Michael J. Passaro has been a stage manager for three decades. In addition to working on Broadway (he’s currently in the booth for “Phantom of the Opera”), he also heads up the stage management concentration at the Columbia University School of the Arts. Passaro talks to Backstage about why that means more than calling cues.
How did you become a stage manager? I sort of fell into it. I was working as a production assistant on “Starlight Express” in 1986. The show was so complicated, technically; it included a cast of 30 on roller skates. They said they needed another stage manager. I had no idea what a stage manager did, but at 23, when they present you with an Equity contract, it makes sense. Only a 23-year-old with no fear would do that.
What does a stage manager do? The role is really a hybrid of a chief executive officer and chief operating officer in our version of a Fortune 500 company. With those two role models in mind, we’re in charge of setting the tone, atmosphere, and culture for the rehearsal space. There’s also the day-to-day logistics of delivering that show to an audience eight times a week.
Is there a personality type that is best suited for stage management?
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