Prompt book
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The prompt book is a copy of the script for a play being produced that contains the information necessary to create the production from the ground up. It is a compilation of all blocking, business, light and sound cues, lists of properties, drawings of the set, contact information for the cast and crew, and any other information that might be necessary to help the production run smoothly.[1]
In modern theatrical productions, the prompt book is generally maintained and kept by the stage manager.
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[edit] History
Prompt books were originally used by a prompter to much the same effect that they are today used by stage managers. During the period spanning from the mid 17th through the early 19th centuries, rehearsal periods were generally very short by modern standards: a period of 1-2 weeks for three hours a day was common. Performances were unpolished by today's standards, even when taking into account the theatrical conventions of the time, and so it was necessary to have a prompter standing by to prompt actors as necessary.
In practice, prompters were also responsible for copying sides of the script for the company's actors, giving cues for music and scene shifts, securing licenses for plays, and assessing fines for actors who failed to attend rehearsals. The records that these prompters have kept in their books have become some of the most valuable resources available to modern scholars and historians for understanding the theatrical practice in the period.[2]
As audience expectations for spectacle evolved in the 19th century, prompt books were published to describe the techniques involved in constructing complex scenery and special effects. These prompt books more closely resemble instructional works on how to create scenery, as they often included recommendations for simplification for less well-equipped theatres, than they do a modern prompt book.[3]
[edit] Modern Practice
The prompt book needs to be kept in such a way that the stage manager, their assistants, and anyone else who might need to call a show can find any information they might possibly need easily. The specifics of how this is accomplished are left to the keeper, but it is generally necessary to be able to easily add and remove pages from the book in a random-access manner.
The Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KACTF) publishes guidelines [4] outlining recommended practice for the creation of a stage manager's prompt book. This includes constructing the prompt book out of a three inch D-ring binder and using tab dividers to create sections for:
- Cast information
- Schedules and calendars
- Script
- Costume
- Set
- Lighting
- Props
- Meetings/info
- Publicity
Other useful divisions may include:
- Script breakdown by act and/or scene
- Sound
- Rehearsal reports
- Contact information for all relevant persons involved with the production
- Budget
- Contract
Prompt books created for smaller productions with fewer production values may not contain all of these elements. The script for a ten-minute play, for example, probably needs no further organization than page numbers. Likewise, a production that uses a bare stage and uses general lighting may not require sections devoted to scenery and lighting.
[edit] Examples
Prompt Book Artifacts -- An online collection of prompt books used in modern productions of some of Shakespeare's plays.
Shakespearean Prompt-Books of the 17th Century -- An online collection of prompt books used in some of the original productions of Shakespeare's plays at the Globe Theatre.
[edit] Notes
- ^ http://theater.about.com/cs/glossary/g/bldef_prompt.htm
- ^ Brockett, Oscar. History of the Theatre. 8th Ed. Boston. Allyn and Bacon, 1999. 257
- ^ Brockett, Oscar. History of the Theatre. 8th Ed. Boston. Allyn and Bacon, 1999. 346
- ^ http://www.kcactf2.org/PROMPTBOOK.doc
