.	Carries a multitool as a badge of honor, but understands that the proper tools can fix an element more thoroughly, and can use those tools to do so.
Has become well versed in "seat of the pants" implementation.	Has learned to be able to make a plan of action to complete a project, and follow through on it.
Is the life of the party.	Sits in the back of the room and drinks beer.
Is in the business because he or she loves it.	Has realized that there's more than enjoyment to be gained--there's also money.
Has a cooperative attitude and will pitch in for any area that needs help.	While cooperative, understands that each person on a production is hired to perform a specific task, and keeps out of the way of others to let them do their jobs, while performing their own to the fullest.
Will gladly go on for an actor that goes down.	Believes that acting and tech do not mix.
Either possesses a BA in Theatre from a Liberal Arts College, or is a hobbyist who picked it up along the way and really enjoyed high school drama club.  Would attend a masters program in directing.	Has learned theatre through a series of apprenticeships and internships, or conservatory style training, or is neutral on the values of higher education.  Might attend a masters program in technical theatre, but doesn't necessarily see the value.
Tends to get involved in romantic relationships with others on the production.	Avoids getting involved with coworkers at all costs.
Will use duct tape to hold things down if there is no other option.	Does not consider duct tape to be an option.  Ever.
Holds in depth discussions about David Mamet, Stephen Sondheim, John Leguizamo, or Eve Ensler.	Holds in depth discussions about Intelligent Lighting, SAG, Football, and Lara Croft.
Sees the stage manager as the director's sidekick.	Sees the stage manager as the main source of information.
Pulls an all nighter in order to get the floor painted when the stage is not in use.	Paints the separate panels of the floor in the shop and then installs them quickly during a dinner break.
Will get out over the house in the bo'sun's chair, but will spend most of their time up there talking very loudly so that everyone knows that they're up there, and will complain about how freaky it was for the rest of the week.	Gets out in the bo'sun's chair, fixes the dratted instrument, and comes back down.  End of story.
You will need to shush him or her backstage.	You will need to remind him or her to acknowledge your standbys, as they believe that such nonsense is wasteful headset chatter.
Actors generally get along well with techies, but may consider them to be frustrated actors, and lose respect.	Actors will fear the technicians, as they rarely intermingle and speak different lingos.  However, the actor will respect the technician for their knowledge, and treat the scenic elements with more consideration because of this fear.
Consistently reinforces your opinion that you are the smartest person in the world, especially when it comes to professional theatre.	Consistently reminds you of how much you still have to learn about professional theatre.
Can become a technician with some encouragement.	Every technician started out as a techie at one point or another--they can do it again.
Can be a highly valuable member of your crew.	Can be a highly valuable member of your crew.

1252

Stage Management: Other / Stage Managing for Dance

« on: Nov 04, 2006, 06:32 pm »

For almost two years this article sat on the "Dear SMNetwork" page on the old site, but we started to feel like it offered so much information that it should have a page all to itself.  To the author of this article--we lost your contact information, and we hang our heads in shame!  If at any point you would like to claim your byline and copyright, we'll be happy to add your credit to this article.  Many thanks to you!

To summarize my life as a contemporary dance SM:
Unless you get one of the few available jobs in the big and/or well funded companies, the work tends to mostly come from independent choreographers and small poorly funded companies. What this means is:

• Pay - the pay at best is low end of scale and at worse a token honoraria and a check that bounces. 
• Equity - Forget about going for your Equity card. . . pretty well the only companies that can afford to hire both an Equity SM and an apprentice are the big companies and since one can only get apprenticeship credits while working under an Equity SM. . .
• Support Staff - Most of the time, the company also can't afford to hire tech support staff. . .Guess who gets to do all those little jobs. . . I found that having a pool of people who owed me "really big favours" was helpful here. However, I did find myself on occasion doing set up and strike with no assistance.

In other words, in a lot of cases you are hired as SM, but are actually expected to be SM/PM/TD/Carp/Props/Sound and/or Lx operator, and laundry. . . well someone has to wash out the dancers costumes every night and they aren't likely to do it themselves. By the way, collecting those costumes is one of the more disgusting things I have had to do as SM.

Choreographers - And I thought directors could be difficult. Choreographers are a completely different breed. They get to "create" in the rehearsal process. Things change daily, including the order of when things happen, which means it's almost impossible to keep orderly notes. Then there is the, 'you get asked for X, give them, miraculously provide them with X and Y, and they want to know why you didn't come up with Z as well. Choreographers are also notoriously known for impracticality. . . one show I worked on (intended to be a touring show) had as it's set a grove of trees. Real trees. That had been cut down when the set designer was clearing her property. One of which was large enough for the dancers to climb on. Looked beautiful. Hell to set up and rig for stability. And just how does one pack trees and don't forget the 500 lbs of river rocks that are the other part of the set?

Another choreographer wanted (yesterday of course) one down feather to be rigged to drop on cue. . . in a space that required a personnel lift extended fully to reach the pipe but didn't have one - we did get one from our LX designer that allowed me to rig this feather every night.  The space also had four walls of floor to ceiling windows. . . which had to be blacked out.

The same choreographer wanted a live chicken on stage. . . the original concept was that the chicken, on cue, would fly from a perch, where it was expected to sit through most of a performance, land on a table next to an egg, sit there through piece of choreography being performed over and around the chicken and egg, then fly back to the perch on cue and sit there for the rest of the performance. My initial reaction was. . . "you want a chicken to do WHAT? Chickens are the dumbest bird outside of domestic turkeys. You can't expect to train a chicken in four weeks. Not to mention that chickens can't fly." This merely led to the elimination of training the chicken but the chicken was still wanted on stage. "So just who is going to take care of the chicken?" I foolishly asked. The choreographer said that he would. Chicken eventually shows up at rehearsal space (actually it was the "understudy" since chickens being easily stressed, the original chicken had a heart attack on the way to the rehearsal hall). I discover that "choreographer taking care of the chicken" translated to "choreographer showing SM how to take care of chicken" and had to muck out a chicken cage everyday. In addition to all the usual SM duties and having to run sound as well. I will say that the chicken, who came from some chicken processing plant, did manage to win me over when it hopped up on to my forearm one day and puffed out it's chest and extended its wings like a falcon. I decided that the chicken had great delusions and/or ambitions. About halfway through the run. . . "So what's going to happen with the chicken after the show closes? No, I'm not going to take it home with me. I live in the suburbs, keeping livestock is illegal, I want to keep on good terms with my neighbours, and my husband would eat it." Fortunately on closing night, another choreographer who just happened to have bought a small hobby farm and was keeping chickens offered to take the chicken home. The chicken lived for two more years and died of natural causes. What purpose did the chicken serve in the show? Never did figure that one out. It sat on stage in a small basket made out of orange snow fence, one performer would take it out, deliver a monologue about enemas to it, and put it back.

Space - In some cases it really is the final frontier. Since independent choreographers and companies don't always have their own space - rehearsal space and the search for it becomes a major priority. Since cheap space is hard to come by you take it where ever you can find it. . . usually in the worst section of town. . ."but it adds to the artistic ambience. . . thank you, but I prefer not to have to step over bodies when I leave rehearsal at 11pm." Location aside, you have to consider the floor when looking at a space for dance. . . dancers shouldn't work on concrete floors, and irregularities on the surface of any floor or a freshly waxed floor can be deadly. Although washing down the floor with some diluted 7-Up or Sprite (depending on which school of thought you side with) takes care of the latter problem. Once you have a space that is acceptable - if you have access to a dance floor, that has to be put down. Dance floors come in 2 forms. . . long narrow strips on long rolls or one big roll. It is impossible to lay a floor by oneself no matter which form the floor is.

And pray that the choreographer doesn't change their mind about which side they want showing.

My kit contains a large jar of liniment called "Mineral Ice". The jar I have comes from a tack store and is "acceptable for use on racehorses". It works better than the version you can get at the drugstore. I first discovered it when I was dancing and had injured myself on stage. . . I was able to finish the performance. Note that the injury wasn't crippling. . . like all dancers I pushed myself but I wasn't stupid. I figure that if it's good enough to use on racehorses, it's good enough to use on dancers who are treated like racehorses. I also keep several bags of frozen peas/corn/whatever is cheapest, in the freezer if the space I'm in has one. I also keep several lighters in my kit, since a large number of dancers are still smokers. I'm not kidding - I think it has to do with an unconscious rebellion against the striving for physical perfection that dancers subject themselves to. I've thought about using a Polaroid as a means of keeping notes, but I don't like the idea of using a flash while dancers are working. I also keep a record of shoe repair shops that specialize in dance shoes. Dance shoes can be repaired to extend their life. People who do it well are rare. People who properly install taps are also rare. It pays to research this one. I also have a file of cards for physiotherapists and chiropractors who take emergency walk-ins and specialize in dancer injuries. Oh yes, and one economy size bottle of acetaminophen with codeine (generic form of Tylenol one with codeine) for those choreographer sized headaches and a cloth doll and a set of pins..

Learning choreography is easier if you videotape rehearsals and run-throughs. You can watch the video and practice calling cues. Since cues can occur on "when S is at highest point in third barrel roll" working with a video every night after rehearsals cuts the amount of time spent in Q to Q. If you overdub your voice calling cues on the video, it makes the life of another stage manager learning the show easier. This also applies to big musicals where there are a lot of cues during musical or dance interludes.

Working exclusively in the dance community burned me out. I however enjoyed working in it.  Being in on the creation process is great. I loved that energy. Choreographers may be hell to work for (and not all choreographers fall into this category - the good ones have regular SM's who aren't going to give up their good thing easily - and I have the reputation of being able to work with/handle the difficult ones) but they are some of the most driven and passionately creative people I've worked with. That alone is what kept me there.

One final bit of advice: Never own a pick-up truck or van. Doing things yourself to help keep costs down is all very nice, but I trashed my truck hauling things for dance shows. Know how to drive light trucks but drive a small car to work. The tendency for " could you run out and get large item X" is lessened if it won't fit into your vehicle.

Choreographer light bulb joke:
How many. . . Just one, but they keep changing it and changing it and changing. . .
Just one, but can you get it to turn the other way?
None. "Where's my stage manager? She should have known that it was going to burn out today and changed it yesterday."
--from Vancouver, BC

1253

Articles from the Old Site / Candidate for Life (or why I haven't joined AEA)

« on: Nov 04, 2006, 06:30 pm »

It's that time of the year again.  We're starting to get requests for interviews from stage managers to be in colleges and high schools, all asking worthwhile and meaty questions.  This article came out of my reply to the following question:

In my class, the teacher implies that all stage managers join the AEA, could you refresh my memory as to what EMC is and why is it that you are a candidate now after having been involved with so many productions already, and what it just a personal choice not to join the AEA? I'm just confused because he makes it seem that you are basically "not wanted" if you are not in the AEA.

My answer might not ring true for some, but for me, joining Actors' Equity (AEA) has never been a hard and fast rule.  Not all stage managers join AEA, but most do if they want to get paid on a level commensurate with their talent. I have been a member of the Equity Membership Candidacy (EMC) Program since 1997--the program allows prospective members to gain "points," one point per work week in an equity house, in order to establish a background and a level of knowledge about equity procedures to allow for smooth transition into the union once you acquire 50 points. I have hovered at 48 points for the past two years.As for why I am still a candidate, there are many different reasons. You can only get points working as a non-equity Production Assistant or Assistant Stage Manager on an Equity show. This makes it limited as to the number of places where you can get points. Out of the shows I have worked on, only 10 have been in situations where I could have earned points. Of course, I spent a full year working at Steppenwolf in such an environment where I could have easily amassed over 50 points, but I chose not to. In fact, I deliberately did not report some of my work weeks to Equity so that I was not forced to join the union.

Joining the union makes you a "professional," and those who join are faced with a whole new level of challenges and choices. You cannot work in non-equity houses once you join, which for many people means that the majority of their contacts are useless once they make the big jump. There is a greater responsibility, time commitment, and level of expectation of an AEA stage manager. All of this I respect and acknowledge, and when I feel that I am ready to take on the task of creating a whole bunch of new relationships and can financially sustain the sudden drop in work that every new Equity SM encounters, I will perhaps consider this second point in a new light.

The second point is that AEA houses are forced to hire only AEA actors for the most part. True, on large shows they can bulk up the cast with non-union extras, but generally for the bulk of the shows they are using only AEA actors and Stage Managers at higher payroll costs. This means that the shows they are producing must bring in big houses--they need to be crowd pleasers, and therefore the artistic experimentalism and risk taking that I have come to value working in the non-union world gets sacrificed in many cases in order to earn enough cash to pay the actors. It's a vicious cycle.

Take a look, for example, at Steppenwolf. This is not to name names, but more because my personal experience allows me to cite them as a concrete example.  Originally, they were thought of as a cutting edge theatre, doing risque works and pushing the envelope of the socially acceptable. The year that I worked for them, 1998-99, much had changed. The season: Berlin Circle. Okay, somewhat adventurous. Glass Menagerie. Ho hum. Three Days of Rain. Everyone was doing it that year. Morning Star. Not seen since 1912, and just about as socially liberated as a corset. The Beauty Queen of Leenane. Again, everyone was doing it. I would rather work for a company that can afford to stick its neck out and put up a really weird turkey now and then instead of doing "A Christmas Carol" year in and year out just to pay the rent.
The AEA doesn't descend like a fairy godmother and say, "we choose you to be a professional." If you elect to join the union, it is your own choice. Even then, unless you're willing to fork over the $800 required to join, you need to find a theatre that's willing to foot the bill for you--not an easy task for many newbies. Most people do choose to join if they wish to take their careers beyond the "three day jobs for spare change" level, but if you are fortunate enough to live in an area with an active non-equity/experimental circuit such as Chicago or NYC, then the odds are in your favor to get work either way. Look at it this way. Non-equity theatres in Chicago outnumber AEA theatres in the area by about 5 to 1. Most of the AEA theatres are either doing Bus and Truck only, or have resident stage managers already. Or, they're so far out on the suburbs that it's impossible to get there using public transit as I do.  I've worked regularly since I got here as non-equity. My close friend, who came out here already a member, has had tougher luck. And guess what? We're earning about the same pay at this point.

The other thing to remember is that AEA is not the only union. Many SM's join AGMA instead or as well.

All of this is not to belittle AEA or what it provides to the working SM. They have revolutionized the industry and impose limits on what companies can demand of us. The health insurance is not a bad benefit, either. However, the decision to join AEA is always a personal one, as is the decision of *when* to join if you decide to go that way. A poorly prepared union member does no one any good.

My local AEA rep is aware of my sentiments and will probably spend a considerable amount of time snickering up his sleeve when I wind up joining. I know that I'm not ready yet, though, and so I'm taking my time and enjoying the weird life of storefront non-equity until I have no choice but to join the union.

1254

Articles from the Old Site / The Creative Aspect

« on: Nov 04, 2006, 06:29 pm »

This article was written in response to an email received by our staff from a college stage manager, comparing high school stage management and professional stage management.  The email purported that stage management was not a creative field to be in once you got into the professional environment, and that it was overburdened by paperwork. 

I do beg to differ that professional stage managing is lacking in creativity.  It is an art, and I will always refer to it as an art.  For a while, I hid under the pretense that I became a stage manager because I had not a creative bone in my body--I said I was doing it to make all the really creative types look good.  I've come to realize that my perception of the art of stage managing was somewhat askew--as was my perception of myself and my own talents. 

Yes, we have more paperwork to do in the "real world"--more on that later--but there is certainly a massive creative aspect to Stage Managing in the professional world that is often overlooked by the more outgoing of our theatrical counterparts.  I understand that in high school theatre, the Stage Manager is often covering several roles that are usually filled by many different people once you get into a pro environment--where I went to high school, the SM was Assistant Director, Technical Director, Light designer, Dramaturg--it was kind of a catch all position that followed the Drama Club teacher around and helped out as student-in-charge of the crew.  You're dealing with limited budgets, very limited experience on your crew, and besides, the rehearsal process is often ten times longer than the show's actual run.  (We used to rehearse for eight weeks and run for a weekend.  It seems like torture now after years of three week long rehearsal periods and two month runs.)   
I can see how you would see the shift to the stratified and somewhat more bureaucratic world of pro theatre to be a loss in creativity, but it really just shifts to different areas.  You aren't painting and focusing lights and designing costumes (although I've certainly had to do all of the above in the past few years...)--instead, you're trying to figure out how to get a bunch of squabbling designers to agree on a concept, you're coordinating seventeen moving set pieces in a thirty second long shift, you're looking at a 4'x8' prop table and a pile of props and figuring out how to lay them out, you're trying to understand if the little old lady in row F will stop arguing with the house manager in time to start Act II, you're trying to figure out how to finish a performance when the electricity in the theatre blows with twenty minutes left in the show, you're creating a schedule that will get the show staged in a week while not going over the union's limits on how many hours an actor can work in a week--you're molding the other people that are working on the play, and in doing so, you have a huge hand in molding the play itself.

Besides the art of people-twisting, once you get into pro Stage Managing, you've also got things like staging understudies, recasting and transferring to tour--you essentially become the director after opening night.  I found out three days before a performance that one of my actresses was dropping out of a show, midway through the run.  She had no understudy, (don't try this at home!) and the play was heavily ensemble based with lots of aerial choreography and stunts.  The cast could only get to the theatre two hours before curtain to restage.  The director was out of town.  So I had to restage a show in an hour and a half around a missing actress in a way that would hold up for the rest of the run, get nobody hurt, and cover all the lines.  Did I mention that the show itself was three and a half hours long?

Just because you don't get to make design choices doesn't mean that you don't have to be creative--it's a constant thing.  For me, the best part is disguising the fact that I'm being "creative"--it's my own little play that I put on through the run.  Designers really don't appreciate knowing that they're being manipulated, and directors don't like to learn that they've got the same psychological loopholes that everyone else does.  So you have to be really surreptitious about how you do what is the real essence of your job. 

As for all that dreaded paperwork...the paperwork springs from the splitting up of roles that the high school stage manager takes care of him or herself.  Once these people are all in different places, you have to still make sure they know as much about the show as they would if you were still the only technically skilled person on the show.  Notes that you'd just file in the back of your brain now have to be written down and sent to someone else, who could very well be halfway across the country.  And then, of course, there's the whole legal matter of the rehearsal log, which is something high school Stage Managers rarely have to deal with--it's hard to get fired from a high school class or club.

But even so, the paperwork itself is one of the best expressions of creativity that a stage manager has.  A well written tech report conveys what went on in rehearsal (hey, we added a rainstorm in Act I, Sc. 12!) without insulting, startling, or annoying anyone, and without revealing more than is absolutely necessary.  (hey, we added a rainstorm in that scene because the dumb actress can't make her costume change in time without it!)  I've been in preproduction for my next show all week this week--it's the paperwork producing phase of the show before rehearsals start.  Two nights ago I spent about four hours putting together an actor/scene breakdown.  Last night I spent six hours going through the script three times for red flag technical issues and typing them up for the designers.  In truth, I have more fun during preproduction than I do at any other point besides tech rehearsals.

There is an excellent book on stage management by Daniel Bond by the name of Stage Management: A Gentle Art.  I am quite in agreement with Mr. Bond as to his definition of my chosen career.  Modern theatre is in and of itself a melding of the actors' and designers' art with the technicians' skills.  As the main broker of that often unwieldy union, the Stage Manager becomes the heart that beats at the center of what makes a production more than a performance, more than an exhibition, but an experience that can be remembered and treasured, one that moves the industry forward and challenges audiences to explore what the human psyche can handle.  The emergence of stage management as an art as much as a clerical position has in many ways defined the current era of theatre production.  We are modern theatre embodied.  Just don't tell anyone.

1255

Articles from the Old Site / The Assistant Director Puzzle: A Modest Proposal

« on: Nov 04, 2006, 06:27 pm »

Another question from a reader prompted this essay: "Quick question: Is the stage manager the same as an assistant director when doing a play?"


While the duties of the Assistant Director and the Stage Manager overlap, especially in community and school theatre groups, in the professional world the roles are very different.  It has been frequently noted that the most friction-prone relationship for Stage Managers is the one with the Assistant Director--there are several potential causes for this.  I would posit that if we start making a universal effort to create a clear definition of the Assistant Director's role that parallels the definition of the Stage Manager's duties, then many of these matters would be resolved.


I should preface this by defining how most schools look at the Assistant Director vs. the Stage Manager, and then how the pro world defines them. In a school, you'll often find the Stage Manager supervising the build of the scenery, and assembling the props, while the Assistant Director prompts the actors and generally keeps the cast and director happy. Everyone is directly supervised by the director, who is generally a faculty member of some sort. As the director sticks around until the end of the run, often giving notes to the actors directly every day, the Assistant Director also stays with the show.


In the pro environment, the Assistant Director is responsible to the Director, and the duties generally include things like running small sectional rehearsals or chorus rehearsals, helping with learning dialogue and running fight choreography, dialect work, and assisting the director with paperwork. Sometimes, if understudies are cast during the rehearsal period, the Assistant Director will rehearse the understudies, although this can also be the Stage Manager's job. Once the show opens, the director's responsibilities to the production are ended, and the Assistant Director's tasks are likewise over with.


The Assistant Director is chiefly in communication with the actors and the Director. The job isn't all that well defined--it's basically whatever the Director wants you to do. Even so, some Directors have been working with their  Assistants for so long that it's like clockwork, in which case the specific Assistant Director probably knows what their job is going to be on a day to day basis.  Either way, when the three parties of Director, Assistant Director, and Stage Manager work together as a unit, a load of confusion can ensue if one is not clear and precise about how the tasks of assembling the show are to be distributed.


The Stage Manager, on the other hand, reports to the Production Manager, who oversees all of the technical aspects of the show. As the technicians' representative in rehearsal, it is the Stage Manager's job to translate what the director says, (often esoteric or abstract) into something that can be accomplished by the technicians. (In other words, if the director says, "I want this to have a cold feeling," the Stage Manager has to relay to the lighting designer that the lighting should use the cooler end of the color spectrum--blues, greens, and not reds or ambers.) While the Assistant Director is concerned mostly with helping the director get their job done, the Stage Manager is responsible for making sure that everyone knows what happened in rehearsal, including the designers, the crew, the publicists--everyone. And whereas the Director and Assistant Director can split out after the show opens, the Stage Manager has to stick it out through the run, calling the show and maintaining the director's vision.


There are many potential causes for friction, and any of them can be an issue at any given point in time.  There are also many good solutions to this.  The jobs often overlap, and this is one of the main causes for run-ins.  Since the Stage Manager's job is generally well-defined (if overloaded) and the Assistant Director is often in a more vague spot, many Stage Managers complain about overeager Assistant Director's stepping on their professional toes and taking on jobs such as setting props or prompting actors that traditionally fall within the domain of the Stage Manager.  If this is the case, then the Assistant Director may be suffering from underuse, which can often be the case when a Director is not accustomed to having an Assistant around.  One can make the suggestion, in private, that the Assistant Director could be given some additional assignments from the Director that pertain more specifically to the conceptual sphere of the Director more than the implementation-driven realm of the Stage Manager.  Or, you can make lemonade out of your lemons and treat your overeager Assistant Director as a Stage Manager in training and give them small Stage Management assignments to make them feel useful while not getting in your way.


In more nasty environments, there is also the supremacy/proximity issue.  Both parties need to have a great level of communication with the Director during the rehearsal process if the production is going to be of high and consistent quality.  Generally, the Stage Manager has to think in terms of details during the rehearsal process, while the Assistant Director needs to think more abstractly, helping to get the "art" done.  Even so, in order to preserve the show, the Stage Manager needs at some point to sink their brain into the Director's way of thinking, so that their intentions can be upheld once they are gone. 


In situations where the Director has some level of a name, or even if they are relatively unknown, little ego wars can crop up.  The Assistant Director can feel like they have the Director's ear, and that the Stage Manager should not be sticking his/her nose into the staging process.  As noted above, this isolation of the Stage Manager from the Director's line of thought can be detrimental to the show after opening.  Meanwhile, a general attitude this Stage Manager has found is that while you can run a show without an Assistant Director, you cannot really do so without a Stage Manager, which can lead to a sense of supremacy for the Stage Manager that is not necessarily well-founded. 


It is crucial to remember that when an Assistant Director is necessary for a show, they are absolutely mandatory for the show to be produced--the Director may not have sufficient time and resources to handle the entire staging of the piece alone.  Also, Directors are good at what they do when they can keep the esoteric elements in mind and at first priority, rather than getting bogged down in details.  One must also keep in mind that the Stage Manager has their role to play, and that they will remain with the show long after the Assistant Director rides off into the sunset.  All units need keep in mind that theatre is a collaborative art.


There are certainly cases of excellent relationships between Assistant Directors and Stage Managers.  More power to those who can find common ground early on and keep it that way.  In cases where the Director himself (or herself) is weak, then the Assistant Director and Stage Manager have even been known to bond together to cover up for the Director's flaws.  In all cases, the best line of defense is to clearly define what the individual roles and duties will be on a show-by-show basis to a level where all parties are in understanding and agreement.  Lines of communication should be clearly established both between Director/Assistant Director/Stage Manager and between these individuals and the rest of the company.  Communication generally falls to the Stage Manager to maintain, so it is, of course, in your best interest to keep these channels flowing, but encouraging your coworkers to help maintain the two-way street is always preferable.


Perhaps in a few years people will realize the value of Assistant Directors and this article will become obsolete, a relic of a divisive and pessimistic past.  But, in an ideal world, the role of the Assistant Director would be as clearly and consistently defined as that of the Stage Manager.  Both would know their value to the production, and realize that they have their own individual talents and training to contribute to the good of the project.


But you knew that already, didn't you?

1256

SMNetwork Archives / Archived announcements about "new" site features

« on: Nov 04, 2006, 05:54 pm »

EDIT: I've consolidated past announcements about board features into one thread.  This will remain here on the Announcements board in case we get some people coming back after a long time away. --PSMK

I'd gotten some comments from members that the old ranking system for post counts was somewhat confusing.  I've retitled them, so now instead of the "Intern" - "ASM" - "Stage Manager" tiers, it's more reflective of how many posts you've made.

The new ranks are as follows:

Never Posted - 0 posts (cannot send PMs)
Just Joined - 1 post
New Member - 25 posts
Contributor - 50 posts
Frequent Contributor - 100 posts
Major Contributor - 200 posts
Call board superstar - 500 posts

There will soon be an opening for a special rank called "Article Author," which will allow you access to some hidden forums that I'm creating for the restoration of the old SMNetwork articles.  Posts in these hidden forums will appear on the new homepage that I'm designing and will put you front and center.  If you're interested in writing essays on the craft, how-to's or major news bulletins about the industry or SMNetwork, please PM me. 

1257

SMNetwork Archives / Re: Call Board Karma: Keep or drop?

« on: Oct 09, 2006, 03:35 am »

Okay, no more karma, at least with regards to the SMNetwork forums.  Thanks for your input, everyone!

1258

Employment / 7 years worth of pointers on the Chicago scene

« on: Oct 06, 2006, 08:44 am »

Word. Of. Mouth.  You will live and die on your connections out here.  Certainly watch Performink and also watch the Reader, there are some things mentioned there.  Your best in will be as run crew or board op for any number of the smaller storefront theatres -- there's a billion of them and they are always shortstaffed.  Of course, the pay is slim to none.  Be particularly on the lookout for smaller companies that are putting on musicals.

The community of tech leads out here is small and intensely close-knit.  You see the same names over and over again.  A designer with any skill can be working four or five shows at once.  Folks working as Electricians and Carpenters for the larger houses will often do double duty as designers for the smaller ones.  For designers the Chicago turf extends up into Milwaukee and south into Indiana, but with very little play to the southern part of Illinois.

One group you may want to look into joining is The Saints, a volunteer group that provides ushering services and other such things to over 50 companies in the city and suburbs.  There are yearly dues, but it is a great way to get familiar with the major players and you get to see tons of shows for free.  Find more about them at http://www.saintschicago.org/

Other things you may want to learn early on are the locations of the major prop and costume houses, the layout of the El and the basics of the CAT contract.  There's a few big name theatres that use more robust contracts than the CAT Tiers, but for the most part if you're working for an Equity house out here you're gonna be on the CAT, where points are pretty hard to come by. Learn which companies are AEA and which aren't.  IA houses are mostly all contained in the loop.  AGMA is pretty much only at the Opera house.  SSDC is starting to get more representation, they've had a real push in Chicago lately.  USA is everywhere.  Get versatile in what you can SM -- a lot of Chicago stuff is improv or sketch and takes a stage manager who can run with little to no script at all.

Also, consider heading to that AEA shindig that I posted about in Get Togethers.  I won't be attending myself as I'm no longer active in the area as a stage manager, but it sounds like it might have some potential.  Joel Reamer's contact info is in that post -- he's a great contact to have around here as he sends out the AEA job postings bulletin for stage managers.  All of my job postings here on SMNetwork are merely reiterations of what I get from Joel.  Get on that mailing list!

Look around at the artsier colleges as well.  Most of their shows are staffed by students, but many of the faculty are also directors in the city.  Depaul, Columbia and Loyola all frequently loan students and faculty to the city's theatres.

Get portable.  Most companies out here, even the Equity ones, have no home base, they just bounce from theatre to theatre.  Be able to move your rehearsals from one hall to the next to a backyard to a garage from day to day, expect to attend production meetings in someone's kitchen.  Learn who the owners and production managers of the various buildings are, and get really friendly with them -- it will make your job so much easier to have them on your side.

Good luck!

1259

Stage Management: Other / Re: Sming for Dance

« on: Oct 06, 2006, 08:04 am »

It's also heard frequently in French settings.  Originally it was explained to me as shorthand for "kick the **** out of it," but that could be urban legend.

1260

SMNetwork Archives / Call Board Karma: Keep or drop?

« on: Oct 01, 2006, 07:20 pm »

I received a request from an SMNetwork member to reconsider the handling of Karma.  Their comment addressed the professional leanings of the board and how karma seems to be somewhat juvenile by comparison to overall flavor of the site.  I've come up with a few ways to address the matter, but was interested to see how folks felt about the karma system.  Let me know, please!