In the same way that you must document the rehearsal process with the information necessary for everyone working on the production to stay abreast of the needs and activities of the show you must file a performance report after each performance. Depending on the system you have established in your organization you can then either upload to a web site or email to all involved. Technology really can save stage managers time. We used to have to fax our reports out daily.
The performance report looks much the same as the rehearsal report. There are categories for all the departments including the actors, call times for the next day, and the timings of the acts and show. Regarding timings of the show I have tried to establish a standard - Run Time and Show Time. For example:
Act I Up ______ (Fill in the start time)
Down ______ (Fill in the stop time)
Act I Run ______ (The time it took to run the act)
Intermission ______ (How long intermission ran)
Act II Up ______ (Same note for Act I)
Down ______ (Same note for Act I)
Act II Run ______ (Same)
Run Time ______ (Acts I & II added together)
Show Time ______ (Acts I & II plus intermission added together)
Sometimes the show time may differ night to night depending on the intermission and events that take place then. However, if the two act times are running longer or shorter you should note this and look back at your performance and those timings to see where your show has grown. Then you must take the steps necessary to keep the artistic intent consistent.
There is no set format for the Performance Report. We use Excel or google's version of shared spreadsheets for our reports. Again, the most important thing is to document the performance activities. This includes everything that happened of note, every missed cue, dropped line, held house, etc. Even the good things can stand to be mentioned. This report is especially important in remounting shows. It allows you a chance to go back through the last production and read about the challenges and successes of the shows. The report below is from Kevin Paulson and Penn State's production of Beaux Stratagem adapted and directed by Di Trevis. Kevin's color choices and lay out are his own. But the information is invaluable to those charged with maintaining the production.