Term from Another Union: Sub City

Sub City--when the orchestra pit is mostly sub musicians. Sometimes, the result is horrible. "Right after Christmas, the pit was all Sub City."

Term of this Moment: Gypsy run-through/invited dress

Gypsy run-through/invited dress--paper is given out to dancers and members of the theatrical community. They clap at everything.

Term of the Night: garden-variety asshole

garden-variety asshole--difficult stagehand with no power.

Wardrobe Term of the Day: French alteration

French alteration--placebo alteration for a troublesome actor, calming them down by pretending to fix a costume.

Term of the Day: flop sweat

flop sweat: when producers start to freak out during production or previews that they may have a flop on their hands, so the creatives are directed to make radical changes, adding or cutting songs and monkeying with the book. Sometimes the freak out is justified and the show is saved, and other times the cuts or addition damage the living organism. "The producer broke into a flop sweat that the show was going to bomb and demanded radical changes to the finale." (term from Patrick Healy, New York Times, April 17, 2014) 

Prop-Specific Term of the Moment: broken stud = shovel

broken stud=shovel...”If you break a stud while working on the seats, you are out. You’ll be digging ditches.”

Term of the Moment: "Call the hall"

“Call the hall”--calling the replacement room of the union hall, looking for a man to work at that moment.

Ditchdigging Term of the Day: break your shovel

break your shovel--destroy contact, lose job

Prop Term of the Day: coke the stage

coke the stage--when a deck is slippery or even perceived by actors or dancers as slippery, the prop person will mop with a small amount of Coke in their mop bucket to make the deck less slippery. Sometimes the deck becomes too sticky after mopping with Coke.

Term of the Day: first broom

first broom--assistant to a house propman

Ambiguous Term of the Moment: go-to guy

go-to guy--hard worker (can be sarcastic)

Ode to Fascist Politicians: Giuliani barriers

Giuliani barriers--metal barriers put out in front of theaters, named after Mussolini-like former mayor of New York City. See also: bike racks

Term for Now: fragile cookie

fragile cookie--person barely holding it together

Term of the Moment: "Fork it"

"Fork it"--to move something with a forklift.

Term of the Minute: kiss the ring

kiss the ring--paying tribute to the head, like a loyal vassal...I have also heard a more obscene interpretation of this action.

Broadway History Moment: “Checks are Bouncing”

“Checks are Bouncing”--nickname for the financially troubled 2001 Broadway revival of “Bells are Ringing”

Term of the Moment: “beat the clock” mentality

“beat the clock” mentality--to do everything as quickly as possible, possibly making unnecessary errors. Inspired by the 1970's TV show.

Storage Term of the Day: "Bury this"

"Bury this"--to get rid of a hamper, a cut piece of scenery or a dead prop, buried deep in the basement or against the upstage wall, possibly blocked by other items.

Term of the Day: dropsy

dropsy--the tendency to drop things. “I have a bad case of the dropsies today.” Also: Butter hands

Stiff Term of the Day: good-enough stiff

good-enough stiff--a stiff good enough to sub, but not good enough or connected enough to take a full-time job on Broadway.

Term of the Night: breaking the fourth wall

breaking the fourth wall-- when a character addresses the audience

Term of the Day: stay in character

stay in character--to maintain the accent or the demeanor of the role you are playing onstage and sometimes even offstage. "Two actor friends of mine stayed in character, using their English accents from the show, while picking up their cars after the show."

Term from Another Union: booth singer

booth singer--actor or actress who is on a Broadway musical, but may only sing in the booth and may not go onstage. Usually, booth singers also understudy principals or ensemble members in the show.

Term of the Day: drug skinny

drug skinny-- when a young actor or actress has a sudden weight loss from excessive drug use and general partying. Typical drugs are Ecstacy and meth.

Term of the Closing Moment: stop clause

stop clause--a clause in a theater-rental contract that says if a show dips below a set financial amount in ticket sales for two weeks in a row, the theater owners have the option of forcing the production to close and vacate the theater. "Despite rave reviews, the recent revival of 'Side Show' dipped below $550,000 a week in ticket sales, so the theater owners exercised their stop clause in the theater-rental contract." Usually, the theater owners have a more promising show waiting to come in.
(see the New York Times article from December 13, 2014)

Another Stagehand Nickname: Le Miza Bob

Le Miza Bob--a miserable stagehand named Bob, always complaining and sucking the life out of those he works with. A takeoff on the title of the never-ending musical Le Miz. In Local #1, we have a Le Miza Bob working Legit and one working on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon."

Term of This Moment: met at the back of a truck

met at the back of a truck--to meet your peers in Local One when you are 18 or so unloading trucks. "I've known Bobby for 20 years. We met at the back of a truck when were 18." It can be an intense bond.

Term of the Moment: Word of mouth

word of mouth: gossip about a show. Positive word of mouth can pump energy and ticket sales into an iffy show. Negative word of mouth can chip away at a healthy show and eventually kill it.

Term of the Day--spending money like a drunken sailor

spending money like a drunken sailor--sometimes shows come to Broadway and spend money with reckless haste, despite poor ticket sales.

Term of the Day--a yutz

a yutz--a stupid, useless person (from Yiddish)....see also mook.

Term of the Day: hard exit

hard exit--when you have to leave a call at a set time to go on to another call. You are not able to do overtime that may suddenly come up. "I told the boss I had to make a hard exit at 5 p.m. to get to my Broadway preset by 5:30."

Mythical Figure of the Day: leprechaun

leprechaun--when you say his or her name, they appear. An Irish faerie that delights in mischievous behavior, but in  the theater setting, it is a person who magically appears whenever you say his or her name. "You can't ever gossip about the company manager, for she magically appears like a leprechaun when you say her name."

Theater Cops

theater cops-- police officers from the local precinct who patrol the Theater District. Often these officers are well known to the community and well liked. They know the characters who hang out in the Theater District, like the too persistent autograph collectors and the occasional stalker.

Archaic Terms We Use: take a gander

take a gander--take a look at something. "Take a gander at the Austrian...it appears to be hung up on the stage left side."

Old Term of the Day: the shape up

the shape up--when job seekers show up in the minutes before a load in or loadout starts, hoping to be put on because someone doesn't show. In Local #1, shape ups are uncommon now because in the last decade, most last-minute labor needs have been put through the replacement room. Again, a shape up is a term borrowed from the longshoremen. Twenty years ago, there would be three or four stagehands outside the loading door shaping on the first day of a big load in. That would be the shape up.

Term of the Moment: one and done

one and done--Sunday matinee. What crew members often say to each other on Sunday, at the end of a long week, when there is only one show

Passing the Buck Term of the Day: above my pay grade

above my pay grade--indicating you are not qualified to make a decision, deferring a difficult or embarrassing decision to the bosses above you. Washing your hands of a matter."Firing a dangerous stagehand is above my pay grade...ask the head."

Term of the Day: virtual shaping

virtual shaping: asking for work via Facebook or by email. A young stagehand asked me for work via Facebook recently. I was shocked. What ever happened to coming around to the theater to ask for work, to show you are serious and that you are in good shape to work? To state the obvious, virtual shaping is not shaping.

Nickname of the Day: Pockets

Pockets (proper noun): lazy stagehand who can always be found with his/her hands in their pockets.

Term of the Day: smalls

Term of the Day: smalls (n)-- small hand props, glassware, small items that have to be set in a particular place. "The propman was handed a box of smalls, a decanter and sherry glasses, that had to be placed around the set." (TV term)

Term of the Day: carpenter focus

carpenter focus--when the carpenters smack into a low-hanging light ladder or a light boom, usually with a large rolling unit, changing the focus on the instruments.

Musician Term of the Day: Pit from Hell

Pit from Hell: because of the brutal score that has the brass players going almost nonstop for three hours, musicians often get hurt. Accidental projectiles occasionally come off the stage, as well.

Term of the Day: a stagehand favor

stagehand favor: you do something first, then you ask the person you need to ask. "I have a stagehand favor to ask..I needed to borrow your sawzall, so I used it this morning."

Term of the Day: M.E.S.

M.E.S.: mysterious electrical shit. Recently at my show, an automation console crapped out. The man from the shop had no answer, but we thought that it was a case of M.E.S....mysterious electrical shit.

Term of the Day: "Happy Trails"

"Happy Trails"--the Roy Rogers song that the company will sing when an actor leaves a Broadway show.

Actor Quip of the Day: "I nailed it in the wings."

"I nailed it in the wings"--when an actor, particularly an actor just learning a role, blows a line, he or she may say, "I nailed it in the wings," meaning he or she got the line right before they went on, then blew it onstage.

Term of the Moment: showstopper

showstopper: a rousing high-energy dance number or solo that literally stops the show with the volume of applause. Or a major mechanical screw up or crew member mistake that literally forces the show to stop until the error is corrected. In the most extreme versions, the house curtain is brought in and the SM makes an announcement along the lines of "There will be a short delay."

Term of the Day: story on the street

story on the street: major screw up or questionable decision at a show that gets picked up in the stagehand rumor mill on Broadway, becoming part of stagehand legend. "Let us talk to the business agent so this automation decision doesn't become a story on the street."

Term of the Day: showmance

showmance (n.)--when two company members, be they cast, crew or musicians, become romantically and/or physically involved. Often happens on long-running shows.

Historical Term of the Day: Martini Beck

Martini Beck: an archaic nickname for the Martin Beck, the former name of the Al Hirschfeld Theatre, a Broadway theater located on 45th Street, west of 8th Avenue. Back in the 1970s and 1980s, there were some hard-drinking stagehands working there, thus the nickname.

Term of the Day: BTR

BTR--big-time roadman, or in modern times, can be big-time roadwoman. A long-time contract stagehand, lots of road experience.

Old Term of the Week: from the trades

from the trades: when a stagehand comes from another  related industry like construction, the carpenters' union or the electrical workers (IBEW)...usually means that he or she comes in with specific skills, usually a recommendation. "Oh yeah, the new carpenter at the load in comes from the trades."

Term of the Day: a walk on

a walk on: a stagehand who comes from nowhere and impresses the boss. May have worked in a related trade, like construction. Usually a hard worker. Term probably comes from college sports, where an unrecruited freshman will walk on the field, try out and make the team.

Term of the Day: time bomb

time bomb: a stagehand who is set to explode...it is not a matter of if, but a matter of when.

Term of the Day: "all day, all skate"

"all day, all skate": an eight-hour workcall involving all departments.

Term from another Local: Big Ben

A union brother from Philadelphia, Dennis Moore of Local #8, sent me this term: Big Ben -- a person who doesn't know a thing about his task at hand but can tell you to the tenth of a second when the next coffee break, lunch break, end of the day etc.. is going to happen. Also used for persons who continually ask when the next break is. (For those who live under a rock, Big Ben is the famous clocktower in London.)

Term of the Night: Good manners in the sandbox

"Good manners in the sandbox": all departments have to work together and behave. May be said when there is a history of bad blood between different heads. See also: "Hey, we all have to play in this sandbox."

Term of the Day: dead man walking

dead man walking: a stagehand who has been fired or let go doing cues on his/her last day. (stolen from the death-penalty movie "Dead Man Walking.")

Term of the Day: smile

smile: the bending of steel in a poorly constructed storage pallet that is suspended on motors. Because of the weight in the pallet of props or scenic pieces, the steel in a badly designed pallet may start to bend, giving the steel a bend or a curved "smile." Such pallets need to be reinforced before they become a hazard. "The carpenter pointed out the smile in the steel tubing in the pallet over our heads."

Vaudeville Term of the Day: face plant

face plant: an old-school pratfall where an actor will land on his face, usually on something soft, like a pillow or an armrest.

Another orchestra term: calling out

calling out: when a musician calls  the in-house contractor at the last minute and tells him/her that they can't come in. There may be a scramble to find a sub.

Term of the Day: blue hairs

blue hairs (n.): elderly women theatergoers who often come in roups, who traditionally have formed the backbone of the Wednesday matinee. This may be changing, as Wednesday matinees are selling less well. Also: blue-hair matinee, meaning a Wednesday matinee.

Term of the Day: (the) actor projects

(the) actor projects: slang for Manhattan Plaza, the subsidized housing for actors, stagehands and other theater professionals on 43rd Street and 9th Avenue. The building has a waiting list that can last up to 15 years and is reminiscent in appearance to public housing built in the 1970s. The goal was to provide affordable housing for theater professionals.

Wardrobe Term of the Moment: rigged (costume)

rigged (costume): a costume that has been rigged for a quick change, with buttons or zippers being replaced with Velcro or snaps.

Expression of the Day: "It's in his nature."

"It's in his nature"--when a stagehand can't help him or herself from backstabbing others or indulging in other nasty behavior, like throwing people under the bus. This defect has become a defined character trait. The line is a riff on the punchline for the frog-scorpion joke.

Old Vaudeville Bit of the Day: spittake

spittake: where one actor spits in the face of another for comic effect.

Term of the Day: lockout

Term of the Day: lockout--when management locks organized labor out of a job site during contract negotiations. Often the action will result in negative publicity for management.

To my brothers and sisters of Local #1 IATSE who face lockout by management from the Metropolitan Opera on August 1st, I will see you on the picket line.

Term of the Day: "Hey, we all have to play in this sandbox."

Expression of the Day: "Hey, we all have to play in this sandbox." When stagehands from different departments are bickering over turf issues during a call or a workcall, a cooler head might point out that we all have to work together. Often said with humorous intent.

Sarcastic Bit of the Day: "If you like him, invite him to dinner."

"If you like him, invite him to dinner": When two stagehands are engrossed in conversation at the expense of working, the crew chief might yell, "If you like him, invite him to dinner," so they go back to work.

Term of the Moment: cheap it out

cheap it out (v.): to use cheap, inappropriate materials when building scenery. "The shop used pine when building the deck instead of a hardwood...they cheaped it out."

Term of the Day: sloucher

sloucher (n.): a stagehand who tries to do the least amount of work possible, who has to be forced to work.

Terms from Equity: "shove with love"

"shove with love": to push an undertrained or hesitant actor onstage. During a recent performance of a show I am working on, a newly hired and undertrained vacation swing was thrown into a track she had only rehearsed a few times. The stage manager instructed the other actors to look out for the swing and to take care of her. "If she's about to miss an entrance, give her a 'shove with love'," he said, to make sure she gets onstage.

Terms from Wardrobe: "puddle the dress"

"puddle the dress": to carefully arrange a dress on the floor so an actress can step into it during a quick change. The dress is quickly pulled up, zipped and the actress can go back onstage. The preset dress looks like a puddle of fabric.

Terms from Other Unions: Pit Etiquette

pit étiquette: the way musicians behave in the pit. Good etiquette is mostly a list of don'ts--Don't make constant inane comments to your seatmates, don't fidget or constantly move while you are not playing. Finally, control your mess.

Term of the Day: Stro-Magic

Stro-Magic: the prop heavy, often fantastical choreography of Susan Stroman, the choreographer of "The Producers" and director-choreographer of "Bullets Over Broadway."

Term of the moment: "flop sweat"

flop sweat: when producers start to freak out during production or previews that they may have a flop on their hands, so the creatives are directed to make radical changes, adding or cutting songs and monkeying with the book. Sometimes the freak out is justified and the show is saved, and other times the cuts or addition damage the living organism. "The producer broke into a flop sweat that the show was going to bomb and demanded radical changes to the finale." (term from Patrick Healy, New York Times, April 17, 2014)

Term of the Day: to sandbag (someone)

to sandbag (someone): to set a stagehand up for a dressing down in front of other people. To ambush a person, then to verbally abuse them, usually in public.

Term of the Day: "the nut"

"the nut": operating costs for a show. the weekly running costs, including cast and crew salaries, administrative expenses, rentals (automation and lighting packages) and advertising. If a show's revenue goes below its nut, the show is losing money. For example, a show that costs $500,000 a week to run, it must make more than that to be in the black.

When a show goes below its nut, that is when the rumors start to swirl that the show is in trouble. For the producers, the nut is often a closely guarded secret. Backstage, there is often much speculation on how much the nut is, and concern on whether the show is in the red or the black.

Some theater owners on Broadway have clauses in their contract with productions that if the show goes below its nut for two weeks straight, the theater owners have the option of evicting the production.

Historical Conflict of the Day: Scenic Shop Builds v. Real Theater

Scenic Shop Builds v. Real Theater: Often scenery comes into the theater with pieces that don't fit, holes that don't line up and platforms with legs of differing heights. Very often, it is clear that the scenery was not assembled before it was loaded on the truck.

Here are some classic stagehand lines:
"It worked in the shop."...Common despairing line by the shop man sent down to the theater when the scenery doesn't fit or automation doesn't work.
"It's sawzall time!"...when it is clear that the set has to be rehashed. It is a gleeful line, because the carpenters on the rehash are on construction rate.
"Drill 'em out, boys."...the line by the house carpenter when the holes in flats need to be drilled out to line up or to accommodate 3/8" bolts.

Term of the Day: phantom lift

Phantom lift: When a stagehand is pretending to vigorously to lift a heavy piece of scenery and is letting others do the real work. See also: soft hands.

Historical Phrase of the Day: "When's the strike?"

"When's the strike?" When the comedian Jerry Lewis was in the revival of "Damned Yankees" in the mid-1990s, every time he would pass a knot of stagehands speaking in hushed voices, he would say in a stage whisper, "When's the strike, boys?"

Term of the Day: "a set and forget"

"a set and forget"(noun): a play where there is a heavy preset, but no show cues, so during the running time of the show, the stagehands don't have anything to do.

Term of the Moment: Psycho Button

psycho button--when you accidentally or intentionally touch the one thing that will make an easygoing stagehand go berserk. Often, the relationship is never the same or completely destroyed. "I pushed his psycho button and he never spoke to me again."

Term of the Day: Bossitis

Bossitis (noun): When an extra man or extra woman is temporarily elevated to the head's position and let's the hubris go to his or her head, making questionable, imperious decisions.