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Erin Joy Swank - Stage Manager
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Tag: SM Tips

Some Tips from Touring Educational Opera Outdoors

August 20, 2022 cue2go
The view from the stage manager’s position during an outdoor opera tech rehearsal. The score is sitting in front, covered in post-it notes. On stage, five actors hold up picture frames in front of colorful drops and lighting equipment.

This week I’ve had the pleasure to rejoin my Central City Opera Touring Artist friends for a couple of outdoor…

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Filed under: Opera, Real Life SM Stories, SM Tips, Stage Management Paperwork

Tip: Temporary Prop Table Layout

August 14, 2022 cue2go

I recently finished working at Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, where the theatres are used by multiple shows, with morning children’s shows…

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Filed under: Assistant Stage Manager, Real Life SM Stories, SM Tips

Cleaning Up Scanned Scripts

cue2go
Screenshot of a scanned script that has been partially edited through Adobe Acrobat. Text boxes appear around the dialogue and image boundaries for the copying shadows.

Ugh. The dreaded two-page, badly scanned script. Face it, we’ve all been there. The script you’re given to use isn’t…

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Filed under: SM Tips, Stage Management Paperwork, Technology in Stage Management

Prepping for a Musical

December 30, 2021 cue2go 3 Comments
Sample Music Breakdown document

I don’t know whether I’m jinxing myself by working on prep for a show yet, given the state of our industry, but I finally started to do so this week.

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Filed under: AEA, Musical Theatre, Real Life SM Stories, SM Tips, Stage Management Paperwork, Technology in Stage Management

Viewing Multiple Timezones in Windows (PC)

December 6, 2021 cue2go
Screenshot of a PC computer clock from the bottom right corner, showing the date and time in local time, as well as Europe/Berlin and Eastern time zones

I have a reputation online for reminding people that there is such a thing as the Mountain Time Zone, as…

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Filed under: Real Life SM Stories, SM Tips, Technology in Stage Management, Virtual Events

Zoom Tip: Using Virtual Background to Share Slides

November 19, 2021 cue2go
Screenshot of a Zoom meeting showing equal sized boxes of a woman and closing credits thanking people for coming

This week we decided to switch virtual platforms for our WSHU Public Radio online events, using Zoom Webinars now. For…

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Filed under: Real Life SM Stories, Recorded Events, SM Tips, Stage Management Paperwork, Technology in Stage Management, Virtual Events

Dear Lighting Designers: A Friendly Request from your Calling Stage Managers

October 27, 2021 cue2go
Photo of a stage manager's calling score for an opera, with six cues on one page

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Filed under: Calling Cues, Care and Feeding of Stage Managers, Dance, Musical Theatre, Opera, Opera Stage Management 101, Real Life SM Stories, SM Tips

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

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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

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