8A THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
KULTURE
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 15. 2006
Anthony Mattingly/KARSAN
From setting up rehearsals to announcing cues for actors, Ann Sitzman, Overland Park freshman, acts as stage manager for the KU department of Theatre & Film's production of *Ansthophanes* "A Congress of Women."
Sitzman dedicates time,energy doing work behind-the-scenes
BY MARK VIEIRDAELER
cylton@ansar.com
Before the actors arrive to paint their faces, the stage lights are fired up or the actors take the stage. Ann Sitzman unlocks the doors to the Inge Theater in Murphy Hall.
Sitzman, Overland Park freshman, stands in front of the light and soundboard. Below her, through the smudged glass of the control booth and past the light grid, she gazes at the stage and takes a deep breath.
"This is where I am for the show," Sitzman said. "Basi- cally, it's up to me to make sure the show runs smoothly."
Sitzman is the stage manager for the University of Kansas Theatre Department's production of Aristophanes" "A Congress
of Women". She sits behind the bright lights and applause, supporting the actors and the stage.
With a headset wrapped around her ears, in her black t-shirt she announces the cues to the soundboard operator. Down on the stage, a branch propped up in the background slowly slides down the backdrop. With a frustrated sigh she tramps down the stairs and props the branch up.
"They need to nail that thug or something," she said.
The branch slides back down as she walks off. Sitzman dismisses it with a wave of her hand as she heads downstairs to wrangle the actors.
I set up all the rehearsals she said. I run auditions. I took down all the blocking. I get the props out. I make sure the costumes are set."
In essence, Sitzman runs the show from her perch above the audience and actors. She said theatre is in her blood and she loved what she did, no matter whether she was back stage or facing the footlights.
"It's just this expressionistic art that shows life," she said. "it's compelling, it's interesting and it's unusual. It's this passionate form of art. It's amazing."
Beneath the stage is the green room, where the actors gather before the show. Sitzman leans against the wall next to a row of gray lockers in front of the women's locker room. Hanging on the lockers is a clipboard that the actors have to sign to let Sitzman know they're there.
"Hey, did you sign in?" she asked an actor as he walked by. He stops, shrugs sheepishly.
and admits that he didn't.
and admits that he thumts " You walked right by it" she said, grinning. "Actors"
Since she was asked to be stage manager in November, Sitzman said the show has consumed her entire life. Between making sure the costume designer is on track to making sure all props are available, she said she had spent the majority of her time in contact with one person or another.
"I had a life," she said. "I just
know I know what to do."
Dennis Christies; director of "Congress"; said choosing Sizman to be the stage manager seemed like a no-brauner after she ran lights for the fall semester production of "Popcorn"
"Ann is doing a wonderful job," he said. "Something about her made me think She'd be a great stage manager. And f
once in my life, I was right."
Christies said stage managing, a notoriously underappreciated job, involved more than simply making sure all cues were on time. The stage manager is a vital link between the actors and technical crew.
Sitzman also has the responsibility of making sure the director's vision of the play does not change as the shows wear on. She takes over the reins after the director gets the show up and running.
Despite all of this, Christilles said the show wouldn't have come together as smoothly as it did without Sitzman's help.
"This is her first time as stage manager," he said. "But you wouldn't know it from the way she has handled herself."
Edited by Matt Wilson
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