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Stage Manager's Approach
Stage Manager's Approach
For me, the foundation of stage managing will always be communication and connection. It's about weaving information and painting the picture with language as our medium. Our job as stage managers is to support the process and be the conductor of communication, and we do that by fostering connection; we help build connection in the rehearsal room, inter-departmentally, and within our own teams.
Going back to school to get a degree in stage management was always about building a foundation and growing a network, and going to the Region IV festival will aid me in doing so. I hope to learn from those at the festival, as ultimately, my goal as a stage manager is to never settle and to constantly seek growth at every opportunity.
Stage Management Team
Stage Management Team
Production Stage Manager: Kayla Amburgey
Stage Manager: Ayana Yokie
Stage Manager: Delayna Walhberg
Stage Manager: Grace Caudill
Production Assistant: Jonas Winter
Creative Team
Creative Team
Music Director: Nora Lee Garcia
Associate Director: Cory Kennedy Barrow
Scenic and Lighting Designers: Bert Scott and Vandy Wood
Assistant Scenic Designer: Matthew Conte
Sound Designer: Kaitlyn Gamory
Costume Designer: Katherine Polgar
Assistant Costume Designer: Adam Laws
Dramaturgs: Chloë Edmonson and Caroline Hull
The Water Show
The Water Show
When I was first put on this show, the most glaring hurdle to get over was that the stage was made up of a pool. This meant that I started having the conversations and the brainstorming sessions early to think through the changes in approach that we needed to make and also what "making it real in the room" would mean when we were not going to have a pool until tech. Back in June, a good 3 months from the start of the rehearsal process, we were already talking about kiddie pools, tech attire, and water shoes. It was important to me, and for the team as a whole, to not let the little things slip our mind when approaching such a new experience.
Branding and Morale
Branding and Morale
One of the ways in which I wanted to bring cohesion to the process was to make sure that we had consistent and appropriate branding for the production. Whether it was making sure that the inside and outside callboards matched, or that everything was just as functional as it was aesthetically pleasing. I was grateful to have people on the team who were able to take our collective ideas and bring them to life, such as Ayana's work on the cover pages and the wallet cards.
Another way in which we tried to raise morale in the room through this was in our "musings" section on the callboard. Each day, I would put up a poem or selection of words that I had found until the whole area was filled. This not only brought a new life to the room, but also gave further reasoning to look at the information on the callboard.
9.7 Meta Character Breakdown.pdf9.13 Meta Cheat Sheet Scene Breakdown.pdfA True Ensemble Piece
A True Ensemble Piece
This piece was designed such that there are 10 actors who are playing an average of 10 roles each. In order to help each actor and the room at large to distinguish which character they were in for each scene, I made a character breakdown sheet as a quick reference for everyone's use.
Another element of ensemble for this piece was the use of a devised theatre methodology at the beginning of the process. As seen below, you can see how an exercise of the ensemble creating a tree was used in the performance.
“What is true is that you are never alone when you’re making art. You are in a constant dialogue with what is and what was, and the closer you can tune in to that discussion, the better you can serve the work before you.” -Rick Rubin
“What is true is that you are never alone when you’re making art. You are in a constant dialogue with what is and what was, and the closer you can tune in to that discussion, the better you can serve the work before you.” -Rick Rubin
As stated in my approach, supporting the process through communication is my number one goal, no matter what form that communication takes. To help aid in that, I made the templates for the reports and the daily calls, and the whole team collaborated on preparing them each night and proofing them to be sent out.
As the PSM, I tried to make clear expectations for myself and the team when it came to constant communication amongst ourselves. We each needed to be in the know in order to help support and lift up each other, and I feel as though that is the first step in supporting the whole production.
11.19 Meta Performance Report for KCACTF Website.pdf10.27 Meta Rehearsal Report.pdf10.20 Meta Daily Call.pdfFrom the studio to the theatre
From the studio to the theatre
During the preproduction process, I did a great deal of research to try and figure out the best method for us to recreate the set in the room. It took the whole team to put our heads together to come up with a final product that made the transition from the studio space to the theatre smooth. We used pipe and drape to sculpt the space and recreate the sails, acting blocks to mimic the deck, and a ladder to give the height of the spiral staircase. We also purchased a small dog pool that allowed the actors to get a feel for the water and block out smaller moments and movements before getting into the space.
IMG_3819.MOVTech
Tech
Before moving into the space, I created the Tech Schedule and the Tech Request to lay out all of the needs of the room and the timeframe that we were looking at.
The pool also made it so that each member of the SM team always needed to be prepped with a towel in case someone needed it and I also needed to constantly check in to make sure when to be in the water and try to keep extended periods of time in the water to a minimum.
Meta Tech Request 10.20.pdfMeta Tech Schedule for KCACTF Website.docx
Costume Plot 10.26.pdfMetamorphoses FIRE details V2.pdfMetamorphoses Performance Objects Sheet 11.16.23.pdfTeamwork Makes the Dream Work
Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
There was never an area in which the fact that we had a pool onstage did not impact the paperwork that we were making and the conversations that we needed to have. In Grace's Entrance/Exit chart, you can see that she developed a format so that everyone would know when someone had been in the water and when they were dry again. Likewise, Delayna had to make sure that the conversations about the props included the consideration of which props were interacting with the water and which needed to stay dry.
Delayna was also tasked with creating the paperwork that we used to show the fire marshal the instances in which we wanted to use fire in the show and the safety measures that we had to take.
Below is a photo of our tape-out, the work of which had Ayana at the helm.
The Stage Manager's Art
The Stage Manager's Art
In starting to develop the call for the show, I knew that I needed to match the unique breaths that each company member had spent the last 2 months giving life to. It needed to be fluid and moving, like the lines of music coming from the flutes and the poetic slopes of the stanzas. I learned quickly that developing a call is all about give and take and matching the energy of someone who you are separated from by space and plexy glass, but whom you need to be intimately connected to.
A specific example of this was the call for the scene Orpheus and Eurydice. I needed to make the pacing of the actors below, while also helping to move them along. The whole moment was about breath and movement, and my call needed to synch into that.
b8425bb1d2564880a47df7bd93d37f33.MOVDOC012324.pdf
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