Our actors start rehearsal tomorrow, but our stage management team has been hard at work for a week preparing for their arrival.
But first, what does a stage management team do? Essentially, the stage managers ensure that all the elements that a rehearsal or scene may need are present- whether its putting together the call schedule for the actors, or calling the cue that gets the proper sound effect ready and played. This involves lots of paperwork, lots of organization, and a jack-of-all-trades attitude. Stage managers work hard at making sure every cue runs smoothly, every actor has everything that they need, and all of the little things that can trip up the run of a show. They also make sure that the show stays in tip-top show after opening night, when the director departs.
Since there’s so much to do, our stage managers always arrive before the cast of a production start rehearsals. They do great things, like make sure they have all preliminary rehearsal schedules prepared, the contact sheets are ready to go, and so much more. This week, they’ve been hard at work making sure everything is in place for our first rehearsal Monday- like the taped outlines of the TARZAN set- which you can see below- laying out the baskets where actor’s “show shoes” or costume pieces that they wear for rehearsal, and getting all sorts of office supplies that they’ll need throughout the summer.
As you can tell, our stage managers are awesome and do a little bit of everything- you rock Jeff, Julie, Amy, and Rickelle!
