Everyone has a theater job. All you have to do to figure out yours is to notice whose choices you second guess.
I redeliver a lot of the dialogue in my head - I'm an actor. (Duh.)
Directors reblock things.
Set designers move the walls and furniture around. Or eliminate most of it altogether.
Costumers redress everyone.
Etc, etc, etc.
I took young Samantha to see Cinderella at Elden Street's Theater for Young Audiences on Saturday morning. She spent the pre-show asking me what people were doing and why. How would the house be changed to a castle? And she critiqued the set changes. "Why are they taking so long?" "There are still chicken feathers on the floor." And the nano-second the last actor hit his mark she said "Lights - camera - action!" That's right, folks, Sam was calling cues. She's a stage manager.
I told her that we don't say "camera" in theater, but other than that, she's obviously ready to go. This is good news in Stacey's view because actors are usually unemployed but stage managers are much sought after and professional stage managers are decently paid.
She had a wonderful time at the show and collected autographs from the whole cast. ESP's next kids theater project is in April. I'm going to see if Miss Samantha Jane Stage Manager is available.
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1 comment:
This is a fun game. I do notice costumes but don't necessarily redress everyone, so I guess I'm not a costumer. I only notice tech (lights, sound) when something goes wrong; I'm no techie. Same for sets; once a show starts I don't usually pay much attention to the set unless something goes wrong. But I do occasionally redeliver lines or think of a different, "better" gesture, correct the actor's posture, etc. So I must be an actor.
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