First time DSMing tonight!

[techietim]

Hello all!

I'm having my first go at DSMing tonight, its only a dress rehearsal and I will have a professional DSM by my side.
Do any of you have any tips for me?

Thank you!!

 

[Footer]

What is a DSM?

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[65535]

I for one read the CB Wiki, and am surprised that an ASM/DSM position would be a professional one.

However when I SM I want my backstage hands to simply do what I ask and keep people quite and out of the way. Herding is important.

 

[josh88]

What is a DSM?

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Per the wiki (if people don't click through to it):

A Deputy Stage Manager, the UK equivalent to an ASM

 

[kiwitechgirl]

Usually in Britain a DSM will call the show - does an ASM do that in the US?

OP, try not to get flustered, keep others on comms quiet once you've called standbys, and just call the cues as they appear in the prompt book! Break a leg...

 

[ruinexplorer]

Theaters which I have worked at have the General Stage Manager call the show and the Assistant is the back stage wrangler, making sure that all performers are set and ready for calls.

 

[AdamLF]

Looks like I’ve stumbled into a fellow brit, wahey! Hope your show went alright Tim, and that it was a success. I trust you went to a few rehearsals before attempting to DSM?

When I was at college I used to SM and DSM quite a lot, I find what helped me out (especially during the musicals) was knowing how to play the piano and the drums, being able to keep a beat and feeling when a build in the song is about to happen, and feeling the show progress at a pace. I have no way of telling if you have the musical “gift”, but if you don’t, try downloading some music (legally of course!) and finding a piece of score to accompany it, and just follow it, counting the beats in your head.
A good rapour with the cast, band and other crew is always good to have! Generally you’ll be one of the first ports of call when it comes to dealing with matters during rehearsals, passing messages to and from the stage manager, production manager and other members of the creative team.
I guess the one bit of proper advice for now I could give you would be to just sit back, relax and enjoy the experience!

Note:-
For those of you outside of the UK, the DSM (Deputy Stage Manager) is the one who calls the show over here in the UK. With the ASMs being the ones at the bottom of the pile.