Software for stage managers/iPad

openoffice.org.... thats about it. Most people that do "soft" prompt book have their own way of doing it. There is some software out there for SM's, but from last check it was not that well developed and I cant remember who made it. It cost about 300-1000 for a license if I remember.

 

I have seen script writing software, but I don't know if it could really work for a prompt book, unless you were going to print it after. Cues sheets are easy, could be made in Excel or File Maker Pro, or Microsoft Access. YOu might also look into Google's new MS Office alternative, it is free, though you need to be online to access it.

 

There are a couple of good books out there on Stage management. Some if not all have examples of all the forms you need. I would start with one of those. In my opinion there really isn't that much a software program can do for you. You need to develop a system that works for you while keeping all the needed information organized. So start by finding out what others do and work from there.

 

Ah yes, the 1200 dollar device doing the action of a 10 dollar device... BRILLIANT!...

Running the downloadable version would not be a bad idea however, at least to have around.

 

weight and battery life are a factor that needs to be considered as well.

I do think that typing up your notes is always a good idea. I used to use MS Word and turn on the revisions feature so I could place the cue right where I needed it on the right line of the script. It was extremely handy. It takes a bit of work to make it print with the "prompts" and to color code them, but the advantage is that you have a perfect human-readable text (I'll admit, my handwriting is nothing to ...err... write home about)

(I also make the font a lot larger so it's much easier to read in the dark or find your place if you get distracted for a second)

 

I'm trying to find this free software that I saw a couple years back. It allowed you to load a script into it and then add a bunch of notes. They had a library of about 50 public domain scripts that you could choose from. Or you could scan and upload your own. If remember right it was more for the film industry and story boarding, but it could be customized to work in theater. It may have been the link that Kwotipka was talking about above... but I don't see it on that site now.

 

Yep Celtx is it. I played around with it for a day or so. It is really more for someone writing their own script, comic, or screen play... and then producing it.

First you have to have a text copy of the script, which of course has all kinds of potential legal issues. Once you have the script you can go through it, highlight a word and then assign that word to a category. So for example if the script says, "Look out it's a snake!", you can highlight the word snake and assign it to the props list. Or you can take the stage description of what an actor's costume looks like and put it on a costume list. It's useful... but I'm not sure how much more useful than just sitting down with a spreadsheet.

The biggest disappointment is the Notes feature. You can pick any point in the script and add a note. This at first sounds like a great way to add in cues or blocking. But it just isn't executed in a way that would really help an SM. It's close and could probably be REALLY useful with a few tweaks. But it's also free so who's complaining.

They have a bunch of little symbol packs they sell which again look like an interesting solution for blocking. They are inexpensive and how they make their money. I didn't buy one, but I don't think they are the right symbols.

So, it's close, but not quite what we are looking for. Hey Celtx, if you're listening we would be glad to tell you how to tweak it to be the ultimate theater tool.