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Erin Joy Swank - Stage Manager
Putting the puzzle pieces of productions together
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Tag: Going as Green as Possible

Taping Out the Set: How to Decide Orientation in the Rehearsal Hall

September 25, 2024 cue2go
Two theatrical groundplans are shown with a transparent overlay of the rehearsal hall dimensions, giving alternate layouts

On nearly every show, stage managers are asked to tape out the set in the rehearsal hall. Very rare is…

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Filed under: Going as Green as Possible, Helpful Links, Real Life SM Stories, SM Tips, Taping the Set, Technology in Stage Management

Empowering the Room to Take Breaks

August 15, 2024 cue2go
Two laminated tabletop tent signs are shown giving alternate times that breaks can be taken as well as a sign saying less than 10 minutes 'til break

Stage managers are known for being the time keepers of the theatre world. I’m a big believer that it doesn’t…

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Filed under: AEA, Going as Green as Possible, Helpful Links, My Philosophy (or two), Real Life SM Stories, SM Tips, Technology in Stage Management

Printing a True-Scale PDF Groundplan on Regular Size Paper

January 5, 2024 cue2go
screenshot from Adobe Reader printing options

Okay, first things first….yes, I would normally hope that a technical director or someone else would print me off the…

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Filed under: Going as Green as Possible, SM Tips, Stage Management Paperwork, Taping the Set, Technology in Stage Management

Two Quick Computer Shortcuts: F8 (Camera) and Shift-Z (Google)

April 30, 2021 cue2go

I recently had two completely silly but frustrating issues happen, both of which I found shortcuts to online. They may…

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Filed under: Going as Green as Possible, SM Tips, Technology in Stage Management, Virtual Events

COVID Compliance Training Roundup and other Updates

April 9, 2021 cue2go 2 Comments
Stage Manager Erin Joy Swank wears a mask designed for headset use

We’re starting to slowly come back. There have been several updates in the performance world. Here are some things that…

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Filed under: AEA, AGMA, Care and Feeding of Stage Managers, COVID Return to Work Guidelines, Going as Green as Possible, Helpful Links, SM Tips, Technology in Stage Management, Training/Certifications/Courses

SMInstagram Takeovers

April 1, 2021 cue2go
Erin Joy Swank virtual stage manager

I’ve signed up to do another “SMInstagram” takeover for the Year of the Stage Manager Instagram account. On April 13,…

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Filed under: Adventures with Eeyore, Going as Green as Possible, Helpful Links, Navigating Unemployment, Real Life SM Stories, Shindig - Virtual Platform, SM Tips, Technology in Stage Management, Virtual Events

Using a Tablet as a Second Monitor

cue2go 1 Comment
Image showing a tablet above a laptop screen

Over this past year of the pandemic, I’ve slowly built up the equipment I use for virtual events. First off…

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Filed under: Going as Green as Possible, Real Life SM Stories, Shindig - Virtual Platform, SM Tips, Technology in Stage Management, Virtual Events

Unwrapping Gifts Digitally using PowerPoint (Free Template)

December 25, 2020 cue2go
Screenshot of PowerPoint Insert Link to Slide option

I was trying to figure out a more interesting way to give all of these gift certificates, rather than wrapping up a bunch of pieces of paper…. After some more Googling on how to link to other slides in a document, I came up with what I think was a really fun way for her to open presents this year.

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Filed under: Going as Green as Possible, Technology in Stage Management

How to Share in Presenter View on Zoom with Just One Screen (PC)

December 12, 2020 cue2go
Screenshot of Zoom's Advanced Screen Share options, highlighting "Share Portion of Screen"

I’ve been keeping up pretty well with all the latest Zoom updates (yay, co-hosts can now manage breakout rooms!) and…

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Filed under: Going as Green as Possible, SM Tips, Technology in Stage Management, Virtual Events

Tagged Topics

Adventures with Eeyore AEA AGMA Assistant Stage Manager Calling Cues Care and Feeding of Stage Managers Cirque COVID Return to Work Guidelines Dance Eeyore and Erin Finances for SMs Going as Green as Possible Helpful Links Musical Theatre My Philosophy (or two) Navigating Unemployment Nutcracker Opera Opera Stage Management 101 Pop Culture References Production Publicity Production Reviews Real Life SM Stories Recorded Events Shindig - Virtual Platform SM Tips Stage Combat Stage Management Books Stage Management History Stage Management Humor Stage Management Paperwork Taping the Set Technology in Stage Management Thoughts on Articles Read Training/Certifications/Courses Virtual Events

Recent Posts

  • Using a scale rule to measure points
    Using an Architect’s Scale RulerMarch 16, 2025
  • Two-tape triangulation theory is shown, using a 3-4-5 right triangle on graph paper
    Two-Tape Triangulation Tape Out Method – Part One: Measuring the PointsMarch 2, 2025
  • White gaff tape is layered around a plastic hotel key for storage. The end of the tape is loose in someone's hand, and a roll of the same gaff sits in the background, all on a green velvet background.
    Portable Gaff Tape HackFebruary 28, 2025
  • A spike stick is pictured, with 19 colors of spike tape rolled around a dowel. The dowel has a hole drilled towards one end, with black tieline laced through and tied in a knot as a loop. Above and to the left is a single roll of yellow spike tape.
    For the Love of Spike SticksOctober 30, 2024
  • Two theatrical groundplans are shown with a transparent overlay of the rehearsal hall dimensions, giving alternate layouts
    Taping Out the Set: How to Decide Orientation in the Rehearsal HallSeptember 25, 2024
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