Tricks of the trade
Whether they be new tech tools or age-old remedies, here are some tips from a veteran stage manager.
Do you have a trick to share? Click on the e-mail icon in upper right corner to pass along your idea.
A Smarter Preliminary Script Analysis
Many stage managers start a new project with a preliminary script analysis: noting all production needs that are indicated within the script itself. We note time of day, references to weather, if a prop or costume piece is mentioned in dialogue, etc. And most stage managers use a spreadsheet to track this information by production department. But what do you do after you complete this analysis? Usually, you need a few extra steps to isolate notes so that you are sending specific data like a script-based prop list to the scenic designer and props supervisor. Or you could just use a smarter spreadsheet.
The Microsoft Excel file below uses formulas that are pretty standard for financial documents but are not widely used for productions. Enter all of the information as you normally would on the front page (Master sheet). The formulas on the subsequent pages (Lighting sheet, Sound sheet, etc.) automatically grab only the information on the front page that applies to their category. The Props sheet only shows notes that pertain to Props, plus it adds columns that you would use for a Props List: prop number, quantity, rehearsal vs. performance version, etc. So you save time transferring the same information to multiple forms.
There is one last trick to this 'smart' spreadsheet. You will notice that if a note on the main page does not apply to a particular category, that row will simply be blank on the category pages. When you are done with your analysis, go to the Lighting sheet. You will see arrow icon in Cell A1 - Page Number. Click that icon and choose Sort Ascending (your version of Excel may look different). This action will remove all of the empty rows on that page. Then simply separate each sheet and distribute to the appropriate production department. Done.
The Microsoft Excel file below uses formulas that are pretty standard for financial documents but are not widely used for productions. Enter all of the information as you normally would on the front page (Master sheet). The formulas on the subsequent pages (Lighting sheet, Sound sheet, etc.) automatically grab only the information on the front page that applies to their category. The Props sheet only shows notes that pertain to Props, plus it adds columns that you would use for a Props List: prop number, quantity, rehearsal vs. performance version, etc. So you save time transferring the same information to multiple forms.
There is one last trick to this 'smart' spreadsheet. You will notice that if a note on the main page does not apply to a particular category, that row will simply be blank on the category pages. When you are done with your analysis, go to the Lighting sheet. You will see arrow icon in Cell A1 - Page Number. Click that icon and choose Sort Ascending (your version of Excel may look different). This action will remove all of the empty rows on that page. Then simply separate each sheet and distribute to the appropriate production department. Done.
| preliminaryscriptanalysis.xls |
Brand New Break-Time App
Mark Stys, an Equity Stage Manager in the United States, has just released a new app called Take Ten! This app does for the iPhone, newer iPod Touches, and the iPad what MegaWatch (scroll down) did for the laptop: provide a clean and straightforward way to track your Equity breaks. The beauty of this app is in its simplicity: tap "Start Rehearsal" and it begins a countdown to your next break, showing both when the 5- and 10-minute breaks will occur and how much time remains until each respective break. At any point, you can click "Break Now" to start a break, which it will then count down for you.
I have an older iPod Touch, so I tested this app on my iPad. I love that I can work on other apps and then come back to Take Ten! in progress. The iPad version is simply the iPhone version at regular or double-scale, but it lacks one key feature: the iPhone version will vibrate when it is time to start or stop a break. No annoying sounds that will trigger a dirty look from your director.
I tested Take 10! on the day it was launched and it worked great with no instructions necessary. A feature I would love is to have the screen flash or some other visual image when you reach a break, particularly if you are not using the vibration alert. Vibration is not silent and I know that I would not want my entire table to start vibrating just as I am using subtle body language to nudge my director towards the break. But this is a great start to a very useful app.
Note: There is currently an excellent debate over at SMNetwork.org about the costs of developing SM-specific software.
I have an older iPod Touch, so I tested this app on my iPad. I love that I can work on other apps and then come back to Take Ten! in progress. The iPad version is simply the iPhone version at regular or double-scale, but it lacks one key feature: the iPhone version will vibrate when it is time to start or stop a break. No annoying sounds that will trigger a dirty look from your director.
I tested Take 10! on the day it was launched and it worked great with no instructions necessary. A feature I would love is to have the screen flash or some other visual image when you reach a break, particularly if you are not using the vibration alert. Vibration is not silent and I know that I would not want my entire table to start vibrating just as I am using subtle body language to nudge my director towards the break. But this is a great start to a very useful app.
Note: There is currently an excellent debate over at SMNetwork.org about the costs of developing SM-specific software.
Make sure your spike tape stays put!
Q: What is one of the worst late night discoveries as an ASM?
A: Coming home from a show with an unknown piece of spike tape stuck to the bottom of your shoe.
There are two solutions to this problem. First, label your spike tape marks. Depending upon the proximity of audience to stage floor, use a pen or a fine point Sharpie to mark each piece of spike tape. List the scene and the object either by name or by blocking abbreviation. But how can you keep the spike tape where it belongs, especially with rolling scenery and/or lots of dance choreography? Simple: white glue. Once you have confirmed the spike placement through tech and a dress rehearsal or two, use white glue to create a blister over the spike tape. The glue seals the tape to the floor and creates a ramp over the edges of the spike so that it cannot get kicked up. Squeeze the glue over the tape's edges and then lightly smear it over the top. I prefer glue over tape because glue lacks tape's shine under stage lights and the adhesive in tape will deteriorate faster, especially after multiple moppings. This trick has kept the same spike in place for multiple years of Christmas Carols. But there are a few caveats:
This trick works even better on glow tape since that thicker tape is even more likely to be scuffed or kicked up. And the glue has only the slightest impact on the luminosity of the glow tape. I keep a few 4 ounce bottles of Elmer's Glue-All in my SM Kit so that multiple crew members can work on the floor at the end of the day.
A: Coming home from a show with an unknown piece of spike tape stuck to the bottom of your shoe.
There are two solutions to this problem. First, label your spike tape marks. Depending upon the proximity of audience to stage floor, use a pen or a fine point Sharpie to mark each piece of spike tape. List the scene and the object either by name or by blocking abbreviation. But how can you keep the spike tape where it belongs, especially with rolling scenery and/or lots of dance choreography? Simple: white glue. Once you have confirmed the spike placement through tech and a dress rehearsal or two, use white glue to create a blister over the spike tape. The glue seals the tape to the floor and creates a ramp over the edges of the spike so that it cannot get kicked up. Squeeze the glue over the tape's edges and then lightly smear it over the top. I prefer glue over tape because glue lacks tape's shine under stage lights and the adhesive in tape will deteriorate faster, especially after multiple moppings. This trick has kept the same spike in place for multiple years of Christmas Carols. But there are a few caveats:
- You should use two layers of glue for the strongest bond. Each layer can be thin enough to dry clear so you can still see the color and any markings on the spike.
- The glue will take 2-3 hours to dry, so be sure to do it on your way out at the end of the night.
- The tape and floor should be relatively clean for the glue to dry clear. Make sure no one uses the stage before the glue is dry!
- Once the glue is dry, consider the tape semi-permanent. You can use a knife to pry off the tape and glue, but expect to take part of the floor treatment as well unless it has a thick, hard sealant.
This trick works even better on glow tape since that thicker tape is even more likely to be scuffed or kicked up. And the glue has only the slightest impact on the luminosity of the glow tape. I keep a few 4 ounce bottles of Elmer's Glue-All in my SM Kit so that multiple crew members can work on the floor at the end of the day.
Night Vision Mode for your Mac
If you use a Mac during tech rehearsals or performances, I strongly recommend the free app Nocturne by Blacktree. This simple little app from 2009 allows you to hit a button to switch your desktop to a black background, change all colors into a muted grayscale (or tint the screen red or blue if you want greater contrast), and a few other tricks. You greatly reduce the glare and the time it takes to let your eyes adjust to the darkness of the theatre as you lift your head up from the screen. Nocturne also reduces the glow of the screen on your face so that you can slip back into the shadows. I have used this program for a couple of years and I have never had any trouble with it. Be aware that Blacktree is up to version 2.0 but some download sites since have 1.x versions in their databases. If you aren't advancing past Max OS X 10.4, then search for the 1.0.6 version. For everyone else, pick up version 2.0.
To 'Hudson Hawk' a Scene Change
Ever have a scene shift in which crew members and/or actors have to complete synchronized actions without the benefit of headsets? I just supervised a show in which an actor had to appear to be using an onstage winch while an off-stage operator raised and lowered a major scenic unit. We could cue the operator on when to begin, but how to synchronize their actions in terms of length (this action happened during several shifts and varied in time due to distance traveled). Look no further than a cult favorite from 1991!
The movie Hudson Hawk, starring Bruce Willis, Danny Aiello, and Andie MacDowell (though I think Sandra Bernhard stole all her scenes), was a commercial flop when it was released. But it did introduce an interesting synchronization technique. In the film, characters played by Willis and Aiello plan heists and synchronize their separate actions by singing classics such as Swinging on a Star. While stopwatches would have made things simpler, the characters stay synchronized since it is relatively easy to stay in rhythm once you start a song together. Which brings us back to the actors and crew....
Since some crew members might feel a bit self-conscious about singing (and some crew members ought to be more self-conscious about their singing), the easiest melody is the alphabet song: steady rhythm, easy to remember "words," and you can be very exact in identifying beats. So we had the actor and crew member sing the song a couple of times as they watched the off-stage mechanical action. First winch use would go A to G, the second use would last A through J, etc. Imagine two fly-rail operators who are separated but must bring in objects at the same rate. Need to change the rate to be faster/slower? Just choose another letter in the song.
Do you have another solution to this age-old problem? E-mail me and I will post your idea here.
The movie Hudson Hawk, starring Bruce Willis, Danny Aiello, and Andie MacDowell (though I think Sandra Bernhard stole all her scenes), was a commercial flop when it was released. But it did introduce an interesting synchronization technique. In the film, characters played by Willis and Aiello plan heists and synchronize their separate actions by singing classics such as Swinging on a Star. While stopwatches would have made things simpler, the characters stay synchronized since it is relatively easy to stay in rhythm once you start a song together. Which brings us back to the actors and crew....
Since some crew members might feel a bit self-conscious about singing (and some crew members ought to be more self-conscious about their singing), the easiest melody is the alphabet song: steady rhythm, easy to remember "words," and you can be very exact in identifying beats. So we had the actor and crew member sing the song a couple of times as they watched the off-stage mechanical action. First winch use would go A to G, the second use would last A through J, etc. Imagine two fly-rail operators who are separated but must bring in objects at the same rate. Need to change the rate to be faster/slower? Just choose another letter in the song.
Do you have another solution to this age-old problem? E-mail me and I will post your idea here.
It's All in the Timing
Stage managers collect stop watches like other people collect...whatever other people collect. I am always on the look-out for a good stop watch with a silent mode. But I have also made great use of two programs, one for a laptop, the other for a smart phone.
Megawatch 3.1 was created by Will Pickens while he worked at Geva Theatre Center on the Electrics staff. He developed this free tool for stage managers to calculate their Equity breaks and to have two stopwatches to manage act and intermission breaks. You can download the program to run on your laptop with some customization options (accurate to 0.29 seconds per hour) or run it directly from the Megawatch website (accurate to 9.29 seconds/hour online - fine for rehearsal but not great for performances). The only bad news is that Will has become a very successful sound designer and has not had the opportunity to update Megawatch for the newer operating systems. If you are still running Windows XP or an older Mac OS, this is a must-have program.
Megawatch 3.1 was created by Will Pickens while he worked at Geva Theatre Center on the Electrics staff. He developed this free tool for stage managers to calculate their Equity breaks and to have two stopwatches to manage act and intermission breaks. You can download the program to run on your laptop with some customization options (accurate to 0.29 seconds per hour) or run it directly from the Megawatch website (accurate to 9.29 seconds/hour online - fine for rehearsal but not great for performances). The only bad news is that Will has become a very successful sound designer and has not had the opportunity to update Megawatch for the newer operating systems. If you are still running Windows XP or an older Mac OS, this is a must-have program.
Adding Time in a good way
The second time-based program that I highly recommend is time:calc by Dr. Phil's Apps. Although I don't know Dr. Phil (please no jokes about this programmer and my own last name), he has created an app for the iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad that solves a problem that stage managers have faced for millennia: how to add times together. Act One ran 56:27, the intermission was long at over 16 minutes, but you picked up time in a quick Act Two of 48:49. How to add your two act times or backtrack and figure out just how long intermission ran? This handy little app lets you enter times in the H:MM:SS format and add, subtract, and any other mathematical function you might need to do with timings. Hat tip to Malcolm Ewen at Steppenwolf and the Weston Playhouse for introducing me to this handy app.
