STAGE DIRECTIONS REFERENCE UPSTAGE (US) — Away from audience · Back of stage DOWNSTAGE (DS) — Toward audience · Front of stage STAGE LEFT (SL) — Actor's left when facing audience STAGE RIGHT (SR)— Actor's right when facing audience CENTER (C) — Middle of stage Combinations: USL, USC, USR, CSL, CS, CSR, DSL, DSC, DSR MOVEMENT NOTATION: X — Cross (actor moves from one position to another) e.g. "HAMLET Xs DSR" = Hamlet crosses to downstage right Enter — Actor enters from wing or upstage Exit — Actor exits to wing or upstage Turn — Change direction without traveling

WHAT THE PROMPT BOOK CONTAINS SCRIPT SECTION □ Complete script with line numbers □ All blocking notation (actor movements) □ All cue placements marked in margin □ All prop pickups and set-downs marked □ All costume changes noted □ Understudy tracking CONTACT SHEET □ Full company contact list □ Emergency contacts □ Venue emergency procedures □ Production team contacts PRODUCTION INFORMATION □ Run time by act □ Intermission length □ Pre-show checklist □ Post-show checklist □ Preset (where everything is before curtain) □ Strike plan (how it comes apart) DAILY REHEARSAL REPORTS □ What was covered □ Who was absent □ What was changed □ Outstanding questions □ Notes to production team

THEATRE DISCIPLINES — WHO DOES WHAT THE DIRECTOR The director is the single artistic vision of a production. They interpret the text, cast the company, lead the rehearsal process, and are responsible for every creative decision that appears on stage. The director does not run the show on performance nights — that is the stage manager's job. The director's work ends at opening night. THE STAGE MANAGER The most important person in any production after opening night. During rehearsals: records all blocking, maintains the prompt book, distributes schedules and notes, tracks props and costumes, runs the room. During performances: calls every cue, manages the company, runs the show. The stage manager is the bridge between the director's vision and its execution. A great stage manager is invisible. A bad one ends careers. THE ACTOR The instrument and the artist simultaneously. Responsible for the truthful embodiment of a character in the shared space of live performance. Everything else on stage exists to serve and support the actor's work. THE PLAYWRIGHT The author of the text. In new work, sometimes present in the room. In classical work, present only through the words on the page. The playwright's intentions are always relevant. They are not always binding. THE DESIGNER TEAM Set Designer — The physical world of the play. Space, texture, architecture. Lighting Designer — How the world is seen. Time, mood, focus, beauty. Sound Designer — The acoustic world. Music, effects, atmosphere, silence. Costume Designer — How characters present themselves to the world and each other. Projection/Video Designer — Screen-based visual elements. Contemporary theatre. THE PRODUCER Secures the financing, the venue, and the rights. Hires the director. In commercial theatre: the producer's investment is at risk. They have power. In subsidized theatre: the producer may be the theatre building itself. Understanding who has final financial authority is essential information. THE TECHNICAL DIRECTOR Responsible for the safe and practical realization of the design. Builds or oversees the construction of the set. Manages technical crew. The TD's word on structural and safety matters is final. ──────────────────────────────────── STAGE TYPES — THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN AUDIENCE AND PERFORMANCE Proscenium The most common configuration. The audience faces the stage from one direction. A frame — the proscenium arch — defines the playing area. Pros: Strong picture frame compositions. Clear sightlines. Easy to light. Cons: Distance from audience. Risk of "fourth wall" formalism. Examples: Most traditional theatre buildings. Broadway houses. Thrust The stage extends into the audience on three sides. The audience surrounds the playing area on three sides. Pros: Intimacy. Actors can be surrounded. Strong energy. Cons: Blocking must serve three sightlines simultaneously. Examples: Stratford Festival, Globe Theatre (partial thrust). In The Round The audience surrounds the stage on all four sides. Maximum intimacy. Maximum blocking challenge. Pros: Nowhere to hide. Extraordinary presence. Cons: Every moment is seen from four different angles. Examples: Many studio theatres and black box configurations. Traverse The audience sits on two opposing sides. The stage runs between them. Creates a corridor of performance. Intimate and confrontational. Pros: Strong for plays with opposing forces. Intimate scale. Cons: End seats have limited sightlines. Black Box / Studio A flexible space that can be configured for any of the above. No fixed relationship between audience and performer. The most versatile and the most common venue for new and experimental work. Promenade The audience moves through the space as the performance unfolds. No fixed seating. Audiences follow or choose their own path. Used for immersive and site-specific theatre. ──────────────────────────────────── ESSENTIAL THEATRE VOCABULARY Acting Super-objective — The character's single overriding want across the whole play. Objective — What the character wants in a specific scene or moment. Action / Tactic — What the character does to get what they want. Obstacle — What stands between the character and their objective. Given circumstances — Everything established as true before the play begins. Subtext — What is meant but not said. The truth beneath the text. Fourth wall — The imaginary wall between actors and audience. Breaking the fourth wall — Acknowledging the audience directly. Stage Management Prompt book — The master document of the production. Contains everything. Calling the show — The stage manager announcing cues during performance. Standby — Warning that a cue is coming. "Standby LX14." Go — The command to execute a cue. "LX14 — go." Preset — The state of the stage before the audience enters. Places — The call for actors to take their opening positions. Half hour — The call given 35 minutes before curtain. Company must be in the building. Technical Practical — A prop or set element that actually works (a lamp that lights, etc.) Flies — The system above the stage for raising and lowering scenery. Wings — The offstage areas at the sides of the stage. Tabs — The main curtain. Crossover — An offstage passage allowing actors to move from one side to the other. Upstage — Away from the audience. Downstage — Toward the audience. Stage left — The actor's left when facing the audience. Stage right — The actor's right when facing the audience. Sightline — The line from an audience member's eye to any point on stage. ──────────────────────────────────── A BRIEF HISTORY OF WESTERN THEATRE Ancient Greece (5th century BC) Theatre began as religious ritual in honor of Dionysus. The first plays were performed in outdoor amphitheatres. Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides established tragedy. Aristophanes established comedy. The masks, the chorus, the hero — all begin here. Every form of theatre that followed owes its existence to the hillside theatres of ancient Athens. Elizabethan England (1576–1642) Shakespeare. Marlowe. Jonson. The Globe Theatre. Theatre moved from pageant wagons to permanent playhouses. No women on stage — boys played female roles. Natural light. Standing groundlings. Two hours of traffic on the stage. The most fertile period in the history of drama in the English language. The 19th Century — Realism Ibsen. Chekhov. Strindberg. Theatre moved from spectacle to psychological truth. The fourth wall was invented — the idea that the stage is a room with the fourth wall removed and the audience watching through it. Acting changed. Design changed. Everything became more truthful. The 20th Century — Breaking Everything Brecht: alienation, direct address, political theatre. Artaud: the Theatre of Cruelty. Sensation over narrative. Grotowski: poor theatre. The actor and the audience. Nothing else needed. Stanislavski: the system that became the Method. The psychology of the character. Every contemporary acting technique traces directly to these four men. Contemporary Theatre No dominant form. Every form exists simultaneously. Verbatim theatre, immersive theatre, physical theatre, devised work, site-specific performance, digital and hybrid performance. The text is no longer the only starting point. The only constant: a body, a space, an audience, a shared moment.

MANUAL — MARKETING & BUILDING YOUR AUDIENCE THE HARD TRUTH A production that no one sees is a rehearsal. Marketing is not a compromise of the artistic work. It is the act of inviting people to witness it. Every audience member in the house is a person who chose to be there. They deserve to be found. ──────────────────────────────────── YOUR PRODUCTION IDENTITY Before you market anything, know what you are marketing. Answer these questions honestly: What is this production about — in one sentence? Not the plot. The theme. What is it really saying? This is your logline. Every marketing piece starts here. Who is this production for? Not everyone. No production is for everyone. The more specific your answer, the better your marketing will work. What makes this production worth leaving the house for? Specifically. What is the reason to see this and not stay home? What feeling do you want the audience to leave with? Not what they will think — what they will feel. ──────────────────────────────────── THE PRESS RELEASE A press release is a formal announcement sent to journalists, editors, arts listings, and local media. It is the most important marketing document a theatre company produces. Structure: Line 1: The most important information. Production title, company, venue, dates. Written as a sentence, not a headline. Paragraph 1: What the production is and why it matters right now. Paragraph 2: Creative team. Director, designers, notable cast. Paragraph 3: Background on the company or production history. Final line: Ticket information. Box office contact. Website. Rules: Write in the third person. Never "we are thrilled to announce." Lead with news, not adjectives. "Acclaimed" and "stunning" mean nothing. Keep to one page — 400 words maximum. Include a high-resolution production image or rehearsal photograph. Send 4–6 weeks before opening for print publications. Send 2–3 weeks before for online and weekly publications. Who to send it to: Local newspaper arts editors and listings editors. Arts and culture bloggers and podcasters in your area. Local radio arts programmes. Arts council communications contacts. Theatre listing websites (Time Out, local equivalents, your national body). ──────────────────────────────────── PROGRAMME NOTES The programme is the audience's companion document. It is what they hold during intermission and take home after. A good programme extends the conversation the production is starting. What to include: A director's note — 200–400 words. What drew you to this play? What do you want the audience to think about? Cast and creative team biographies — brief. One to three sentences. Production history — When was the play written? Has it been done before? Acknowledgements — Funders, supporters, the people who made it possible. Sponsor acknowledgement if applicable. What not to include: The plot. The audience is about to see it. Excessive adjectives about your own company. Information that will embarrass you by opening night. Digital programme option: A QR code linking to a PDF or webpage. Saves printing costs. Better for accessibility. Allows last-minute updates. Many audiences prefer paper regardless. ──────────────────────────────────── SOCIAL MEDIA FOR THEATRE Instagram The primary platform for visual arts content. Post: Production photography, rehearsal process images, design reveals, behind the scenes, cast introductions, countdown to opening. Frequency: 3–5 times per week during production period. Reels outperform static images in reach. Story content drives day-of ticket sales for evening performances. Facebook Strongest for event creation and sharing with community groups. Create a Facebook Event for every performance or run of performances. Local community groups and neighbourhood pages have direct access to audiences who live near your venue. Less useful for under-35 audiences. Still essential for community theatre. Twitter / X Less relevant for community theatre. Useful for press engagement — journalists and critics are still active here. Tag local media and arts journalists in your press release announcement. TikTok Fastest growing platform for theatre content. Short-form video: rehearsal moments, design reveals, actor preparation, inside looks at technical elements. Authentic over polished. Younger audience acquisition. Photography for social media: Hire a photographer for at least one dress rehearsal. A production photographer's images will be used for years. Budget for it. It is not optional for any serious company. Behind-the-scenes phone video is authentic and performs well. Professional photos are irreplaceable for press and future funding. ──────────────────────────────────── FRONT OF HOUSE Front of house is everything that happens outside the auditorium. It is the first and last impression the audience has of your company. It is frequently an afterthought. It should not be. FOH Manager responsibilities: Arrives before the audience. Knows the house. Briefs the ushers — seating plan, access requirements, late seating policy. Manages the box office and will-call list. Communicates show start and intermission times to bar and catering. Holds the show if necessary — in communication with stage manager. Handles complaints and problems before they reach the stage manager. The pre-show announcement: Welcome the audience. Do not be cute — be clear. Emergency exits. Fire procedure. No photography. No recording. Turn off phones. Not to silent — off. Running time and whether there is an intermission. Content warnings if applicable. Late seating policy: Decide your policy before opening. Communicate it clearly. Most productions seat latecomers at the first available break in the action. A consistent and communicated policy prevents confrontation. Accessibility: Know your venue's access provisions before selling tickets. Audio description, captioned performances, relaxed performances. BSL (British Sign Language) interpretation if applicable. Step-free access and assisted hearing provisions. If you cannot provide something — say so early. Surprises are failures. ──────────────────────────────────── TICKETING & BOX OFFICE Platforms commonly used by independent theatre: Eventbrite — accessible, low barrier, 3.7% + $1.79 per ticket Ticket Tailor — fixed monthly fee, no per-ticket charge at higher volumes Brown Paper Tickets — arts-focused, ethical pricing structure Spektrix, PatronBase — more sophisticated CRM for established companies Pricing strategy: Full price, concessions (students, seniors, unwaged), and group rates. Pay-what-you-can performances build audience and goodwill. Comp policy — decide who gets complimentary tickets before production. Press, funders, partner organisations, production company. Comps must be tracked. They have real cost. The box office report: Generated each day of the run. Total tickets sold, revenue, outstanding comps, walk-up sales. The stage manager needs a copy before each performance — house capacity determines how the FOH team manages the audience. ──────────────────────────────────── FUNDING & GRANTS Most independent and community theatre requires external funding. Where to look: National arts councils (NEA in the US, Arts Council England, etc.) Regional arts boards and local authority arts funding Community foundations and local charitable trusts Corporate sponsorship — local businesses in exchange for programme credit Crowdfunding (Kickstarter, Indiegogo, GoFundMe) Individual giving campaigns to your existing audience What funders want to see: A clear artistic purpose and community benefit. A realistic budget with all income sources identified. Previous work — documentation, photographs, press coverage. Matched funding — many grants require you to have raised some money already. A plan for what you will do after the grant period ends. The relationship with a funder is long-term. Report back on what you did with the money. Show them photographs. Send them tickets. Invite them to see the work. Funders who feel acknowledged come back.