Dean Curosmith, General Stage Manager, Cirque du Soleil’s Drawn to Life
HOW LONG WITH CIRQUE DU SOLEIL:
Since January 2013.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES OF HIS ROLE:
Ensuring the safety of all performers, integrating new acts/performers into the show, leading the stage management team, maintaining the artistic vision of the show and coordinating with artistic and technical teams to create the show’s training schedule.
HOW HE GOT INVOLVED IN HIS FIELD:
Curosmith first worked for Cirque du Soleil as a stage management intern, and after he finished his master’s degree, accepted an on-call position. He has traveled the world managing shows for Cirque and became a full-time stage manager in 2015.
When you look at a show and think, “it runs like a well-oiled machine,” the stage manager is the oil in that machine. It is the stage manager who keeps the show on track, facilitating communication between departments, looking ahead and solving potential problems before they manifest.
“I’m not doing my best job unless I’m looking forward, gathering all necessary information and offering suggestions to the directors and designers so they can be the ones to make the most well-informed decisions,” says Curosmith.
This requires thorough knowledge of the show, and stage managers are involved in every aspect of the process, from being part of costume and makeup fittings to learning the blocking (the precise staging of the artists’ movements and interactions on the set) to calling the show, giving verbal cues to the technical crew during rehearsals and performances.
If Curosmith notices that any of the above has changed for any reason, he has to make adjustments in a safe and efficient manner.
Take, for example, a clown gone rogue.
“There’s a certain amount of freedom that our clowns have. They’re supposed to go into the audience to sit on one person’s lap, then do a little kiss on the forehead and then go back onstage. One time we had an artist who exited the stage and then kept climbing over seats of people, then grabbed someone’s water bottle and pretended to sneeze. We didn’t expect that, so the spotlight operators had to keep following him. That’s probably one of the more unexpected things that happens.”
There are times, however, when a change in blocking leads to a shutdown.
“It really comes down to if an artist changes the blocking piece when scenery is moving, like if someone’s walking onto a stage floor about to become a hole,” says Curosmith. “We’re going to stop that lift from moving so it doesn’t create a 10-foot drop, and we’re not going to resume until we’re at a safe spot where we can continue the movement.”
It’s all about communication, he says.
