Curtain call for crew?

[themuzicman]

I hate crew bows.
My HS director always made the crew take a bow. The girls on my crew who were dating an actor, always loved the attention, but everyone else really didn't care for it. When I stage managed she attempted to make me do the bows, but I would never go on stage for it. I really think it's stupid, my excuse though was that I always needed to cue final blackout.

Though, someone did mention that closing night the crew comes out in suits, which is a cool idea.

I always made a point, whenever I wasn't working deck, to wear a suit to either the opening or closing night, or both.
Though, don't go into the shop. I was wearing my tuxedo one show, and I leaned on a counter, and a blade of some sort ripped my pants straight down the center =/

 

[genericcomment]

Not a big fan of curtain call for crew, saw a crew curtain call done by a high school near ours a few years back and it looked sloppy and unprofessional. Being in college, this is a no go situation. Personally I love listening to the audience cheering while I'm back stage or in the booth, I get enough satisfaction from that, they don't need to see me. When I'm in the booth sometimes people with give the thumbs up to us and that's always cool but no never a curtain call.

 

[Anonymous067]

Curtain call should only be for people who are actually performing in the play/production. Maybe on a final showing night or something it may be acceptable, but normally in our theater, the lead actor/actress (after taking bows), raises one hand towards the pit if we have one, and then towards the booth. We do NOT however, turn our booth lights or backstage lights on until every patron has left the theater and doors have been locked. In our musicals, during our final show, the main actor/actress gives thank-you's while the "theme" or curtain call song continues from the pit in low volume. Every member of the crew is acknowledged individually.

I however believe that techs have no place on stage while the house is open.

 

[night]

i was forced into doing a bow once and hated it, closing night for a long running show is understandable, because at that point your so much of a family everyone deserves it, someone should def. be left in place to run sound and lights though. besides that the crew should never be seen or heard, if you did a great job you will be personaly congragulated later.

 

[TimOlson]

I think it's a sign of class and respect when the people you are serving acknowledge the hard work that went on behind the scenes. In my experience some do, some don't. it's always done at the last show, or the last event in a series of meetings.

Amy Grant stopped halfway through her last show on the House of Love tour (I know, I'm ageing myself), called the entire crew up on stage, and since the tour went double platinum handed out a really nice platinum album for each member of the crew with their name on it. Did some of the crew not want to go on stage? probably. did everyone go? yes. will you go when you get the call? I hope so.

 

[icewolf08]

When I was in high school they (the department head) would call the crew out on closing night. Along with the actors, the SM and designers would get flowers. Mostly painless, and certainly not something that happened every night. In college, we operated pretty similar to what genericcomment mentioned, the cast would motion to the orchestra (if a musical) and the booth after their company bow.

When I worked on cruise ships I got thanked by name every night. As I was one of two theatre techs on the ship and it was a small ship almost every passenger knew who I was by the end of each cruise. This worked out to many free drinks at the bar for me...

Now, in the professional world, recognition comes in the form of the opening night reception and sometimes a little gift from the LD (usually a bottle of booze).

 

[LDash]

the problem with going all the crew going onto stage is the fact that if something goes wrong (eg. a breaker goes for no reason(just an example) then the whole stage would be black or just the freak things what happen in the wonderful world of live theater

 

[Van]

I think it's pretty safe to say;
Techies = take bows and curtain calls
Technicians = do not.

 

[gafftaper]

I think it's pretty safe to say;
Techies = take bows and curtain calls
Technicians = do not.

Well said old chum. It's quite simple actually. In the professional world there are no curtain calls for crew. In high school and college it depends on if the person in charge is trying to run a professional program or if they are trying to make everyone feel good about the hard work they did. Of course many people doing tech do it because they don't particularly enjoy the spotlight... so it's often counter productive.

As for my programs, I make it very clear to my crew students how much I appreciate their work and how grateful I am to them. Heck I haven't taught high school for 6 years and we still have a crew party every year. But none of them ever took a bow on stage.

 

[Sayen]

I think it's pretty safe to say;
Techies = take bows and curtain calls
Technicians = do not.

Well said, along with Gafftaper's comments on how the person running the program want's it to be viewed.

 

[maccalder]

'spose I should add the Royal Caribbean "standard" for bows - after the cast have done their thing, the Cruise Director comes out, and usually says something like this:

"Please give a round of applause for the people who make it happen from behind the scenes... On lights we have Mac, on Sound we have Adrian, our Production Manager James, all of our spotlight operators and the stage staff." Applause occurs, no one comes out, CD continues with the announcements.

Cruise industry is a tad different though, as we don't have programs available for the public, people are not buying tickets, and there is a guy who comes out and talks after every show.

I have never been asked to appear on stage for bows, no matter what position I have filled, and if I was, I would be asking for my appearance pay, as set out in my standard contract.

 

[cwhitson]

The only time I have seen crew take part in a curtain call is in high school productions.

I have even seen a couple shows in college where there was no curtain call....for anyone. An artistic, leave the audience hanging, moment.

As a stage manager, I would not expect any crew take part in curtain call except for curtain in/out....lol

 

[theatretechguy]

I think in most cases its totally unprofessional to have the backstage crew "take a bow". I even get uncomfortable when people say things like "And thanks to Chris in the booth for all he does", etc.). I see the technicians as puppeteers who are pulling the strings, but never seen and that's what makes it special. Its like having photos of your set under construction in the lobby. It takes away the magic if you know how it all works. Also, most technicians are not comfortable bowing or getting attention on themselves.

 

[renegadeblack]

With our production of The Crucible, we went on stage to give a gift to our newly appointed TD.

 

[willbb123]

I just saw this thread again and remembered something that happened not too long ago. It was a rental and the artist was only here for one show. At the end of the show she says, "And I'd like to thank my road manager, also Tommy at the sound board, Will on Lights, and the stage manager Dylan. We were all shocked that she took the time to get our names and thank us.

Thats the only time that that has happened

 

[LightingPenguin]

I joined crew to be behind the curtain, not in front of it. In my opinion, its unprofessional to have the crew come out. if you want to be seen and have gratitude, then become an actor. As a lighting tech., I work late hours and come in first thing in the morning, when no one is there. I dont expect to be seen, but rather I make people be seen

 

[ReiRei]

A few of my friends and I always joke around about how nobody knows the technicians or cares about them until something gets screwed up, even if it's an actors fault or it ends up being nobodies fault.

There's no point in going out for curtain call anyways, it's silly. I've only done it once and it wasn't even worth it. Don't expect to be genuinely recognized no matter how much time you've put into something, because people just want the aesthetics, the actors, the symphony, those kinds of things. Most audience members don't understand how things come together unless one of their family member is a technician.

It was funny though, during curtain call on closing night of COWS, our producer forgot to credit our stage manager. See what happens is everyone comes out and she introduces the TD, Carpenter, LD, SM's, and ASM's and usually the seniors if they're leaving. See what I'm saying, put your life into something and even your teacher/producer forgets you. So what's the point?

To end this rant of mine, I wrote a paper once in a modern plays class about a previous theatre experience I had. There are a few technicians I know who act as well and my response was, "Though they feel the need to be seen, I am content with silent applause. For I know that what I have done is great, and so do they."

 

[kiwitechgirl]

I've never ever seen the crew take a curtain call in the professional world, and I hope I never do. It makes me cringe when the cast indicate the booth at the end of their curtain call, I've always hated it and I just feel that it's so unnecessary. Anyone who matters knows what the crew have done; I get my thanks from the actors - without fail, at the end of opening night, 99% of the professional actors I work with will stop at the prompt desk to thank me on their way back to the dressing room. I had one episode at the end of a particularly long and fraught tech rehearsal when I had a queue of actors waiting at the production desk to talk to me. I dealt with their issues one by one, and turned to the last one, who proceeded to climb over the prompt desk, hug me and tell me that I was doing an amazing job. That's the kind of thanks I appreciate. We do a late-night improv show every Friday, after our regular show, and usually the MC will thank the players and the musician, and then say "and Brendan on lights and our SM Anna" and that doesn't bother me too much - but then it's a very informal night and everyone else is being thanked. I also don't mind the crew being thanked by the director in opening night speeches, particularly if it's been a tough week, but that's a one-off thing and doesn't always happen anyway!

 

[Esoteric]

No way, no chance, no how. The only exception is designers on the opening night of Operas.

But I am a purist.

Mike

 

[express]

After each show after all the actors have come out they point to the booth, and ,if there is one, the band