Term of the Day: flying under the radar

flying under the radar-- to keep your head down, to not be noticed by management.

Term of the Night: shotgun side

shotgun side--the passenger side. When loading a truck, the stagehand directing the loading may indicate that certain pieces of scenery or props should be put on the shotgun side or the driver's side.

Term of the Day: bag of tricks

bag of tricks--a place where a skilled stagehand is able to pull out an obscure piece of hardware, a tool or skill that saves the day. "The carpenter pulled out some stage screws from his bag of tricks that he'd kept from working at the Met 40 years ago, saving the day."

Term of the Day: roll-ups

roll-ups--same-day ticket purchase by a patron in a wheelchair at the box office. Similar to a walk-up, where a patron goes to the box office to buy a ticket. Last-minute wheelchair customers mean the house propman has to pull seats to accommodate them. (Designated wheelchair seats are usually welded to a steel plate and can be unbolted and moved.)

Term of the Day: herding cats

herding cats--when it's impossible to get certain kinds of people to do what you need them to do. "When the tech suddenly bumped up the labor numbers, I got a pair of shoes from the hall. Getting them to do basic work and to stop them from taking unauthorized cigarette breaks was like herding cats."

Term of the Day: orphan

orphan--stagehand with no family affiliations, has to make his/her own way in the business, or anyone in a particular local that has no relatives in that local. "I moved to New York from Memphis. I knew no one. I was an orphan in Local #1."

Term of the Day: bean counter

bean counter--company manager who comes in to a show, cutting perks like free coffee in the green room or "Happy Trails" cakes to save money. A bean counter can actually help to save a financially troubled show, or can just destroy all sense of camaraderie, making a job on a Broadway show a grind.