Stage Management

BFA Major’s tips, tricks, and stories of Stage Managing with a magical twist.

[the-magical-stage-manager]

I am a day late (once again) but none the less, Happy Wolrd Theatre Day! Although, currently across the globe every theatre has its ghost light on until this pandemic passes, this is a good time to reflect of why we love this genre of performing art.

How I got into theatre, was actually because my of my great aunt. She introduced me into this world of theatre in pre-K. However, it wasn’t until I was 18 when I started to get more involved due to home life. Which is a different story for another day for another blog page. I didn’t even think theatre would be my “professional calling” until 2019 Spring Semester when I agreed to Stage Manage for the musical “School House Rick Live!” at my local community college. After the show closed I made the realization, this is what I wanted to do with my life.

Below, is the cast and crew photo of “Almost, Maine” that I stage managed Fall of 2019 semester at the same college. During this semester I was attending Missouri State University and was taking my Stage Management class. Although taking on “Almost, Maine” as Stage Manager wasn’t a requirement, I decided to take it as practicum and a favor to the director, Jon. I’ve worked with him as an actor, a student, and stage managament when he was the technical director. I was truly blessed to work with this amazing cast and crew members that put on, “the best production this college has produced” according to the Fine Arts Department Head and the Dean of General Education. Although, I got the praise from both the mentioned above and other community members who are also involved in this world, I cannot take all the credit. It was the help and the attention of my crew members and the dedication of my actors that we were able to pull this show off.

Now I told you a story about my stage management, how does the real “magic” come in? Well surprisingly what I do in the beginning of the production, usually the full moon before auditions, I do a ritual and offering to the Patron God of Theatre, Dionysus. I asked him to bless the show and help the development of the production. Then I make a sigil to help actors and crew members and created a “mojo bag” or as I call it a “blessing bag” that was present at every rehearsal, tech rehearsal, and performances. This blessing bag, I created as a general bag and not to a particular production. That way you can reuse the mojo bag for different productions. That is another topic on this blog for another day. After each show that’s been striked, I give a decent amount of wine to Dionysus as a “thank you”.

[the-magical-stage-manager]

How to deal with a theatre ghost that likes to mess with your productions.

Some background info-

These past few semesters I have been SM for my local community college as a favor to the department head as well as having praticum setting. The community college that I’ve been working with doesn’t have a stage, so subsequently we borrow and use the auditorium from our city’s art museum.

Meet my theatre ghost, Kory, the residential ghost of the city’s art museum. He has been known to make our sound system go haywire, including adding a sound cue of a church bell (we didn’t have one in our sound cue system).

We have found with him, to keep him at bay and minimize his antics was to give him a blowup-out-of-portion crayon. Although I did not witness it since I was in the light booth during performances, my ASM reported the crayon to disappear from time to time and end during the shows only to be returned. No one else was near that crayon.

This semester, I am SMing for this community college. So more stories of Kory will probably pop up at some point in my blog.

How to deal with the ghost.

First off, figure out who exactly is haunting the space. Is it a spirit of a person who use to share the space as you? The architect that built the space? An actor?

To find out, ask! It’s usually best to do this if you are the only person there or not many people.

Do research of the theatre. There could be answers there.

After figure out who exactly is haunting the space, find ways to incorporate them. From my findings, the theatre ghost often feel left out. Thus, like to mess with those that are currently sharing the space with the ghost. Things to do incorporate your ghost:

Saying hello

Ask how they are. (Yes, I know that seems silly)

Asking them to be apart of the energy in a positive when working in the space.

Another way to help keep your ghost at bay, find what they like. Do they like chocolate? Do they have a favorite item (e.g. an out-of-portion blow up crayon)? Favorite brand of soda/alcohol? Find a space, doesn’t have to be a big space, to dedicate to the ghost and place these items on it. Just make sure no one else accidentally moves/dispose/eats any of these items.

What if my ghost has been manevolent towards me or members of the production I’m in?

Unless your ghost plays the organ and calls themselves the Opera Ghost/the Angel of Music while reeking havoc, manevolent ghost should not be tolerated.

One way to banish a negative ghost is to burn sage or dragons blood. Negative energies flee from these incense.

If you cannot burn incense-

Get a jar of water and allow it to soak up the full moon rays. (On a window ceil is okay) If the full moon isn’t around the corner, the same application can be done by doing the same thing but with the sun at noon. Just make sure you have a lid on so the water vapors do not evaporate.

Place a few dragons blood essentials oil and your charged water in a bottle that sprays. Squirt this in the theatre space.

While spraying/burning incense, focus on the negative ghost. Visualize the smoke/water forcing the ghost out of the space and creating a barrier. If you want to pray to your deity to help bless the space (I do with Dionysus, Greek God of Theatre). You don’t have to if you don’t want to. This just gives it a little bit more oomph.

You can repeat this as often as needed.

Hopes this helps. Have fun storming the castle!!

[the-magical-stage-manager]

Last semester as praticum, staged managed for a local community college that produced, “Almost, Maine”. During one of the final tech rehearsals before opening, my mother and I had the following conversation over text.

Mom- How’s the show going?

Me-It’s going good. Put in roughly 70 hours this week to make sure everything is ready for opening in a few days. It’s a set heavy show.

Mom-Well, at least you will get OT pay for your troubles.