For any stage management students sent home or unable to attend classes:
Practice Taking Blocking Notes on Single Set TV Shows!
Any TV Show that primarily uses the same set can provide some AMAZING blocking note practice!
Pick a TV Show! TV shows that regularly use the same set are USUALLY sitcoms, try:
Friends (Rachel & Monica’s Apartment)
The Big Bang Theory (Leonard & Sheldon’s Apartment)
Cheers (the bar)
Fraiser (Fraiser’s Apartment)
Golden Girls (their house)
Full/er House (the living room)
and many more…
Obtain the Ground Plan
Some shows ground plans are easily obtainable online - check out this AMAZING ground plan art
Draw your own! Break out the papers, pencils, and rulers!
Make a blocking KEY
Watch the show and take those blocking notes!
Check out the Awesome Stage Manager’s post on blocking notes!
Practice Calling a Show
This one works best if you have TWO THINGS:
A recording of a show
A copy of the calling script
Then, just follow along and practice making all the calls on time!
CONSIDER: Recording yourself so you can hear how you sound over headset!
Have a Paperwork Exchange
Sharing ideas for paperwork format & content is ALWAYS fun (to stage management nerds) - find some people to exchange paperwork with and use those ideas to improve yours!
Actually Read the Textbook
Or read the ones from other schools…
A Survival Guide for Stage Managers by Mary Ellen Allison
The Back Stage Guide to Stage Management by Thomas Kelly
Stage Manager: The Professional Experience - Refreshed by Larry Fazio
Essentials of Stage Management by Peter Maccoy
Production Stage Management for Broadway by Peter Lawrence
The Stage Management Handbook by Daniel Ionazzi
The Stage Manager's Toolkit by Laurie Kincman
Stage Management: The Essential Handbook by Gail Pallin
Stage Management Basics by Emily Roth (includes info on theatre, dance, & opera)
Last Stage Manager Standing by Daniel B Morgan (about TV stage management!)
Stage Management: A Gentle Art by Daniel Bond
A Stage Manager’s Survival Guide: From Callbacks to Closing by Michelle Marko
Stage Managing & Theatre Etiquette: A Basic Guide by Linda Apperson
Learn Useful Skills
Many skills will make you a better SM!
Learn to read music
It will expand the jobs you can work - musicals, operas, dance!Focus on a specific theatre tech element to learn more about (lighting, sound, projection, props, scenic, etc.)
Take Internet Courses
Stage Management is COMPLEX and there are a lot of courses that apply to stage management!
FREE ONLINE CLASSES
Coursera
Creative Problem Solving by the University of Michigan
Improving Communication Skills by University of Pennsylvania
Personality Types at Work by University of Florida
Inspiring Leadership through Emotional Intelligence by Case Western Reserve University
edX
Inspiring & Motivating Arts & Culture Teams by University of Michigan
Mindfulness and Resilience to Stress at Work by UC Berkeley
FEMA Online Courses
Watch Videos
Read… More
Theatre Industry
The Season by William Goldman
Sense of Occasion by Harold Prince
Untold Stories of Broadway (Volume One) by Jennifer Ashley Tepper
Business & Leadership
Still Surprised by Warren Bennis
Good to Great by Jim Collins
The Advantage by Patrick Lencioni
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni
Daring Greatly by Brené Brown
PLEASE NOTE: This post includes affiliate links.