Deputy Stage Management

Task 1
The Deputy Stage Manager, or DSM as it is abbreviated is one of the
key people in any production. They are generally there from the
very first rehearsal until the very last performance, and then
possibly the get-out.
In rehearsals they will be responsible for taking notes regarding
props, costume, lighting, sound and video as well as writing the
blocking into the prompt script. They will often liaise with the
director about these things. It must be careful how they write
suggestions regarding lighting, sound etc. as at the end of the day,
the designers are being paid to come up with the design.
When writing notes about props etc. the page number, the scene,
and the act should all be listed next to it so the relevant people
know where to look when the reports are distributed amongst the
production team. Blocking in the prompt book should include all
character and set movements, and abbreviations and symbols
should be used to shorten the sentences. A key should also be made
and kept with the prompt book so any covers will be able to
understand any notation in the script.
In the get-in and get-out process, the DSM will oversee the rigging
of all equipment and set ensuring all crew are following health and
safety regulations and risk assessments. Along with the rest of the
Stage Management team they will prepare dressing rooms and
backstage areas ready for the cast to come into the theatre.
In performance, the DSM will call the show. They will sit in the
prompt corner which is normally located downstage left.
(Occasionally they may call the show from stage right (OP) which is
called a bastard prompt). The prompt desk will generally contain a
clock, a stopwatch, cue lights, a cans headset (with master station),
a foldback speaker, a monitor showing the MD, a monitor showing
the full stage from FOH and another monitor showing the same view
but an infrared view. What they use to call the show will depend on
the type of show. A ballet or musical will most likely be called from a
conductor/piano score.
Before the performance starts they will be expected to give FOH and
ROH calls. These include the half hour call (35 minutes before
curtain up on act 1) and beginners calls (5 minutes before act 1). As
soon as they have given the beginners call, they give their FOH
calls. 5 minutes before curtain up they would say something along
the lines of Good evening ladies and gentlemen and welcome to

the ___ Tonights performance of ___ will begin in 3 minutes.. They

will keep giving this call after every minute to get people seated.
They then need to wait for the FOH manager or duty manager to
provide Front of House clearance and then will get clearance from
stage management on each side of the stage once people are set in
place and everybody who needs to be are in the wings.
The monitors mean that they have a good view of the stage, and
can also see the stage in a blackout. This way they can see when
people or scenery are set. Sometimes it will be required for the
stage manager to give clearance for an item of set to be flown in if it
is large/heavy and there could be people below its path. They are
now responsible for cueing all lighting, sound and video changes.
They should give a standby about 10-20 seconds before they say
Go. It would be something like LXQ 213 Standby followed by
LXQ 213 Go.
Salaries will generally start at around 20,000 for beginners,
although you should expect to do a lot of voluntary work before you
get any paid work. An experienced stage manager could expect to
earn between 20,000-40,000+ depending on role and company.
Freelance salaries may vary. (Prospects)
There are various routes you can take to become a deputy stage
manager, and from all of the professional DSMs I have met, I can
see that you dont necessarily need a degree in stage management.
Although a degree is the preferred choice, and a lot of companies
will look for it, experience is a very important quality to have. A lot
of people start with amateur productions and volunteer for as many
as possible. If they are lucky they could then go on to national tours
as shown by 3 of the stage management team on the Evita UK
Tour. However university will most likely be the quickest route, which
is how most of the stage management teams I have met broke into
the industry. That is how the entire stage management team from
the Birmingham Royal Ballet got into their jobs.

Key Skills

Excellent communication skills

A good knowledge of theatre
Organizational skills
IT skills
Problem solving skills
Flexibility, you will be working long hours
Stamina
Knowledge of health and safety regulations

The Royal Opera House is a large theatre in Covent Garden, London.

It is home to both The Royal Ballet and The Royal Opera. Each
company has their own team of stage management with a Senior
Stage Manager for each company. Although they still use the
rankings of SM, DSM and ASM, they frequently alternate who is on
the book for each production. When calling a ballet, you have to
have excellent score-reading skills. There arent any words that you
can cue from, so you have to be able to read music and follow the
MD. A knowledge of ballet terminology would also prove to be
extremely useful as a director may say Call the cue on the pas de
duex. You need to be able to know what that is, although the stage
manager from the Birmingham Royal Ballet did tell me that is
normally acceptable to ask what that is and learn as you go along.
The Birmingham Royal Ballet is another example of how the stage
management teams can alternate who calls the show. On the tour of
The Prince of the Pagodas, the SM and DSM would take turns in
each venue, however the ASM would not get this opportunity.
Musical theatre prompt books can vary in appearance. Some may be
a libretto/script of a show such as Our House whilst others may be
a conductor/piano score, which is more likely for a show with very
few spoken sections such as Evita. The DSM from Evita told me how
she could not read music and when in the show I could see her
tapping the book whilst counting the bars when there were not any
vocals to cue from. This shows that is not essential to be able to
read music brilliantly, but a basic understanding is definitely a good
start. All of the companies mentioned above have quite large teams
for lighting, sound etc. and each have heads of department which
means that stage management are not required to supervise them
on the get-ins and get-outs, although they will normally observe
from a distance anyway.
A small company like the Barbican Theatre will not require a large
team like you might find at the Theatre Royal or the Royal Opera
House, they might only have two people on the show, one on the
book and one on stage. A DSM would probably be expected to
operate certain elements of the show, most likely sound. Although it
is on a much smaller scale, the principles of their responsibility
remain the same. Some shows may require more people, but the
space is very small so it is unlikely.
The Theatre Royal Plymouth is the largest producing theatre outside
of London. It produces quite a lot of its own work, which normally
start on one of its three stages before touring internationally or
transferring to the west end. It also collaborates with other
subsidized theatres around the country to produce pieces of work. It
has a resident stage manager whose job can vary from SM to DSM.
She will normally be put in charge of large productions coming into

the theatre, either their own work, or a collaborative piece such as

Inside Wagners Head which they co-produced with the Royal
Opera House. The stage management teams from both venues
liaised with each other and shared the prompt book for use in
London and Plymouth. They have also been known to collaborate
with the Barbican Theatre. With some other TRP productions,
primarily community productions, they will reach out to volunteers
to take part as DSM, PrA and ASM. People who started volunteering
for these projects are now getting paid jobs in the theatre as SM.
Touring companies will normally have their own stage management
team and someone to call the show. One thing that became
apparent with the Birmingham Royal Ballet was how each venue
poses different challenges for a production. Set had to be cut into
sections so it could move into the wings, flown scenery had to be
flown into stage level, moved around at the interval so that another
piece could be flown in during the next act, and the small depth of
the stage meant that the full set could not fit and cyc lights could
not completely wash the rear cyclorama causing a blotchy effect.
Pretty much any company will face these problems as most venues
are different, and the TRP is one of the smaller touring theatres.
Stage management will have to keep an eye on set movements,
making sure nobody is in the way and making sure that they can be
flown in smoothly with no obstructions. Most regulations within
touring theatres are the same, however some local authorities may
require venues to do things a bit differently, so stage management
must be aware of this.
Whatever venue or company you work with, the skills required and
you duties as a DSM will always remain very similar, however as I
have mentioned, you will also find jobs that require you to do a little
bit more or a little bit less. Most of what I have talked about has
come experience and knowledge that I have gained by shadowing
and doing work experience with a variety of stage managers.

Bibliography
ITC. (n.d.). Rates of Pay. Retrieved May 2, 2014, from Independant
Theatre Company: http://www.itc-arts.org/rates-of-pay
Prospects. (n.d.). Theatre Stage Manager Salary and conditions.
Retrieved May 2, 2014, from Prospects:
http://www.prospects.ac.uk/theatre_stage_manager_salary.htm