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When the Drama Spills Backstage

By Dr. Kirk Buis 

Dr. Kirk Buis has taught high school Language Arts and Theatre for many years.  He also co-founded and ran a community theatre, The New London Theatre, in Snellville, Georgia. 

Anyone who’s ever directed knows the risk of as much drama happening backstage as onstage.  Amid the stress from rehearsals and shows, every director will encounter a problem that occurs from too much emotion backstage.  Several times, cast or crew members have needed mediation to overcome their “artistic” differences.  In fact, twice in my career — once in a high school show and once in a community theatre production — two actors actually got into a physical altercation during dress rehearsal week.

One of these arguments was about something as trivial as who got to carry a prop onstage.  This just shows that it’s difficult, if not impossible, to prepare for all conflicts that may occur during the rehearsal or performance period.  I recommend you take these key steps to lessen the chance of “much ado about nothing.”

Set clear expectations

At the first meeting of the cast and crew, you should make clear what the expectations are.  Whether at a school or a community production, everyone should understand those expectations and the consequences of breaking them.  Hopefully, you’re already using a contract that each cast and crew member signs acknowledging they understand the rules and expected etiquette.  If not, it’s time to start!  But even if you already have a contract, fine-tune these rules over time as necessary to be sure you are being as fair and even-handed as possible.

Elect two captains

Also early in the rehearsal period, the cast and crew should elect two “captains” whose responsibility is to help mediate problems as they occur.  These two should be well-respected, experienced, and have small roles (so they’ll be available at most times) to help others work through problems before they affect the show.  This can usually be accomplished without you ever being involved, unless you want a say in who would be appropriate as a captain.  Although a stage manager may be considered for this role, during dress rehearsals or a show, the SM is usually too occupied to deal with a situation in the dressing room or elsewhere.  It is also advisable to have at least one captain who can comfortably (and legally) enter the male dressing room and another for the female dressing room.

Everyone who has ever been in a theatrical production understands the stress that accompanies a show.  Whether it’s learning lines or blocking, working with a person not necessarily well-known or well-liked, or building costumes or a set under a deadline, every person reacts differently under pressure.  A competent captain needs to be a good mediator and problem-solver to ensure that a production is accomplished with a minimum amount of drama behind the stage.  Captains also should make weekly (or more frequent) reports to you, without mentioning names if possible.

Consequences should come immediately

When a problem too large for a captain to resolve occurs, it is up to you to do what is best for the show while keeping in mind the age of your actors.  If it’s a production at school, the consequences are likely straightforward and will follow school policy.  For the actors who fought backstage at my high school, they were each suspended for three days.  The incident happened on a Thursday dress rehearsal, and I could have waited until after the weekend to report it, but that would have been wrong.  Consequences need to be immediate to be effective.  Of course, this affected the show as our Fiddler on the Roof ensemble was now down two actors.  But the show did indeed go on...  though with an older and more bearded cast member than originally cast!

In the community theatre production of Tom Sawyer, the night the physical disagreement happened, again during a dress rehearsal, I spoke with the two boys specifically involved along with their parents, as well as three other actors who witnessed the altercation.  Before the next rehearsal, one of the boys was removed from the cast.  I did make it clear, however, that this didn’t mean he could never work with the theatre again.  I’m happy to share that he apologized to the other boy and came back to work backstage on another show. 

Consequences must be fair and impartial

In community theatre, it might be possible to delegate another adult, rather than you, to be responsible for any discipline needed.  Of course, that person should still consult with you before making any final decision.

No matter who is making the decisions regarding consequences, it’s important that they be viewed as fair and impartial by all members of the cast and crew.  Consequences for behavior must be the same whether it’s the lead actor or someone in a non-speaking role.  Otherwise, everyone’s morale will be negatively affected.  Believe me, everyone in the cast and crew is watching what happens carefully.  Ideally, the entire situation can be a learning experience for everyone.

With all of this in mind, it's still impossible to prevent every mishap.  No matter what, drama is going to happen.  Perhaps that’s what makes theatre so exciting:  the drama onstage is only part of the entire story.  Break a leg!  (But not literally.)