Basics of Backstage etiquette

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FWIW: This thread is also being discussed on the EdTA community forum. My post there was this:

Teach your students about how to go through a door stealthily. Learn to be a 'stage ninja'. Almost every door that exits a stage is a Fire Door. It has special requirements about closing and latching. Even if your particular performance space does not have Fire Doors, teach the students as if they are Fire Doors so they learn the skill and understand the purpose of the Fire Doors. Performers and crew need to learn to press the crash-bar slowly and gently, and wait for the latch to disengage before pushing on the door. Similarly, release the crash-bar slowly so as to minimize the clatter of the door hardware resetting, then help the door close gently, not with a crash.

Many times I see people try to reduce the clatter of doors by taping over the door latch, propping the door open, or disasembling the automatic door closer. ALL OF THESE ACTIONS ARE GROSS VIOLATIONS OF THE FIRE CODE. Do not do these things. The only two ways to legally hold a Fire Door open is to have a person hold it, or to use an electromagnetic door holder that is automatically released by the Fire Alarm system. 'Temporary' door props are also illegal. Many fire doors have been illegally modified to have a kick-down (fold-down) holder to keep the door open. These should be removed immediately. They are an illegal modification to the door.

Side Note: Fire Doors must be inspected and tested annually, just like Fire Curtains, Smoke Vents, and other fire protection devices. Ask your maintenance supervisor for the inspection records for your theatre building systems. If they can't produce them, find-out why!
 
Taped stage doors are nearly an epidemic in this country. Proper design eliminates this by including a sound and light lock at all entrances to an auditorium and stage. Stage side simple push pull and no latch. Fire rating is the second door. Solves the problem forever and blocks noise and light. It's one of those features that you get with a theatre consultant, and not from a vendor providing design advice.
 
Funny, I've worked in theatres where this was totally thought of, but only on SR and only for one set of doors.
The doors leading to the greenroom were exactly as you stated- simple push pull with no latch into a vestibule, then fire door into the greenroom.
Trouble was the doors on SL + SR that led to the staiwells had crashbars.
 
Taped stage doors are nearly an epidemic in this country. Proper design eliminates this by including a sound and light lock at all entrances to an auditorium and stage. Stage side simple push pull and no latch. Fire rating is the second door. Solves the problem forever and blocks noise and light. It's one of those features that you get with a theatre consultant, and not from a vendor providing design advice.
...and taped stage doors are what happens when the school district is cheap and goes with the lowest bidder. :( It's so frustrating how they never seem to seek out the advice of the right people to ask what is really important.
 
I think an introductory speech is needed. Maybe try to plan everyone have an introducrioi. The historical bits are nice but try to instill a respect for the craft. And point out the unique hazards of a stage, the unguarded stage edge or pit being a prime hazard people unfamiliar with stages should be made aware of.

I accept the reason a green room is green was because of lime light, which was greenish, and trying to get performers eyes use to the shift. But YMMV

Bill is right. You have to do it in person. A flyer, pamphlet, email, etc... will immediately fall by the wayside. Nobody will look at or remember any of it.

But if you get people together on deck and explain "Why you need to be aware in all directions" and then show them how legs fly in and out- that will stick. It's like job training, and you might have to do it every time a new group comes in. I worked for a large children's company (pay to play, 300 bodies onstage for "Lonely Goatherder" in The Sound of Music...get me?) with an all parent volunteer crew. And we took them all through the same training before the start of tech week for every show.
And it worked almost perfectly. Have patience, be a teacher, and you will see positive results.
 
taped stage doors are what happens when the school district is cheap and goes with the lowest bidder.

It's more they don't know. When would anyone in a public school district ever have been exposed to the concept of a sound and light lock, let alone a fire resistive barrier with rated doors and exit access hardware?
 
While I agree with you about magic, luck and ghosts
This is a topic that I go over with my tech class, but only because I can control them a little better than the general public. If your average high school student reads about the Mac-myth, you're going to have twenty-five kids whispering "macbeth" to each other. I'd keep your myths and ghost stories as something to be told via word of mouth, that way it feels like you're letting the kids in on a secret and they will be more respectful of these traditions.

One thing I don't see mentioned is cellphones. No phones in the wings!!!
 
I try to get the kids to basket them outside of the entrance to the performance space. That way if they "have" to use their cell phone they have to leave the performance space, dig through the basket, text their whomever, and then reverse all that.

Most yutes these days are too uh... energy efficient... to want to go through all of that.

Usually after a few hours (days?) of grumping they realize that they actually are focusing more on the show and start self-policing.

I overheard a 15 year old inform their mom that they were "... just not going to be reachable during rehearsal.", and if it was an emergency to call the director.

The mom was grumpy and the kid said "Look, mom, I am taking this seriously. Please let me focus on the show."

Mom okayed and in all those weeks of rehearsals never called the director...
 
I try to get the kids to basket them outside of the entrance to the performance space. That way if they "have" to use their cell phone they have to leave the performance space, dig through the basket, text their whomever, and then reverse all that.

I understand your goal, but you're volunteering to buy someone a replacement for a stolen phone at some point, by implementing it that way.
 
Don't say that name that starts with "M"!!!! Refer to it as "The Scottish Play":

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<knocks on forehead> ...thus far... no thefts have occured. But I see your point clearly. I will look into storing the basket away from the troupies.
A "valuables box" that is lockable and under the eye of a responsible person (usually the stage manager or company manager) is the most common way of dealing these issues. Each actor is given a zippered bag (like a bank deposit bag, but smaller) with their name on it. They put their valuables in it and drop it in the VB in the presence of the custodial person; in some companies the drop is logged, too. After the actors are out of costume and makeup, they meet the SM/CM and sign for their VB return. Cell phones must be turned off, not just set to vibrate.

One road show used the valuables box as the SM's foot rest. Our symphony orchestra has a road case for player's valuables (there are typically 50-60 performers) but the idea is the same - stage manager locks up the box and is present to return individual bags to players.
 
We're usually dealing with pros - but we do a lot of rental stuff also with "kids" (and the parents of kids). I normally try to give a "speech" of sorts if there is time. Upstage, downstage, stage left, stage right, where the term "break a leg" came from (shocking how people freak out on that), how expensive and fragile the cyc is (STAY AWAY FROM THE CYC!!!), where the exits are and that sort of nonsense.

Invariably, someone touches the cyc anyway...
 
We're usually dealing with pros - but we do a lot of rental stuff also with "kids" (and the parents of kids). I normally try to give a "speech" of sorts if there is time. Upstage, downstage, stage left, stage right, where the term "break a leg" came from (shocking how people freak out on that), how expensive and fragile the cyc is (STAY AWAY FROM THE CYC!!!), where the exits are and that sort of nonsense.

Invariably, someone touches the cyc anyway...
Make "the speech" a priority/condition of rental. It will save you tons of headaches long term.
 
I help manage a 1000 seat theatre in a very small, rural school district. I have found that because the district has no formal theatre education program that most of the students and teachers that enter the theatre have no clue as to how they should handle themselves when in the theatre. I have thought about putting together a small brochure, pamphlet, or something to educate them on proper theatre etiquette as it pertains to performers and tech folks. I also want to include some interesting facts and traditions in the theatre, such as "Why do we have a ghost light?", "Why do we say 'break a leg'", Why don't we say H****t in the theatre?" along with more practical things like why we don't stand in the wings, drink coffee on the stage, etc.

I have looked around and not found a book or website with these basics. I would love some help in the form of:
1. Any suggestions for where to find this information
or 2. Your own thoughts and anecdotes about these things!

Any help is appreciated!
Thanks
Make a habit of keeping people from putting hands in their pockets, their more likely to stand and not ask for help, you remind them, if you're working your hands shouldnt be in your pocket. Nicely of course but it makes them get moving and asking people to help set up
 
Since I can't be blamed for a necropost, thanks/bad @Buttmonkey, and this is a good thread, I'll throw my two cents in on this.

Why do we say "Break-a-leg"? No body knows. if they say, "This is the real reason" they are full of it. No one knows. There are a million stories from, "If you 'broke the plane of the Leg <masking> in vaudeville you made it on-stage and therefore got paid even if you didn't get to do your whole act or if the SM pulled you back." to " Taking so many bows, with your leg properly extended forward, you fell forward, exhausted, and broke your leg. Nobody knows.

What I've heard and makes the most sense to me lines up with the line in bold. The idea was that the main curtain has to be raised up for additional bows so many times that it eventually breaks the wood on the rail, otherwise known as the leg. Although, as Van said, "No one knows. There are a million stories..."
 
Make a habit of keeping people from putting hands in their pockets, they're more likely to stand and not ask for help, you remind them, if you're working your hands shouldn't be in your pockets. Nicely of course but it makes them get moving and asking people to help set up
If you're entering either a rehearsal or performance either via FOH or backstage, DON'T slam the door, close the door as silently as possible to not divert attention and disrupt proceedings.

A personal peeve: Lighting guy (Me) arrives early for a rehearsal, parks down the block:
a; To leave the lot clear for actors about to attend rehearsal.
b; To make a quick escape without being hemmed in by actorine's vehicles.
I'm intending to haul out 14' ladder, do one quick touch-up focus on a tight FOH special, clear the ladder and exit prior to the arrival of cast and interfering with their rehearsal:

Haul out ladder, muscle into place in FOH, turn on special to 80%, switch off fluorescent work lights, leaving all in darkness other than special.
Climb ladder (violate safety rules) stand on very top of 14' ladder, both arms stretched over head, in the midst of finessing shutter cuts.
Early arriving pseudo star enters via rear door, sticks hand into pitch black back stage entrance ( Having seen parking lot empty and all in darkness, assumes he's alone in the building) and snaps on the fluorescent stage and house, working / cleaning fluorescents.

192 lineal feet of cool white fluoresents SNAP ON while I'm standing in the dark on the top step of a 14' ladder with both arms stretched o'er head, staring at a tight special and finessing shutter cuts.

Not wishing to startle anyone's sensitive artistic temperament by suddenly bellowing:
'Turn the phuquing lights off while I'm focusing on my time 30 minutes prior to your call time, let alone your scheduled time on stage.'
I calmly and quietly said: "Good evening." with the intention of making the 'sensitive' pseudo-star aware he was not alone in the building.

The moment I spoke, the 'sensitive' pseudo-star tore me a new anal orifice berating me, a mere techie, for having the gall and rude audacity to speak to a STAR and startle him within an hour of his needing to be calmly in character and striding the boards.

'Didn't I know anything regarding proper behavior and reverence to talent in a theatre?'
(I'd about a decade of employment with Canada's Stratford Shakespearean Festival behind me at that point but clearly I was a rude urchin fresh from the gutters who'd found my way into Mr. Amateur pseudo-star's hallowed environment and clearly needed to be schooled in the proper ways.)

Jump to today; November 20th, 2019. By pure happenstance, about three days ago I was speaking with an old friend, she mentioned an amateur production presently in rehearsal and asked if I'd ever met / worked with Mr. Greg Fl...?
Yes; I'd definitely had the experience and, yes, he was definitely memorable.

There are several lessons in the above including (and not limited to):
- Never break the rules by standing on the very top step of a ladder.
- Always be politely courteous to your associates, regardless of volunteering or being well paid.
- Treat associates as you'd like to be treated.
- And never leave home without your Kevlar undies firmly in place.
Served me right for trying to get in and out sans any disturbing disruptions to the sensitive egos of others.
There are many more lessons; I'll leave them for others.
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard
 

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