New York Stagehand Glossary

cue lights --lights flipped on by stage manager to indicate cues to men on the fly floor or on the deck. There was a legendary flyman and dr...

a whip-around: a collection of money at a theater or TV studio for a stagehand who has had a death in their family or when a baby is born. ...

"moving deck chairs on the Titanic" --making small changes too late to fix a doomed show. "They made changes to the first act...

(a) haircut --when you cut the top off a prop or a small piece of scenery, so it can be accommodated backstage. "We had to give the boo...

(a) walkaway --leave everything as it is and go home

one-way sense of humor --can make snarky, cruel jokes but doesn't understand them when they are returned. "The acid-tongued PSM had...

noble failure --a Broadway show that receives rave reviews and is an artistic favorite in the Broadway community, but has dismal ticket sale...