Notes
from a Stage Manager
By Julia Xiong
When I first started stage managing, I was honestly the most unqualified person in my class. A lot of what I do now, is either self-taught or what I learned from other great stage managers. The best way to improve in your work is to learn from other professionals as well. And that is what this NOTES section is precisely for. These are just things that work for me. I always love learning new tricks from other stage managers as well.
TABLE OF CONTENT
I. My favorite SM Items
II. My Favorite Tech/Apps
III. PROMPT BOOK SAMPLE
IV. Note-Taking
V. Line Notes
I. My favorite SM Items
My Utensil Kit:
Every SM has their own utensil kit. I just use a standard pencil box.
-assorted pens/pencils/highlighters
-eraser
-mini-stapler
-white out
-assorted sticky notes (tiny > large)
-I use the large sticky notes for blocking notes that keeps changing back and forth.
-mini ruler.
-I bought a clear 12" ruler and snapped it in half for portability and to have a spare.)
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Notebook: I like a medium size notebook (6"x 8"), hardcover, spiral binding on the left.
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Phone Charger: I always carry a spare charging cable and a portable charging pack for emergencies.
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Water Bottle: Because you gotta hydrate after running your 50 errands.
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Thermos: To keep your drinks hot so you can run your 50 errands.
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Blanket: Because I'm always cold and have no shame. Obviously, only for rehearsals.
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Show Shoes: I bring my own show shoes and leave them at the theater space in a plastic bag with sneaker balls. This is helpful as I live in the Midwest and don't want to track in snow, sleet and salt onto the stage. I wear black gym shoes.
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Foldable Rolling Crate: Because I only have 2 arms.
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#3 Fav: Flashlights: I carry 2 flashlights with me. A mini handheld one and a headlamp.
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#2 Fav: Trapper Keeper: I like to use this for my run sheet. A clipboard and folder in one.
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#1 Fav: Black Fanny Pack:
This is great for tech/performances (ASM), especially if you're a woman cursed with finding black pants WITH POCKETS. I bought mine from Wal Mart in the camping section. There are multiple pockets to store your phone, a mini flashlight, bandaids, safety pins, stage keys, chapstick, etc. It all zips so there's no possibility of anything falling out. The buckle strap can also act as a mic belt to hold your headset pack.
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Summer Stock:
-Tall rain boots
-Rain poncho/Umbrella
-Trapper Keeper: to hold paperwork
-Clear plastic paper holder
-Headlamp/Mini flashlight
-Thermos: To keep your water COLD outside.
-Portable Charging Bank
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II. MY FAVORITE TECH/APPS
iPhone Stopwatch: You can use the Lap function to indicate run time for different Acts. To turn off auto-lock go into Settings > Display & Brightness > Auto-Lock > Never
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Genius Scan: (iPhone App): Take a photo on your phone and it turns into a PDF doc.
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Merge/Split PDF Website: Does exactly what it says it'll do.
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Google Suite: This one seems obvious, but good to know. I like creating rough drafts of my paperwork in my Google Drive. This way it can travel anywhere and operate on any device (Mac/Windows).
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Facebook Messenger: As hilarious as it is, I actually use the Facebook Messenger App when I need to immediately transfer photos from my phone to a computer. Emailing photos take forever and Airdrop isn't always compatible. This way I can log onto my Facebook on the computer and take the photos from there.
III. Prompt Book Samples
I managed to keep my very first prompt books and oh boy... They look terrible, but I keep them as a reminder of how far I've come.
My first ASM Prompt Book was just the script (double-sided AND sideways!) with scribbles on the side.
My First SM Prompt Book was a step up, but still really rough.
My Current SM Prompt Book is a nice upgrade. If I was just the Calling SM, this is how I would notate my prompt book.
For more paperwork samples, go to Resume tab & scroll to the bottom.
IV. Note-taking
A notebook is every stage manager's best friend. However, It took me years to finally figure out how to notate in a more organized fashion. Before hand, it was just a lot of bullets and scribbles. This was a nightmare afterwards when writing reports. The way I notate now actually came from bullet journaling!
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I find it most helpful to create a short header for tracking time. In my notes section, I like creating a key for bullet point types. This way I can write my reports quickly by identifying which notes go in which department. (I forgot props, don't be like me.)
V. Line Notes
The bane of every Stage Manager's existence, but alas it must be done. There are only 2 ways that I have found to be most helpful. (My laptop isn't compatible to use the Line Notes App, but I highly recommend if you are able to use it.)
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Small # of actors ( <10)
I use my laptop. I pull up an updated PDF script on the left of my screen. And on the right, I have separate Word docs of every actor with this Line Notes Example. It takes some multi-tasking, but if you're fast enough you can pull up each actor in the scene and type quickly.
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Large # of actors ( >10)
I go handwritten (*rotates wrist). I use this Line Notes Template. Cut on the dotted line to create strips. Make sure to cut up enough so that you have plenty to go through. Write in the line notes as you go for each scene, this way you're not constricted to writing on a specific page (for actors). At the end, you can organize the strips for each actor and staple them together for them to read through.