I have always held the belief that the sign of a good show is when the audience had no idea there is a backstage.  When I attended WICKED I was able to see the lift that raised Elfaba at the end of the first act.  It didn’t necessarily kill the magic… it just dented it.

As a stage manager I never want the magic of the show I am working on to be dented.  I have yet to count the number of cues that go behind creating CHARM every performance, but it is numerous.  I pride myself putting those cues together correctly.

Often I don’t view a show as entertainment at all.  I see shows that I work on as Legos that need to be put together correctly, every time, to make the same image happen.  The show won’t stop if something gets missed, but something will be… well, dented.

What has surprised me about working on this production is that I am finding myself seeing the magic as though I were in the audience. There will not be anyone who has seen this show more than me by the time we complete our run.  I know the plot, the design and the execution of the show.  And yet, every performance I discover something new in it.  That doesn’t happen very often.  It’s rare for the magic to translate into the booth.

That being said, it makes me even more determined to not take away from this sublime script, gorgeous design and incredibly talented actors.  There’s a lot of stuff going on behind, above and hidden in front of the audience.  But they will never know that.  It’s a magical show and well worth keeping pristine from first performance to last.