Stage Management & Technical Theatre

Samples and Forms

Students will identify and apply their knowledge of the areas and elements of the stage.

The production binder is the final assessment. A checklist and rubric is included.

Students will explore every facet of scenic flats for the stage: terminology, design, structure, the process of building a flat.

Lumber is expensive, so just letting the students have a go at building a stage flat could get pricey. Why not let them “try it out” by constructing the cheapest flat they’ll ever make. This lesson plan guides students through the identification and construction of the various elements of a stage flat (both Hollywood and Broadway) using paper, drinking straws, and glue.

Students will be able to identify the various elements of a stage flat and comprehend the skills, process, and math required to construct a stage flat.

Calling cues requires the ability to analyze, strategize, and problem solve. Calling cues becomes easier each time, but every show is different and presents new challenges. In this lesson, students practice the act of calling a show. What are the types of cues that can be used? How are they notated in a script?

Students discuss scene changes and transitions. How can a poorly rehearsed transition hinder a technically effective performance? They then apply this discussion to a Scene Assignment. Groups create a scene and must demonstrate a scene change within the scene.

Students will explore how lighting can affect a scene through colour and angles. Questions include: What is mood? How do shadows affect a scene? Students are given a lighting assignment to apply colour and angles by drawing a simple light plot.

Students review the three most common types of theatre stages used today: proscenium, thrust, and arena stages. Students create the audience for a specific type of stage in a warm-up, and then in groups, students work to stage a fairy tale using the three different theatre configurations.

Students review the three most common types of theatre stages used today: proscenium, thrust, and arena stages. Students participate in a types of stages warm-up and explore how to stage something on different types of stages.

This document outlines all of the potential roles and tasks for students in The Production Classroom. It includes the tasks each student is to complete for their production binder, as well as their particular role during the performance of the show.

In this unit you’ll explore the elements created by scenic and costume designers as well as technical directors and costume shop managers to convey the designs and bring the final production to life.

Samples and Forms

Students give their research presentations from the previous class. They then discuss costume design and the impact of colour on costumes. How can colour communicate mood in a costume? Students complete a reflection on what they’ve learned so far.

Students are given a Costume Sales Pitch Assignment. They will work in pairs to pitch costumes for a Blank Scene in which they must articulate mood, setting, the characters, and costume colours.

Students are given time to prepare and then give their Costume Pitch Presentations. The emphasis is on the pairs demonstrating a knowledge of costume effectiveness.

Students will identify areas of technical theatre known as “crafts” and explore how the use of these crafts affects storytelling.

To create ambiance is to define the feel, mood, and tone of a play. Light and sound can change ambiance drastically. A castle in dark shadows will look gloomy and mysterious, while a castle in bright light will appear magical. In this lesson, students will analyze the use of sound to create and change the ambiance of a production.

Students work together to come up with a solution for the famous “exit, pursued by a bear” stage direction from Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale through written response, drawing, and making a design element with materials found at home.

Students design, create, and implement a solution for the famous “exit, pursued by a bear” stage direction from Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale.

In this culminating project, students are put into groups to create the stage management elements for a new “production” of Jabberwocky, the poem by Lewis Carroll.

Applying the concepts and skills they have acquired in this unit, students will analyze, design, then build a single, comprehensive miniature set inside of a shoebox (based on a song of their choosing).

Design, it’s not just for Art class anymore! A way to help your drama students understand abstract concepts is to let them take them for a test drive.

In this very basic exercise, students explore the design elements of line and shape using only a pencil and a sheet of paper.

Students explore an element of scenic design and apply their knowledge in a drafting exercise. They will use this information when they create a ground plan as part of their scenic design.

Students apply their knowledge by creating a ground plan.

Students are introduced to the concept of scale, sightlines, drafting symbols, and how to create a ground plan. A reflection is included.

Students apply what they learned in Drafting: Part 1 to create a ground plan for their design from The Glass Menagerie.

In this ELP, students will review a scene written in a specific genre: Victorian ghost story. They will have to create lighting and sound without any equipment, and a costume design without any period pieces. How can students use atmosphere, found lighting, and live sound to visualize the genre
using low-tech options?

In this ELP, students participate in an online masterclass on directing and complete a viewing quiz.

In this ELP, students problem solve common tech theatre issues.

Students work in groups of 2 or 3 for this exercise on concept creation.

In this exercise, students are given the opportunity to explore different methods of creating lighting effects using items and resources found around them.

In this exercise, students will create a short shadow puppetry scene behind a sheet that is backlit.

This exercise takes the concept creation ideas explored in a previous exercise and has students notate their lighting plans on a script.

Students hand in script notes, ground plan, and renderings. An assessment rubric is included, as well as ideas for unit reflection and an extra credit project.

Forms and Samples

Students experiment with the scaling technique of gridding as a way to enlarge a smaller image and mimic the technique scenic painters use to create backdrops.

The objective of this lesson is to put students in a theatre production role. Introduce the concept of a master props list to students: what it is, why it is useful, and how to create one.

To put students in a theatre production role and introduce one of the tasks of a prop master: a master props list.

The exercises within this unit are meant for students to explore the concept of lighting for theatre without the need for extensive tech or even a theatrical lighting grid. Each exercise is meant to build upon the previous one, as students grow in their confidence with thinking about lighting in different ways.

Students are introduced to costuming through a tableau exercise, discuss the role of costumes in a performance and the impact of colour in costumes. The lesson concludes with a costume research assignment.

Students are introduced to lighting through video demonstration, discuss the impact of lighting on a scene, address lighting safety and complete a vocabulary activity.

Students are introduced to makeup through video demonstration and discuss the impact of makeup in a performance. What is the role of makeup in an effective production? Resources are introduced along with the Makeup Code of Conduct. The lesson concludes with students conducting research on
pictures for possible makeup designs.

This hyperdoc unit is designed for students to work through at their own pace.

There are five levels that students work through independently:

Level 1: The Introduction.
Level 2: Dream Room Project.
Level 3: Become a Design Expert - students learn more about colour theory, design elements such as line and shape, types of set design, and set pieces most often used in set design.
Level 4: A Set Designer License Test which applies everything students have gone through thus far.
Level 5: The culminating project which has students designing a set for a song, book or play.

Students are introduced to sound through video demonstration, discuss the impact of sound on a
scene, and complete a vocabulary activity.

Students are introduced to staging through video demonstration and discuss the role of staging in a performance. How does staging help to visualize a location? The lesson concludes with a Greek Myth Staging Activity.

Students will review quotes from LGBTQ+ theatre professionals in set design, lighting design, sound design, and costume design. They will write out their first impressions, reflect on the quote, and then create a theatrical design expression. The focus here is time management and self-management. How will students use their time to complete their tasks?

Students will choose a LGBTQ+ designer that is unknown to them and has not, as of this writing, worked on Broadway. The chosen designer has to have a website with visual examples of their work, a bio or about page, and a resume. Students will analyze the work of the designer using the Analysis Worksheet. They will then reflect on what they have learned. If you want to extend the length of the lesson, have students put together a brief presentation on their designer and share their findings with the class.

The lighting and sound you use for The Production Classroom will depend on what resources are available to you. This unit will explore how your lighting and sound designers can prepare and execute their designs to help support the script of your show.

Samples and Forms

To be able to demonstrate knowledge of lighting effectiveness.

Students continue to work on their lighting assignment. They will rehearse their scenes, continue to discuss lighting effectiveness and reflect on their work in class.

To demonstrate comprehension of how lighting systems work.

Students will explore the meaning and power of lines and shapes as a way to communicate emotion and ideas. Students will create examples of emotional expression through simple lines.

Students explore the design concepts of line and shape and how they can be used by a designer to affect an audience.

These links are only needed if you wish to edit the 'Design Expert' slideshows that are embedded within the main hyperdoc. They will prompt you to make a copy. You will need to redo those links on your own copy of the main hyperdoc before you share with your students.

This is a completely optional day as it requires a material (liquid latex) that you wouldn’t normally have on hand. It gives you an opportunity to show students another facet of stage makeup, opening the door for ideas and projects that students can do within this mini unit. It also creates a great “buy-
in” for students who have been reticent to the process thus far.

Students will start with pre-reading questions about costume design. They will then read an article about costume designer Machine Dazzle, who specifically identifies himself as an artist before a costume designer. Finally, students will apply what they have learned about Dazzle’s design philosophy in their own costume designs.

To explore the use of make-up as a theatrical tool.

Students take everything they have learned, and complete their makeup designs on themselves.

In this class period, students must decide what makeup application they are going to strive for and determine what skills they need to make it happen.

Students work on their makeup design plot. They have this class period to complete their design on paper.

Students use this class to learn and practice any makeup skills they will require to complete their makeup design.

Students explore basic makeup techniques through practical means, video demonstration, and online research.

Samples and Forms

This unit will explore a couple of the Business roles: (1) Marketing and (2) Front of House. As a reminder: Artistic jobs create ideas. The production jobs implement those ideas. And the business jobs provide the framework that allow those ideas to be shared.

Use this optional exercise to show students a video about the role of a lighting designer in a professional setting.

Students analyze and explore painting techniques.

To learn and execute a skill associated with a tech theatre role.

One goal of a stage manager is to prepare all of the necessary information to ensure a successful production. For example: character/scene breakdown, prop list, light cues, schedules. In this lesson, students practice creating a number of documents which every stage manager keeps in their prompt script.

A costume designer and a costumer are two different things. A costume designer creates pieces from the drawing board to the stage while a costumer pulls from already existing pieces to create
fully realized characters. This means the approach is different. With costuming, there is no such thing as a perfect costume. But there are costumes that create the right atmosphere. In these lessons, students will be introduced to the role of the costumer.

Students are exposed to research, concepts, and skill sets while they explore costume design and the role of the costume designer. They will be able to demonstrate their knowledge of costume effectiveness.

In this lesson, students start the costuming process for a specific play through analysis. Then they will be assigned (or choose) the character they will design for, as well as a specific
costume. They will be given time to answer some analysis questions for this specific character and costume. Students complete these analysis questions in advance of the next lesson.

Students will take what they’ve learned so far to create a digital Inspiration Collage as a way to help them visualize the costume they will create.

Students will learn how to set up the costume racks to prepare for costuming a show. Students will then learn how to take proper measurements by measuring each other. They will fill out a standard costume measurement form. Then, after instruction on how to do the three stitches that can help them to complete alterations, they will practice these stitches by creating a pincushion.

In this lesson, students will learn some distressing techniques and complete a distressing activity. After this activity, students will start pulling items for their costume designs as indicated by their
Inspiration Collages. Students will then prep for a design presentation and costume parade after a work period in the next class.

Students will show their Inspiration Collages, their costumes, and their slide decks. They will explain why they made their choices and how it reflects their understanding of the character and the play. Students will do as much as possible to realize their costumes, given the resources available and the time they’ve had to work on the project, and describe what they would do to complete their costumes.

Students are exposed to research, concepts, and skill sets while they explore the role of the costumer. They will be able to demonstrate their knowledge of costume effectiveness.

This cover the necessary procedures for each and every show, as well as what has to happen once your show is over. Checklists for setup and breakdown are included, as well as performance reports, strike plan and worksheets.

To learn and execute a skill associated with a tech theatre role.

Experience Tech Theatre: Students will explore how technical theatre affects storytelling.

Students will identify areas of technical theatre and explore how the use of these crafts affects storytelling.

Along with paperwork, there are other tasks a stage manager must undertake to prepare for rehearsal. Students will perform tasks that a stage manager must carry out to prepare the rehearsal space and communicate with actors/crew.

This unit marks the first step in the production process: identifying and understanding theatre company roles, identifying student skills for particular roles, and identifying production needs.

This lesson describes the production binder, including everything that should be included as well as how to organize.

In this lesson, students will take what they learn about the different types of props and how props are created or acquired in order to apply it to a specific project. Using their critical thinking skills, they’ll have to invent, design, and create a science fiction style prop for a hypothetical show.

Students​ ​will​ examine various definitions of stage properties and learn ways to categorize properties for the stage.

Students demonstrate comprehension of what a property is, the various categories of props, and how props are created.

Props add so much to a production, but they can also be challenging to work with. From dealing with a huge list of props, to having trouble using props during rehearsal, to problems with broken, missing, or consumable props, students need to work together to problem solve when a props issue occurs. This is great practice for students working on productions, because props problems will inevitably crop up.

To apply problem-solving skills with respect to props challenges.

In this real world application lesson students view videos of a theatre profession, complete viewing quizzes, and hand in a Reflection.

Students watch the scenes from the previous class and reflect as a group on the process.

Students discuss the scenes from the previous class and reflect as a group on the process.

Students discuss the presentations from the previous class and reflect as a group on the process. They address the role of costumes and costume effectiveness in a scene.

Students discuss the scenes from the previous class and reflect as a group on the process. They then address how lighting, sound, costume and staging interact together to create a technically effective scene.

Students discuss and reflect on the process. What went well? What didn’t go so well?

Reflection and post-mortem ideas and exercises.

In this lesson, students practice some of the rehearsal responsibilities of a stage manager such as keeping rehearsals running on time through proper communication, line notes, and completing a rehearsal report.

In this lesson, students will explore the final preparations stage managers perform before heading into performance, and they go through a scheduling exercise.

In this lesson, students practice some of the tracking tasks required of the stage manager in rehearsal: blocking, scene shifts, and props/costumes.

Students learn what a rendering is and how to draw their own from their ground plans.

Students explore an element of scenic design and apply their knowledge to create a rendering.

Students take what they’ve learned about a new stitch and demonstrate a way to teach it to others.

Students will research and apply knowledge on the effect of colour.

To have students demonstrate an effective use of sound for a specific story.

Students will dive deeper in their knowledge of specific lighting equipment and/or systems as a way to further their ability to use lighting as a tool of storytelling.

To continue exploring elements of the role of prop master.

To continue exploring elements of scenic construction.

To continue exploring elements of painting techniques.

Students will research a tech theatre organization and apply their knowledge by creating a marketing brochure.

To learn the importance of an organized backstage – through discussion, solving issues through performance, and applying knowledge.

The objective of this lesson is to introduce, compare, and contrast different types of theatrical performance venues/stages.

Students review what makes a scene technically effective. They are given time to rehearse and then present their scenes. The emphasis is on the groups demonstrating a knowledge of staging effectiveness.

Samples and Forms

Students will identify, comprehend, and demonstrate their knowledge of shop safety by creating a public safety announcement.

Students continue to work on their sound assignment. They will rehearse their scenes, continue to discuss sound effectiveness and reflect on their work in class.

To be able to demonstrate knowledge of sound effectiveness.

Students will explore how sound can affect the mood of a scene. They are then given a sound assignment to apply sound and music to a blank scene using a specific format.

Students learn about stage geography and parts of a theatre. They practice stage geography in a warm-up and then work on a monologue exploring stage geography.

Students learn about stage geography and parts of a theatre. Students practice stage geography in a warm-up, and then participate in a group activity where they are given random stage geography positions and have to present a scene from those positions.

Samples and Forms

It’s important for students to be aware of both onstage and offstage theatre roles. But applying stage management tasks to a classroom setting is not always easy to do. The Stage Management Calls Game gives students a practical way to hear and react to the various things a stage manager may say during a rehearsal or technical rehearsal.

Students will learn the details a stage manager must be aware of as well as how to communicate those details in a clear and productive way.

Students analyze a work of art to find the visual details required for that “production” and create an organized list to communicate those details. Students then apply those skills to a written script as the stage manager.

Stage Managers have numerous responsibilities in the production process. This lesson will focus in on the things a stage manager does prior to and during blocking rehearsal from preparing for rehearsal, to taking blocking notation, to communicating important notes to other members of the production.

Students complete a Staging Vocabulary Activity. They are then given a setting description and have to draw a set based on the description. The point of the activity is not to excel in drawing but learning how to plan and translate a description into a physical setting.

This lesson covers a general overview of The Production Classroom process. It includes pacing suggestions for each step as well as how to find the necessary documentation to complete each step.

This unit will allow students to explore the responsibilities of the stage manager and production manager. It may help you determine who the best students are for these roles.

Students are given time for a tech rehearsal and then perform their scenes. The emphasis is on the groups demonstrating a knowledge of lighting effectiveness.

Students are given time for a tech rehearsal and then perform their scenes. The emphasis is on the groups demonstrating a knowledge of sound effectiveness.

Students are introduced to two groups of technical theatre roles and the people in charge of those groups: the technical director and tech crews and the stage manager and running crews. Students will take on the role of a stage manager and practice the calls a stage manager would use.

Students are introduced to two groups of technical theatre roles and the people in charge of those groups: the technical director and tech crews and the stage manager and running crews. Students will take on the role of a stage manager and practice the calls a stage manager would use.

The stage manager is the guiding force behind a technical rehearsal. In this lesson we will go through a number of different technical rehearsals and how a stage manager uses their preparation to keep a technical rehearsal moving.

A review of the various types and stages of technical rehearsals, as well as departmental responsibilities, daily procedures, and sample technical rehearsal schedule.

Students will work in small groups to devise a one-minute long theatrical piece from a prompt. They will create a performance, create a prompt script, assign Stage Manager and Technical Operator roles, rehearse the piece, and perform it for the rest of the class. Depending on your time allowance, this lesson could be completed in one class using only items found in the classroom; or this lesson can be spread over four classes (one class to assign and plan, one class to rehearse, one class as a technical/dress rehearsal, and one class as a performance and discussion/reflection class).

Students will start with pre-reading questions about lighting design. They will then read an article about prolific lighting designer Tharon Musser who revolutionized the field of lighting design. Finally, students will reflect on what they have learned.

This 3-part process includes preparation for auditions, initial auditions, and callbacks.

Students will use the color wheel as a way to connect emotion and character through color and color theory. They will then apply this to set design.

Students continue to explore design through the effects of colour and apply their knowledge.

Students learn a process for scenic design and participate in an exercise to develop their skills.

This process covers typical day procedures for rehearsal and documents students should be using daily during the rehearsal process.

During the run of a show, whether it’s one night or a show that runs for years, the stage manager is in charge. In this lesson, students will complete a performance problem-solving exercise, tackle performance reports, and reflect on whether or not they’d make a good stage manager.

Students explore the process of scenic design so they:
• Have a guided path for work that they might create.
• Understand what information designers need in order to create.

Students use the opening stage directions from The Glass Menagerie script to identify scenic elements and create thumbnail sketches of a set.

This lesson introduces students to the various roles in the theatre and how they make up a hierarchy. Students take on the role of one of these three important roles in a theatre production through an activity.

This lesson introduces students to the various roles in the theatre and how they make up a hierarchy. Students take on the role of one of these three important roles in a theatre production through an activity.

The Production Classroom has its challenges. The scenarios included are designed to help you to think about some potential barriers to having a successful production.

Students will identify and apply knowledge of different types of theatre spaces.

To apply knowledge in a unit project.

A reflection and rubric is included for final assessment of the work completed in this unit.

Students analyze a script to determine scenic needs. They utilize thumbnail sketches to explore potential designs for a play.

Students identify tools used in a set/scene shop and understand their functions. They explore the tools by creating a virtual set/scene shop using traditional classroom supplies.

In this lesson students are introduced to the definition of a stage manager, learn what a stage management team may look like, and take on their first stage management tasks: reading the script and creating a props list.

Students are introduced to the concept of scenic design, as well as the role of the Scenic (or Set) Designer. They are also introduced to the 3 kinds of props and 2 types of sets

Students explore the effect scenic design can have on storytelling using designed environments from known TV shows and movies.

Students will identify and understand the roles and responsibilities in a theatre company: artistic, production, and business.