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We are asking stage managers around the world, in a stage manager tag, some key questions about their job. Here is Tiffany Schrepferman based in Houston, TX, USA.
1. Are you a minimalist or a hoarder Stage Manager?
I’d like to say minimalist, but I think I might be a hoarder.
2. What do you always have with you on stage?
Pen, water bottle, script, phone, penlight with blue gel taped over it, chapstick, headset.
3. What’s in your kit?
Flashlight, headlamp, pencil case, clipboard, notebooks, multitool, pocket knife, screw drivers, hex key set, adjustable C wrench, work gloves, tape measures, scissors, sewing kit, safety pins, tie line, penlight, chapstick, stapler, 3-hole-punch, erasers, hair ties, bobby pins in every color, all the tape: (toe tape, body tape, scotch tape, packing tape, spike tape, gaff tape, clear tape, Marley tape, mic tape), rubbing alcohol, Goo Gone, Shout pen, scrap duvetyne pieces, first aid kit, ice packs, ibuprofen, lighter, gorilla glue, adapters, converters & chargers, Jolly Ranchers, and an extra fork.
4. Mac or PC?
Mac, but under protest. I would be a PC person if it weren’t for Qlab & Vectorworks.
5. What’s in your pencil case?
Black pens, mechanical pencils, black, silver, & red sharpies, erasable highlighters!
6. Favourite colour highlighter
Green.
7. Favourite pencil
Paper Mate Clear Point Mechanical.
8. What may be surprising that you don’t use?
Stopwatch – because I work primarily in dance, most of the cues are based on movement or music rather than times. I’ll start my phone’s stopwatch for beginning & end of show for record keeping purposes, but I don’t use it to call cues.
9. Coffee or Tea?
On tour – coffee. At home – tea.
10. Favourite Genre to work in
Dance & Dance Theater.
BONUS QUESTION
11. Advice for new Stage Managers
Say yes to as many things as you can when you are just starting out! The more unique experiences and genres you can gain knowledge in, the more well rounded you will be as a stage manager, and it will make you super marketable and transferable across different fields! Plus, you may just discover a previously unknown genre that you really enjoy, or a company or person that you just really love working for in the most unexpected of places.
Also, don’t be afraid to ask questions until you understand what is expected of you. It’s always better and safer to ask more questions than to just plow ahead blindly and try to figure it out as you go. There is a lot of fast thinking and problem solving that is needed in this profession, but you can save yourself a lot of time and work by asking the right questions until you get the information that you need to be excellent at your job.
The Stage Manager Tag: Heather Teasdale
The Stage Manager Tag: Zoya Kachadurian
Want to be part of the SM Tag? Fill the form HERE.
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