A glorious #FrontRowFriday to all of you, Encore fans. Ever wonder what it’s like to be one of Encore’s high school stage managers? Today we’re sitting down with Lindsey G. to learn more about her SM experience, including what it’s like to run rehearsals for a world-premiere musical that’s never been performed before.

My first exposure to theatre was with Encore- my sister Lauren did shows before I was old enough to and I grew up going to see her perform. I knew that I wanted to start working with Encore as soon as possible! My very first show was a Stage Door production of Willy Wonka Jr. (I played a squirrel) and I’ve been hooked ever since, doing shows both on stage and behind the scenes. My freshman year of high school, I started stage managing for Encore as well. I love being able to work with both the cast and the crew on a single show, so stage managing is a wonderful fit. Funnily enough though, stage managing had never actually crossed my mind until Susan called me into the conference room one day when I was working as a camp aide and asked if I would be interested. Naturally, I said yes and filled out the application that night.

The most challenging moment I’ve had in over my three years of stage managing was during Lion King, Jr. when the track following “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” began playing over the song during a show. My sound operator hit the “panic” button, which stopped both of the tracks that were playing. Since the program that we were using could not pick up songs in the middle, we tried looking for the iTunes copy of the music but couldn’t find it. I told my ASMs to instruct the actors to keep singing, and they did! The whole cast sang the a-cappella version so well you would think that we did it on purpose. After the show, Rebecca and I went into the sound program and were able to fix the problem. Before the next show we tested it too, just to make sure, and it worked perfectly.

My favorite memory of stage managing was also from Lion King, Jr.; when rehearsals ended ten to fifteen minutes early, Susan would turn the actors over to me and we would play a game. The games in themselves were always enjoyable (we were gifted with a particularly humorous cast), but my favorite story came from what happened before we played one of our games. Before every game I would take suggestions as to what we should play, but would remind the actors that our little circle was not a democracy. It was a monarchy and I was the Queen, because I could veto any game idea if I deemed it too long, too loud, or in any other way not a good fit for that particular day. In response, the actors (of their own volition) by about the third or fourth rehearsal, had taken to calling me “Empress Lindsey.” This proved to be a very beneficial title. On top of it being funny when kids would bow and present me with their phones for the phone box, I found that they were more willing to get quiet, help me carry things, and move quickly when I called places when it was under the premise of it being “for their empress.”

Stage managing has taught me several important skills. For example, stage managing has taught me how to be organized, which comes into play in my day-to-day life all the time- my binders at school are immaculate because of my stage manager “bible.” Perhaps more importantly though, stage managing has taught me how to maintain a balance in everything that I do. Over the past three years, I have learned how to keep things fun and lighthearted while also staying on task and focused, and I have learned when to let the little things go. Also: when to remind someone that if it’s not your prop, don’t touch it!

Stage managing for a world-premiere musical has been both more hectic and more rewarding than both of my previous stage management experiences. The opportunity to do an original show gives the actors and directors near limitless freedom for their creativity, which is an amazing thing to watch unfold. Sometimes that overflowing creativity means that we create four different versions of the same song with minor speed or pitch changes just to see which one fits best, or change the key of a song to better fit the voice of the actor. Normally, such activities lead to me running back and forth with the sound computer or standing over the copier while music packets print, which is what makes the show more hectic. In fact, I don’t think that I’ve sat down during the past three rehearsals! But in the end, the freedom to mold the show any way the directors or actors want in order to make [The Talented] Clementine the best show it can be is priceless. Being able to do that really makes Clementine a special show, and I feel so lucky to be a part of it.

Thank you for sharing your Encore story with all of us here on The Front Row, Lindsey! Now that you’ve met the face that’s calling the cues behind the scenes, be sure to scoop up your tickets for The Talented Clementine, opening at the end of this month. Did Lindsey’s story spark your interest? Download the 2019/2020 Stage Manager application today.