Tuesday, January 07, 2025
A Day in the Life of a Stage Manager at Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
Playbill: “You’re here on a special day,” says assistant stage manager Shelley Miles. But isn’t every day, I wonder, a special day when you’re at Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club? After all, this is a world where bald heads are brushed with gold, nipples are covered with brassy metal, and lederhosen is rhinestoned.
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6 comments:
This article was so intriguing because I've never seen Cabaret so I didn't know that there's like an unscripted prologue and then the actual scripted shows it was really interesting reading about that because like as a stage manager, I feel like a huge fear would be having to work with an unscripted part of a Broadway show because that's insane but it's so cool to read how the stage managers and performers work together to make sure they're all hitting their marks during this unscripted time and making sure that they're just all on the same page and it's just very incredible to read about because there's such a big team working on Cabaret. there are six stage managers just for this show which is a pretty big amount for a Broadway show I know they mentioned that Harry Potter has five and then most have like three or four so six is a really big stage management team which is just super fascinating to see and it's just really interesting to see how their Dynamic sort of works for a crazy show like Cabaret anyways I really hope to see Cabaret over the summer in NYC.
I had previously heard about the prologue section of this production of Cabaret, but I definitely had no idea how complex it was, and I would not have guessed that there were stage managers dedicated specifically just to that portion of the show. The job description of “prologue stage manager” definitely showcases how it’s really complicated to define exactly what a stage manager does/could do, I would not typically list “pre-show actor management and broken glass alert system” under the duties of a stage manager, but the prologue crew is obviously stage managers, and that is part of their job. It’s really interesting how much “house management” work (such as audience interaction) is described as being a part of the job, and it left me wondering if they ever rotate who is on the prologue vs. scripted show company, or if each member of the team is exclusively a part of the prologue team, or the scripted show team.
This was such a cool read. I really want to see Cabaret on Broadway because there are not many shows that do what they do with immersive theatre on Broadway and it just seems so so cool. I have always wondered about the logistics and all the effort that goes into producing a show like that and how the atmosphere really begins at the door, the moment people walk in. Having an 11 person team is mind blowing to me because that just really shows the level of detail and work that goes into putting on this show every day. I can not begin to imagine the level of coordination that goes into being a stage manager for Cabaret. It also seems like such a unique experience because of all the front of house work that the stage managers have to do for the show. I wonder what the process was like from start to finish for working out the logistics for Cabaret.
I LOVE Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club. I've been obsessed with it for years and I finally got to see it over winter break. The preshow world building is truly revolutionary. With all the love and respect in the world, why the heck would you serve glassware in a theater with a table right next to the stage and a multitude of barefoot performers?? The night I saw the show there were at least two mad rushes to pick up broken glass before the show. But what happens if glass is broken during the performance? Is there a show hold? I have to commend their traffic control abilities. They efficiently and professionally cleared walkways for actors without creating a hassle, and kept the flow of people moving. My tech eyes were able to spot the Stage Managers, but to their credit they became nearly invisible, wearing casual clothes and earpieces they easily blended into the crowd of the audience.
This is really interesting, I didn’t know Cabaret had such a large stage management team, and the fact that there are stage managers just lingering in the audience with all of the audience members. I haven’t personally seen Cabaret before so learning about the prologue section of the show was really interesting. It really helps create the world and universe of the show to create an immersive experience starting very early before the main story even starts. It would be pretty interesting to think about the fact that someone standing near you in the club could be calling parts of the show. It makes sense in a way with how the prologue of Cabaret works to have several sets of eyes on things to help ensure both the safety of the performers and to adapt to cues from night to night. It would be impossible to see everything going on at once, let alone possible to keep track of between all of the cast and audience members. I would love to get the opportunity to see Cabaret at some point in the future.
Cabaret is a show I have been dying to see for a long time. It really isn’t surprising that it relies on 6 stage managers on a given night with how unique it is in its transformation of the venue and the incorporation of audience interaction into the show. I especially appreciate the mention in the article that even bartenders and venue staff are in a way part of the creative team for the show, which to me feels like a further extension about conversations around if technicians such as lighting programmers count as creatives. I can’t imagine the struggle of having to manage such a complex production, especially with elements like potential spilled food and beverages or shattered glass around barefoot actors. I strongly envy my friends who got to see this show, both because of how unique it is as a show and because of the fantastic design of this particular implementation.
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