Prompt Book

Prompt Book

The Prompt Book is essential for the Stage Manager to have all the information required to run the Tech Rehearsal successfully.

Read through the lib first just to read it. Then go through looking for everything you need to know; set, costumes, set changes, lighting cues, props needed, actor cues. Find your own style and shorthand for noting what you need to know - but make sure you either write down what your shorthand means or be certain you'll remember it! You'll have to go through the lib with the director, and it's also useful to sit in on rehearsals to make sure you pick up anything that the director forgot to pass on! When they're telling the lead to pick up a book here and have never mentioned it to you, they'll probably think they have and you'll spend the dress running round trying to find something suitable.

Read both stage directions and dialogue carefully. Someone may refer to a book in their hand that isn't mentioned in the direction just before the dialogue, but you'll still need that book.

What you have in the prompt book obviously varies dependent on whose responsibility each section is, but stage manager should have an overall view of the show including at least outlines of the above.

Useful Links

Clarissa Dollar's Stage Manager handbook has some helpful hints, including the obvious-once-you-think-of-it holepunching the lib on the right instead of the left to give you a blank page opposite that's easy to write notes on.