COMMUNICATION: How do you do your reports?

[Tempest]

With the discussion about audience reactions in reports on another thread, I've found myself intereted in how, exactly, other stage managers manage their performance reports.

Since I'm calling spot cues and running lights, sound, and SFX myself (Goddess bless QLab!) I keep the GO button pushed back on the table, far enough for a notebook in front of it.  I turn script pages with my left hand and use my right for GO button and to scribble notes as the show progresses.  I compile them into my computer form, later.  House opening, house count and start and stop times go in the "header" space of the notebook paper, as well as possibilities for my, now infamous, Quote of the Night (something overheard during the course of the evening tht is very funny when taken out of context).

I'll take notes, usually a few words to jog my memory on the left side of the page, and keep a running tab of bits that get big audience reactions on the right side of the page.

My handwriting, however, is atrocious, and sometimes I don't have time to finish thoughts, or even words.  Every once in a while, I'll look at a scribble and think, "What does 'lick Com' mean!?"  (For the curious, I eventually translated that back to English in the form of, "This audience must be full of geeks; they adored the Commodore 64 joke.")  Because of this, on shows where it's not mile-a-minute cues, I'll keep my computer running and type straight into the report, to be cleaned up later.  If I've got the time to turn to the computer, typing is faster and clearer than my handwriting!

At the end of the night, I send out the report as an attachement to an e-mail.  I always send my e-mails with the show name in all caps in the subject field, followed by what the e-mail is about, and then the night's quote.  The body of the e-mail is the next call time.  A recent example is:

SANTALAND DIARIES: Performance report 12/16  "Smell my hand!  Really, smell it!"
All,
Next call is tomorrow, Thursday, 12/17.  All crew @ 6:30, all cast @ 7:30.  Reminder, there will be archival filming tomorrow.

And then the report is attached, and I have it printed and all the call board before everyon'e call times the next day.

I'd love to hear how other SMs do it, especially on fast-and-furious cue shows, to see if there's some idea I can "borrow" to make my reports better.

[Mac Calder]

I always keep a pencil in hand and post-it notes near by. I then write a couple of key words and stick it to the page in question, so that when I flip through my prompt book that night to write my report I have both text and chronological clues to my observations. Like you though, my writing is not neat so the chronological clue is essential. I do the same with corporate jobs on the run sheets.

As for emailing, I always do "dd/mm/yyyy - Show Name, Venue - Show Report"

[kiwitechgirl]

I can't call a show without a pencil in my hand anyway, so I always have one when I need it!  I tend to make notes on a piece of paper which I keep stuck to the wall next to me; show times go on there as well.  Our show reports don't get e-mailed - we have a noticeboard that they're pinned to - so at the end of the show all I have to do is transfer notes and times to the show report sheet, fill in the house count which I get from the chief usher and pin the report to the board.  If there's anything serious, I'll usually make a brief non-descriptive note and send an e-mail to those concerned.

[maximillionx]

Since I'm calling spot cues and running lights, sound, and SFX myself (Goddess bless QLab!)

Agreed! A fantastic program indeed!

For the show I am currently working on, I am the sound and lighting designer so a nightly report isn't necessary for myself.  Any costume repairs are handled by myself or my assistant, so no real reports there either.  Our artistic director helps out during shows, so he's there to judge audiences and here feedback, so no report necessary. I'm also the directing assistant so any character work/notes I handle...no report needed there.  I usually do weekly reports that include general notes like audience reactions, anything that needed to be fixed, etc... as well as a weekly, or daily report depending if there's an event or a strange show time, to the cast and staff.

I do keep a notepad next to me for times, dates, and note-taking.  I write fairly quickly and clearly so I find it's do-able during a show.  I have a plethora of writing utensils in my booth so I never am frantically searching for one.

[NomieRae]

I use a formatted PDF file for my performance reports, so I just make sure that I have blank copies with me for each performance so I can fill in information to type into the report later to email out. I find that it keeps things consistent both with me and my team, and saves me time when typing up the report because everything is already in its appropriate box (timing, wardrobe, etc)

[Rebbe]

I usually have a spiral notebook or clipboard near my call book that I jot notes in as the show is running.    If a note-worthy event occurs when I’m calling cues or otherwise too busy to write, I’ll just put a small post-it near it on the script, sticking off the edge of the page so I can find it again later.  The act of writing something down tends to help me remember it, so I can interpret my notes later even with abbreviations/misspellings, etc.  I’ve never run shows with my computer open nearby, so I’ll take my notes to the computer after the show to put in my report.  During rehearsals, however, I do roughly write the report on my computer as notes occur.

I usually put “ShowName Performance Report Day Date (Matinee or Evening)” in the subject line.  I think it is helpful to have the show name in the subject for designers who work on multiple shows.  I always paste the report into the body of the email; graphics don’t transfer well this way, but it helps for people reading reports from phones or in a hurry.  Whether I also attach the report or not depends on the show.  I don’t think many people need the report as an attachment, but it has been helpful for me to have the actual document in my email when I’ve had computer issues.  I’ve rarely worked in theaters where we printed the report for posting, but occasionally I’ll print rehearsal reports for myself or the director or someone else.

[geoffsm]

I typically call a show with my trusty yellow legal pad on hand to scribble down notes that will later be typed into my report.  I definitely agree with the notion that even abbreviated chicken scratch can be a memory-jogger for interpreting notes later.

When sending reports out, I also include: Show Name: mm/dd/yy Performance Report
I also make a point to save the file as: showname Perf Rep (mm.dd.yy)  -so that recipients who save the reports have an easier time with file management.