Have you ever seen a show and thought ‘I would love to do something like that but I can’t sing or dance?’

 

What you see on stage is only part of the huge team that makes a show happen.  Onstage and offstage roles (in no order of importance) include:

 

Front of House:  This role involves greeting the audience in the foyer, selling programmes and merchandise, showing people to their seats and making sure ensuring the comfort and safety of the audience during the performance and Interval

 

Stage Manager:  So you would need experience to take on this job – an SM is the head honcho who ensures everything runs smoothly behind the scenes and on stage.  The best way to gain this experience is by taking on the responsibility of Production Assistant or Assistant Stage Manager, both of whom assist the Director and Stage Manager during the course of rehearsals and performances

 

Theatrical Makeup Artist:  As you can imagine, being a makeup artist for musical theatre is a slightly different discipline to makeup artistry for models, photo-shoots and other types of beautician work since it often calls for quite dramatic results under the harshest of lighting conditions.  You can learn this skill under the guidance of our experienced theatrical makeup artists

 

Choreographer:  An essential role in bringing a musical theatre production to life, choreographers are responsible for a very important part of the show - working out exactly how the talent should move when on the stage (which is usually more than just the dance routines) and working closely with the Director to share their vision of how a performance should look and feel

 

Musical Director:  The MD looks after all the music performed in the show by auditioning performers, rehearsing the music with the cast, recruiting and hiring musicians and conducting/directing all the music during the show.  Similar to the Director, we welcome MD’s who have a show they would like to produce with HAODS.

 

Dancers, Actors and Singers:  Working directly under the Choreographer, Director, Musical Director and Stage Manager - they are the people who the public have paid good money to see.  Most performers start in the Chorus and get their ‘stage-legs’ in a few shows before auditioning for a Principal role.

 

Technical Roles:  These roles include:

 

Set Building – Putting the scenery together usually in 1 or 2 days ready for the performances

 

Lighting – Making sure the performers can be seen on stage and adding lighting effects during the show by designing the lighting plan, rigging the lights (working at height is often involved) and running the lighting desk during the performance

 

Sound – Making sure the performers and musicians can be heard by the audience during the show by setting up and running the theatre sound system,  allocating microphones to all performers and musicians, adding sound effects where required in the script and running the sound desk during the show

 

Props – Ensuring all the props are supplied and ready for the performers to access and use on stage throughout the show

 

Stage Technician – This could involve moving scenery during a show, making sure performers have their microphones fitted correctly, running special effects including pyrotechnics – all under the watchful eye of the Stage Manager

 

Wardrobe and Costumes:  Very few musicals can operate without a team of wardrobe staff and the costume department make up the bulk of this workforce. Tasked with making sure costumes fit the stage talent, keeping them in good condition between shows, and helping actors in and out of them during the show, a costume attendant may also be responsible for choosing the costumes themselves

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Hair Technicians:  Styling each performers hair or fitting wigs before each show – working closely with costume and make-up artists

 

Director:  The person who masterminds the whole production.  Usually with experience as a performer themselves they must envision what the final production will look like, sound like and feel like even before auditions are held.  We are always happy to hear from experienced Directors who would like to bring a show to HAODS