The document describes a typical day in the life of a theater from early morning until late at night. It outlines the various roles and responsibilities of the administrative, creative, construction, and production teams throughout the day. These include custodial staff cleaning in the morning, rehearsals and meetings throughout the day to plan upcoming productions, costume fittings and publicity in the afternoon, and performances in the evening followed by cleanup afterwards. The goal is to provide an overview of the many moving parts that work together to put on a production.

1. Chapter 5
A Day in the Life
of a Theatre
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2. 9 A.M.: Entering the Theatre
 A ghost light is kept
burning on stage all night
as a safety feature
 Custodians arrive to clean
theatre from the night
before
 Staff members such as
administrative assistants,
bookkeepers, and ticket
agents report for work
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© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

3. 10 A.M.: Checking Wardrobe and
Planning for Next Season
 Artistic director: in charge of
the overall creative vision of
theatre
 Producer: financially backs
the theatre
 Literary manager: evaluates
new scripts and acts as
liaison between playwrights,
agents, and the theatre
 Costume crew: wash and
repair costumes
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© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

4. 11 A.M.: Rehearsing and Building the
Show
 Stage manager: assists
the director through the
rehearsal process
 Technical director:
supervises the
construction crews
 Prop master: in charge
of all the objects the
actors handle while on
stage
WilliamMissouriDowns
© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

5. NOON: Fund-Raising, Designing, and
Sewing
 Artistic director:
lunches with potential
patron
 Meanwhile, in the
Costume Shop:
Drapers study the
costume designer’s
drawings and cut fabric
into patterns while
stitchers sew the fabric
patterns together
WilliamMissouriDowns
© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

6. 1 P.M.: More Rehearsing
 Musical director:
supervises all aspects
of the musical
 Choreographer:
creates dances and
teaches the steps to
performers
 Fight director: stages
safe, realistic onstage
fights AP Images/Keith Srakodc
© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

7. 2 P.M.: Creating Sets and Sounds,
and Advising the Director
 Sound designer:
creates a soundscape
and effects for the
show
 Set designer: creates
the production design
 Dramaturg: is a
literary advisor
Drew Farrell/ArenaPAL/Topham/Image Works
© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

8. 3 P.M.: Attending Meetings and
Creating a Mission Statement
 Production meeting takes place where all
aspects of the production are discussed
 Mission statement declares the theatre’s
purpose and key objectives
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9. 4 P.M.: Publicizing a Play and Fitting
Costumes
 The publicity department is working to promote
the next play
 Actors try on costumes with the costume shop
manager
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10. 5 P.M.: Brainstorming a Concept
During a concept
meeting for next
season, directors
and designers
brainstorm and
research future
productions.
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© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

11. 6 P.M.: Preparing for the Evening
Performance
 The actors enter
through the stage
door usually located
behind the theatre
 The time the actors
arrive at the theatre
is known as their call
ClaudineMboligikpelaniNako
© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

12. 7 P.M.: Opening the House
 The house is lingo for
the place where the
audience sits
 The house manager is
in charge of the
ushers
 The greenroom is the
place where the
actors wait before
their entrances
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© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

13. 8 P.M.: Performing the First Act
 The running
crew consists of
stagehands,
dressers, and
riggers
 Parts of the set
can include legs,
teasers, and the
cyclorama
WilliamMissouriDowns
© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

14. 9 P.M.: Performing the Final Act
 Actors discuss the
performance during
intermission
 The show can’t run
smoothly without
the lighting board
op, sound board op
and the stage
manager calling all
the cues
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© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

15. 10 P.M.: Clearing Out
 After the curtain call,
actors return to
dressing rooms and
remove costumes and
makeup
 Backstage crews
clean up; prop master
puts away props;
running crews stow
equipment
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© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

16. 11 P.M.: Bringing Out the
Ghost Light
Time to roll out the ghost light again, which
remains onstage until the next day.
© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

17. Curtain Call
A theatre’s ensemble can be divided into four categories:
administrative, creative, construction, and production. And
at nearly any time of the day, members of the ensemble
are hard at work on the elements that create contemporary
professional theatre.
O.Rotem/Lebrecht/TheImageWorks
© 2018 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or, duplicated or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.