WEBVTT Kind: captions Language: en 00:00:00.272 --> 00:00:03.668 [upbeat instrumental music] 00:00:07.003 --> 00:00:07.977 JELANI: Welcome back! 00:00:07.977 --> 00:00:10.301 The focus of this session is Cue. 00:00:10.301 --> 00:00:13.499 SYNDEE: A Cue is a signal that tells you what to do. 00:00:13.499 --> 00:00:17.542 In the theater, Cue is also a specific and important term. 00:00:17.542 --> 00:00:20.442 JELANI: Today we'll look at the many types of theatrical cues 00:00:20.442 --> 00:00:22.665 what can happen on stage if a cue is missed 00:00:22.665 --> 00:00:25.378 and all the cues that are used backstage and in the house 00:00:25.378 --> 00:00:27.661 even before a performance begins. 00:00:28.660 --> 00:00:30.483 [drums] 00:00:31.126 --> 00:00:37.876 SYNDEE: The production of a play is a complex series of actions performed by many different people on stage and off. 00:00:38.118 --> 00:00:41.647 In order to put it all together in an organized and timely  fashion 00:00:41.647 --> 00:00:45.204 we rely on cues to know when to perform our tasks 00:00:45.204 --> 00:00:50.807 like making an entrance, moving a set, changing the lighting, or playing music. 00:00:50.807 --> 00:00:54.706 Let's hear about cues from stage manager, Antonia Gianino. 00:00:54.706 --> 00:00:57.318 ANTONIA: A cue is something that we call during the show. 00:00:57.318 --> 00:00:58.485 We have a calling script 00:00:58.485 --> 00:01:04.093 so when you're up in the booth we have light cues and we also have fly automation, deck automation, and rail cues 00:01:04.093 --> 00:01:07.605 and a cue is something that you do 00:01:07.605 --> 00:01:10.051 you say a lighting cue which is a numerical cue 00:01:10.051 --> 00:01:12.542 an automation cue is something you do with a switch 00:01:12.542 --> 00:01:17.806 and it makes either the lights change or the scenery change from scene to scene. 00:01:17.806 --> 00:01:19.702 We have stage managers watching on deck 00:01:19.702 --> 00:01:23.394 the guys who are running the automation or bringing in the rail cues 00:01:23.394 --> 00:01:29.267 are watching to make sure that their cue has completed either on a computer or visually on a monitor 00:01:29.267 --> 00:01:31.895 just to make sure that everything is safe. 00:01:31.895 --> 00:01:35.061 SYNDEE: Because theatre takes place in front of a live audience 00:01:35.061 --> 00:01:38.951 it's important that everyone pays careful attention to their cues 00:01:38.951 --> 00:01:43.980 so they can perform their tasks at the right time and keep the performance moving seamlessly 00:01:44.728 --> 00:01:45.760 [drums] 00:01:47.097 --> 00:01:49.224 JELANI: No matter how well everyone is rehearsed 00:01:49.224 --> 00:01:52.775 in live theater, sometimes things don't go exactly as planned. 00:01:52.775 --> 00:01:54.816 In the Broadway version of The Lion King 00:01:54.816 --> 00:01:58.316 automated parts of the set don't always work 00:01:58.316 --> 00:02:01.809 so we rehearse backup blocking or contingencies 00:02:01.809 --> 00:02:08.101 so that we can continue telling the story onstage without anybody in the audience knowing anything is wrong. 00:02:08.101 --> 00:02:12.139 Let's hear from some of our Lion King guests about what happens when someone misses a cue 00:02:12.139 --> 00:02:14.047 and things need to switch to plan B. 00:02:14.047 --> 00:02:16.435 DOC: We have a contingency plan. 00:02:16.435 --> 00:02:19.186 We actually teach the actors 00:02:19.186 --> 00:02:21.134 "What if you don't have Pride Rock?" 00:02:21.134 --> 00:02:24.183 "What if you don't have this piece of scenery?" 00:02:24.183 --> 00:02:25.006 "What do you do?" 00:02:25.006 --> 00:02:26.690 We teach them little safety moments 00:02:26.690 --> 00:02:33.535 like there's a section in the Lion King when at the end, when the guys run a banner around the stage 00:02:33.535 --> 00:02:36.587 well there are moments they're supposed to be taught 00:02:36.587 --> 00:02:41.029 that if the hole in the deck is not closed they take a different route with the banner 00:02:41.029 --> 00:02:48.691 because they would go in the hole if it doesn't, so we build into their choreography again, that they look at the floor 00:02:48.691 --> 00:02:53.368 and make sure the hole is sealed and if it's not sealed they take a different route. 00:02:53.368 --> 00:02:57.157 ALAIN: One thing that might happen is a microphone might fail. 00:02:57.157 --> 00:03:03.506 In that case, I would communicate with my teammates backstage, let them know what's happening 00:03:03.506 --> 00:03:07.549 and try to, you know, come up with a solution as quickly as possible. 00:03:07.549 --> 00:03:15.422 Another thing that might happen, if it's a  lead who might have a microphone that failed all of a sudden 00:03:15.422 --> 00:03:17.157 the mix may change. 00:03:17.157 --> 00:03:19.843 You may want to bring down the mix considerably 00:03:19.843 --> 00:03:28.848 so that's the possibility that the person who has a failed mic could be heard, especially if it's a principal 00:03:28.848 --> 00:03:32.000 and it's his microphone that failed. 00:03:32.334 --> 00:03:35.423 BONITA: There was a particular performance 00:03:35.423 --> 00:03:37.830 and the three hyenas were down front 00:03:37.830 --> 00:03:45.881 at the downstage, most downstage part, right by the orchestra pit and they were moving. 00:03:45.881 --> 00:03:51.074 Everything was in motion on stage and they were moving the bone set during "Be Prepared" 00:03:51.074 --> 00:03:59.645 and one of the pieces of the set bumped James Brown Orleans, who plays Banzai, who is my right-hand man 00:03:59.645 --> 00:04:04.436 and it bumped him ever so slightly but he lost his balance 00:04:04.436 --> 00:04:07.576 and he jumped down into the orchestra pit 00:04:07.576 --> 00:04:16.823 scaled a bar, jumped over into the audience, ran back up the stairs onto the stage and continued with his lines. 00:04:16.823 --> 00:04:23.149 I was in shock, so he said my line and then I snapped right back into the scene. 00:04:23.149 --> 00:04:27.918 That's extreme but it's live theatre. It happened. 00:04:27.918 --> 00:04:32.854 JELANI: As you can see, even in professional theatre, things can go wrong during a performance. 00:04:32.854 --> 00:04:37.824 It's essential not only to know your cues but also to keep your eyes and ears open at all times 00:04:37.824 --> 00:04:41.944 so you can jump in and improvise a solution when needed. 00:04:42.001 --> 00:04:44.001 [drums] 00:04:44.468 --> 00:04:47.686 SYNDEE: Cues are used even before a performance begins. 00:04:47.686 --> 00:04:51.886 Let's see what goes on at the Minskoff Theatre during the half hour before showtime. 00:04:52.131 --> 00:05:21.095 [upbeat instrumental music] 00:05:23.518 --> 00:05:25.349 JELANI: It gets pretty crazy. Right? 00:05:25.349 --> 00:05:29.604 With hundreds of people coming from around the world to see the show each night 00:05:29.604 --> 00:05:32.555 the front-of-house staff has a lot of responsibility. 00:05:32.555 --> 00:05:35.314 SYNDEE: Let's talk about the different types of people you saw. 00:05:35.314 --> 00:05:38.411 In the front of house, there are Audience Members 00:05:38.411 --> 00:05:41.089 the House Manager, that's the one in charge 00:05:41.089 --> 00:05:46.960 Ticket Takers, Ushers, and staff at Concession and Merchandise kiosks. 00:05:46.960 --> 00:05:52.684 These workers welcome a lot of people to the show so they need to be organized and always friendly 00:05:52.684 --> 00:05:56.323 JELANI: Backstage you have the Actors, Crew, and Stage Managers 00:05:56.323 --> 00:05:59.039 who make sure everything is organized and on schedule. 00:05:59.039 --> 00:06:05.720 One Stage Manager also calls the sound and lighting cues during the show which requires a lot of focus. 00:06:05.720 --> 00:06:11.700 Sound and Light Board Operators, or "Ops," execute the cues using computers 00:06:11.700 --> 00:06:15.909 and let's not forget about the Conductor and Musicians in the pit. 00:06:15.909 --> 00:06:20.129 SYNDEE: All these professionals use cues to do their pre-show jobs properly 00:06:20.129 --> 00:06:23.787 JELANI: For example, when an audience member pulls out a ticket in the lobby 00:06:23.787 --> 00:06:27.074 it's the Ticket Taker's cue to scan it 00:06:27.074 --> 00:06:29.538 and when the audience member enters the house 00:06:29.538 --> 00:06:34.580 it's the Usher's cue to hand her a program and lead her to her seat. 00:06:34.580 --> 00:06:37.784 SYNDEE: Let's watch the clip again and note all the different cues. 00:06:38.238 --> 00:07:06.905 [upbeat instrumental music] 00:07:09.512 --> 00:07:13.339 JELANI: I counted about 57 cues. How many did you catch? 00:07:13.339 --> 00:07:15.242 SYNDEE: 58 00:07:15.242 --> 00:07:17.095 JELANI: Ex-Cue me? 00:07:19.078 --> 00:07:25.038 SYNDEE: Today, we looked at the important role that cues play for all the people that make the production possible. 00:07:25.038 --> 00:07:28.283 JELANI: Now you will work on the tasks that happen in the half-hour before the show 00:07:28.283 --> 00:07:34.428 in order for the actors, backstage crew, and front of house staff, to make sure that the curtain goes up on time. 00:07:38.928 --> 00:07:42.781 [upbeat instrumental music]