A Letter to Those Who Inspire Me: Stage Managers
by Seana Hendrickson, Guest Editorial
Dear Stage Managers,
I just wanted to take a moment to write about all the ways in which you have inspired me.
From the person giving me my line when I forget it to the person yelling at me not to touch that prop. Stage managers wear many hats in the job they take on and give so much of themselves to make a production shine. Here is my thank you, and I just wanted to share how your efforts don’t go unnoticed and continue to inspire me.
You have shown me that you can never be too prepared in a show, and that it is okay to have a bag full of Staples products and an entire salon in my bag because you never know when someone will need an eraser or a band-aid. You have inspired me to become a more organized person, with binders of every size and highlighters of every color; I have mastered making Excel sheets and to-do lists.
You have inspired me to become a jack of all trades because, let's be real, you are the one who knows everything about a production and what is going on always. You have solutions thought out and prepped before someone can even bring you the problem. You have inspired me to be someone others can rely on whether it be arriving at rehearsal on time or being a therapist when rehearsal is over.
I know the job of a stage manager can be stressful and exhausting but you have inspired me to have a great work ethic. There is no time in a rehearsal or a production for a stage manager to really have your own moment to vent or talk to someone because you are the backbone of a show. You are the most reliable person in the room and the one everybody can trust.
So, thank you, stage managers, for loving what you do and doing it so well. I know it may seem like us actors hate you sometimes when you keep pointing out the line we keep forgetting or when you yell “places” loudly in our face.
Sometimes stage-managing may feel like a thankless job, but remember, you’re inspiring everyone in a production to get on your level when it comes to making a show come together.