If your love for theatre goes beyond acting and taking the centre stage, then you should read this article. This article aims to give you advice and tips on how to become a really good stage manager and things that you should keep in mind. A stage manager is an important aspect of any theatre production. Without the stage manager, the show will not go as smoothly as it is expected to. The stage manager is someone who handles everything apart from the acting. From props to lights it is the stage managers duty to ensure the show runs smooth. Therefore, it is important that you know what is exactly needed from a stage manager. Here are some tips.

Hire different people for the different jobs

Being a stage manager is a lot of work to do. The main part of this job is that you have to look after and handle everything that goes on backstage. Therefore, it might be difficult for you to handle things like lighting. For an instance, things like good headlight restoration need a specific person for the job.

Therefore, you should hire someone who knows about restoration. This way you will save time and money. Further, you should hire a different person to handle costume changes and make up. Even if you are able to do everything, you should not as this will take your attention away from the essential duties. 

Have a separate backstage crew

It is important that you have a separate backstage crew. A backstage crew is essential, especially if the play you are stage managing for has a lot of set movement and prop changes. However, it might be difficult to suddenly start working with unknown people. Therefore, you should make it a point to hire people that you have worked with before. This way you will be able to place your trust in them and you will not have to keep looking out for what they are up to. This way you will be able to run the show smoothly.

Have separate rehearsals for tech and backstage

While it is important to rehearse together with the actors, it is important that you conduct a tech and backstage rehearsal without the actors. Then the crew you are working with will be have the time to get really familiar with the set and everything else that they are working with. You should not do this the day before the actual show, but you should conduct this rehearsal at least one week prior to the main show.