91
Introductions / Re: Greetings from Kentucky!
« on: Jun 30, 2018, 09:39 pm »
Welcome! Sounds like an exciting project. 
News:
14 Jan 2021: Happy 21st birthday, SMNetwork! I replaced the old broken mobile theme. -K
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92
Introductions / Re: Livin' la Vida Loca
« on: Apr 30, 2018, 11:49 pm »
Hi and welcome, Bruce! Congrats on your AEA contract.
93
Students and Novice Stage Managers / Re: Being forced to come in when sick by your SM
« on: Apr 24, 2018, 12:20 pm »
I don't think it's appropriate to have someone who's vomiting come in to run their track. No one benefits from having someone who is that sick come in. It would be different if you just had a cold. This is not the same thing. If I was in your position, I would have escalated matters to the production or company manager.
When I was younger, I worked through extreme illness a few times, and it honestly wasn't worth it. You know yourself, and you have to make a judgment call about if you're well enough to come in. Your health is more important, and in this case, it's the company's responsibility to figure out how to cover your track. As previously mentioned, no one should be "irreplaceable". It is smart to give as much notice as possible so that the company has as much lead time as possible to find a cover.
If you have a family emergency, you should talk with the person who hired you to work out a leave if needed. That situation is so dependent on the circumstances that it's hard to say exactly what should happen. But as the SM, if I had a crew person who had either a family or health emergency, I would work with the PM to come up with a backup plan.
As for coming in for an early call where there's not a lot to do, sometimes that's just the way it goes. I would try and find a way to make use of the time. Clean up your paperwork, make glo-dots for tech, prep prop tables, offer to be a light walker, etc. Bring a book or knitting if needed. No one likes to feel like their time is being wasted, so it's understandable to feel frustrated by it. If it's worth it to you to have a conversation with the production manager, you could. But my inclination would be to accept that sometimes there's some sitting around involved in the job. During tech, I sometimes come in early to sit in the room while other people are prepping for tech- it lets me see what is going on in the space, be available for questions, and do my own prep work.
When I was younger, I worked through extreme illness a few times, and it honestly wasn't worth it. You know yourself, and you have to make a judgment call about if you're well enough to come in. Your health is more important, and in this case, it's the company's responsibility to figure out how to cover your track. As previously mentioned, no one should be "irreplaceable". It is smart to give as much notice as possible so that the company has as much lead time as possible to find a cover.
If you have a family emergency, you should talk with the person who hired you to work out a leave if needed. That situation is so dependent on the circumstances that it's hard to say exactly what should happen. But as the SM, if I had a crew person who had either a family or health emergency, I would work with the PM to come up with a backup plan.
As for coming in for an early call where there's not a lot to do, sometimes that's just the way it goes. I would try and find a way to make use of the time. Clean up your paperwork, make glo-dots for tech, prep prop tables, offer to be a light walker, etc. Bring a book or knitting if needed. No one likes to feel like their time is being wasted, so it's understandable to feel frustrated by it. If it's worth it to you to have a conversation with the production manager, you could. But my inclination would be to accept that sometimes there's some sitting around involved in the job. During tech, I sometimes come in early to sit in the room while other people are prepping for tech- it lets me see what is going on in the space, be available for questions, and do my own prep work.
94
Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: WORK/LIFE BALANCE: Taking time off
« on: Apr 19, 2018, 09:52 pm »
I think it might mean that not a lot of SMs on this board take time off and come back to stage management....much more likely that folks slide into related careers like production management that have more family-friendly hours.
95
Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: Calling "bump" cues in a musical
« on: Apr 14, 2018, 10:27 pm »
Can you ask to have a brushup rehearsal to practice the bump cues? A half hour with the music director and the singer before the show could help you learn their "tells", as loebtmc mentioned. They might also be able to tell you what visual cues to watch for.
97
Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / Re: RUNNING: How much control should the director have?
« on: Apr 05, 2018, 01:41 pm »
What is the director's role at the company? Are they also the artistic director? I ask because there are theatres that do a live curtain speech for some performances but not others. If they are the artistic director, it could be at their discretion whether or not there is a live speech that day. But it is reasonable to have a plan in advance for how the preshow speech happens. I would ask about what days the director is planning on doing one, and during tech, figure out what happens when they are not there. Is there a pre-recorded speech? Does the HM do a live speech?
If you haven't talked with the director already, I think having a conversation could help clear up some of the confusion- perhaps they are jumping in because they are worried about something not happening, or they don't realize that there is an overlap. If it were me, I would address some things individually as they come up (like the director giving calls), or pre-emptively for things like the preshow announcement. I think most of them can be framed positively, e.g. "I noticed during the last show that it was hard to hear you give the pre-show announcement, since the preshow music was running and the audience was talking. For Current Production, on the days that you are giving a curtain speech, I can cue your entrance after I've given places. That way I can bring the preshow music down and bring up your special."
I think a conversation that frames the director as being overly controlling will not go over well, but smaller conversations about how to fix some of these issues will be seen as more constructive. If there is a production manager at the company, use them as an ally. I bet they can help come up with some strategies to help you. I know that at smaller companies, it can be tricky when people do more than one job- sometimes the roles are less clearly defined and things get muddled.
If you haven't talked with the director already, I think having a conversation could help clear up some of the confusion- perhaps they are jumping in because they are worried about something not happening, or they don't realize that there is an overlap. If it were me, I would address some things individually as they come up (like the director giving calls), or pre-emptively for things like the preshow announcement. I think most of them can be framed positively, e.g. "I noticed during the last show that it was hard to hear you give the pre-show announcement, since the preshow music was running and the audience was talking. For Current Production, on the days that you are giving a curtain speech, I can cue your entrance after I've given places. That way I can bring the preshow music down and bring up your special."
I think a conversation that frames the director as being overly controlling will not go over well, but smaller conversations about how to fix some of these issues will be seen as more constructive. If there is a production manager at the company, use them as an ally. I bet they can help come up with some strategies to help you. I know that at smaller companies, it can be tricky when people do more than one job- sometimes the roles are less clearly defined and things get muddled.
98
Introductions / Re: Hello from Sunny (Currently rainy :( ) SoCal!!
« on: Mar 22, 2018, 08:32 pm »
Welcome aboard!
99
Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / WORK/LIFE BALANCE: Taking time off
« on: Mar 01, 2018, 12:56 pm »
In light of the recent posts about burnout and taking time off, I'm posting about my own work/life balance experience right now.
I've been taking time off this past season because I had a baby last summer and have been staying home with him. I've taken a few short gigs, and found some work that I can do from home, but I'd like to be able to come back to stage management more in the future. For those of you who have taken time off, what have you done to stay on people's radar, and what steps have you taken when you do decide to come back?
So far, my strategy has been to take a few smaller gigs (sub positions, short runs, special events) and when I'm offered shows for next year, explaining the situation and letting potential employers know that I'd like to continue to be considered for future positions. But I'd love to hear how other people have approached this!
I've been taking time off this past season because I had a baby last summer and have been staying home with him. I've taken a few short gigs, and found some work that I can do from home, but I'd like to be able to come back to stage management more in the future. For those of you who have taken time off, what have you done to stay on people's radar, and what steps have you taken when you do decide to come back?
So far, my strategy has been to take a few smaller gigs (sub positions, short runs, special events) and when I'm offered shows for next year, explaining the situation and letting potential employers know that I'd like to continue to be considered for future positions. But I'd love to hear how other people have approached this!
100
Stage Management: Plays & Musicals / E-SCRIPT READ ME- Read before requesting an e-script!
« on: Mar 01, 2018, 09:22 am »
E-SCRIPTS READ ME:
Escripts are useful, and we are OK with you sharing the work you've done in digitizing scripts for stage management purposes. However, it is a VERY touchy legal ground and as such we have some very strict rules that must be followed. If we see repeated violations of these rules, we will have to put an end to the escript exchange.
OK. Here's the rules.
1. If you (or your company) don't have the rights to produce a show, don't ask for the script.
2. You may only request copies of scripts here. No audio. No video. Just escripts for use in setting up prompt books.
3. If someone asks for an escript and you have it, do NOT post it here publicly, nor admit here publicly that you have it. Offer your copies by PM, email or instant message.
4. If you have received a script from someone, do NOT thank them publicly here. Do not acknowledge that you have received it in the thread. Do not cross them off your list or edit your post to say, "Got it, Thanks!" Just leave it alone. Thank the sender profusely and eloquently off site via email, send them flowers & liquor, but do it off of the SMNetwork servers.
5. No unsolicited offers of e-scripts, please.
6. You may not request an e-script as your very first post to SMNetwork.
7. Posts more than six months old will be removed.
Thanks in advance for adhering to these rules. It will help ensure that we are able to keep hosting this exchange.
Escripts are useful, and we are OK with you sharing the work you've done in digitizing scripts for stage management purposes. However, it is a VERY touchy legal ground and as such we have some very strict rules that must be followed. If we see repeated violations of these rules, we will have to put an end to the escript exchange.
OK. Here's the rules.
1. If you (or your company) don't have the rights to produce a show, don't ask for the script.
2. You may only request copies of scripts here. No audio. No video. Just escripts for use in setting up prompt books.
3. If someone asks for an escript and you have it, do NOT post it here publicly, nor admit here publicly that you have it. Offer your copies by PM, email or instant message.
4. If you have received a script from someone, do NOT thank them publicly here. Do not acknowledge that you have received it in the thread. Do not cross them off your list or edit your post to say, "Got it, Thanks!" Just leave it alone. Thank the sender profusely and eloquently off site via email, send them flowers & liquor, but do it off of the SMNetwork servers.
5. No unsolicited offers of e-scripts, please.
6. You may not request an e-script as your very first post to SMNetwork.
7. Posts more than six months old will be removed.
Thanks in advance for adhering to these rules. It will help ensure that we are able to keep hosting this exchange.
101
Tools of the Trade / Re: Digital Script App Query
« on: Feb 20, 2018, 08:59 pm »
I don't have any advice about features for your app, since I personally am not interested in using a digital calling script at present, but you may be interested in the results on the recently published 2017 Stage Manager Survey. There were some questions about which SM-specific apps people use, and what features they would be interested in seeing in future apps.
102
Introductions / Re: Hello from the Pacific Northwest
« on: Feb 11, 2018, 08:21 pm »
Welcome aboard, Gypsy!
103
Introductions / Re: A Quick Hello
« on: Jan 31, 2018, 08:25 pm »
Welcome, Emry! What is your favorite kind of production to work on? (musicals, dance, new works, etc) Colorado is beautiful- I'm jealous!
105
Introductions / Re: Greetings from Oregon!
« on: Jan 12, 2018, 05:23 pm »
Welcome aboard! I really love working in children's theatre as well. Great story about the hawks- outdoor theatre definitely keeps things interesting!