CALLING: Articulation marks in SM calling script

[forner]

I am interested in anyone's use of what I call 'articulation marks' to call cues. An articulation mark is a point in your script where you vocally begin the lead in  to  calling the G-O (Lights 32......GO). I find this reference point provides the calling  consistency from show to show as well as providing a rhythm for the show operators. Thanks for your response(s).

Edited to add topic tag - Maribeth

[Beatr79]

I absolutely use them.  I draw a little dash under the word where I want to start speaking. 

[smejs]

I do this. Mine is a large visible dot/period. Now that I type that, it seems inconsequential, but everyone who has seen it understands. Ideally, I'd have it explained in a calling key...

[RuthNY]

I use them too. I've never heard the term "articulation marks" though. I consider them the "wind up" prior to the "pitch."  I never did it before 2009, but then I met matthewshiner, and "stole" the idea from him. And I know several others have now "stolen" it from me.

[MatthewShiner]

I do, but not often with musicals . . . but we shall see as I do more musicals.

I underline, bold and highlight the "start speaking" cue, and box, bold the GO word.

[Maribeth]

I use them sometimes. (Never heard the term before). I usually put a star in the line where I start talking.

[NomieRae]

I use them for musicals, generally a dot/period where I begin speaking the standby sequence, and then the GO is a box around the word, syllable, or beat that it is called on

[EFMcMullen]

I use a small caret at the point I start setting up the cue.

[Aerial]

I always use them too.  Mine take the shape of a forward slash. 

[PSMKay]

Wind musicians will mark breaths with little ticks and string musicians have bowings. A hefty call can be also considered a 3 hour monologue - it's quite practical to have some clues as to how to do it without giving yourself the hiccups.

[lsears]

I use these, especially if I know my ASM is going to learn to call the show.  One of them once asked when I 'loaded a cue' so that's how I've started to refer to when I begin to speak.  I don't often do this for opera, unless a transition is large and the music is fast, when my beginning to speak may be quite a distance in the page from the actual GO.

[Patlienemann]

I tend to type out my calling scripts with the cues built in and I use Word to create texts boxes on the side of the page of what cues I am warning and what cues are going and on the cue itself I usually put a little square around the letter or phrase or number (when music if not score).  I started doing this in college and found out that many touring SMs do it as well.  This way multiple people can call from one script.

[MitchieSM]

Mine differ for whatever kind of show I'm calling.

If I'm using the musical score, for opera or musicals, I use colored dots for all my Warnings/Standbys/GOs. For warnings and standbys, I put the colored dot first, at the time I should start saying it. My GOs, though, I write above the music that I should start saying it with, leaving the colored dot for the placement of the GO so that I know I have enough time to articulate everything.

When I'm working on a musical or straight play where I'm calling from words, I use a little asterisk for when the talking should happen. Particularly if it's a fast paced show.

[iamchristuffin]

MitchieSM, do you wait until opening until putting them in? I would imagine that sticky dots are a pain to re-position...

[BayAreaSM]

Speaking for myself, it really depends on the kind of dots you get. The ones I use haven't been terribly hard to reposition - or just pull up, and add a new one.

For me, as the show goes on, I move my starting points, as I get more comfortable with the calls.