Skip to content
Coming into viewFormats · 7 min read

Every show has a story before the spotlight

Explore the formats, planning and presentation choices that shape entertainment, from a running order to the way a show reaches its audience.

People preparing and rehearsing a stage performance with musicians, a speaker, and a person reviewing a running order checklist
Formats

Why a Running Order Does More Than Keep Time

A running order shapes a variety program’s identity by balancing distinct acts, audience expectations, and a…

Read the piece

New perspectives

All stories →

Coming into view

All stories →
  1. Why a Running Order Does More Than Keep TimeFormats7 min
  2. Cue Sheets or Run Sheets: Two Different Jobs on SetProduction7 min
  3. The Handbill Before the Hype: How Shows Found an AudiencePublicity6 min
  4. How to Read a Show Preview Without Mistaking It for the Finished EventPerformance6 min
Our point of view

The spectacle has a structure.

We look beyond the finished act to the choices that shape it: its format, preparation, presentation and relationship with an audience.

About the desk