Cue (theatrical) - Cue Order

Cue Order

Cues have established numbers, generally starting from 1 and progressing in integers. If an extra cue is added after the initial list is set, it may be divided by a decimal or a letter. for example, a sequence may go 37, 37.3, 37.7 or 51A, 51B, 51C. It is rare for two decimal digits to be used (like 12.45, 12.46,) particularly as some lighting boards only allow one decimal digit. Show control systems, however, allow and frequently use multiple decimal places as well as digits especially since MIDI Show Control allows an almost unlimited number. An example is 12.46.128.39.

In some systems, lighting, sound, and rail, etc. cues each have their own sequence. In this case, a stage manager would call, for example, Lights 1, Sound 1, Lights 2, Rail 1, Lights 3, etc. In other systems, the cues are arranged together, so that what the stage manager calls is sequential. In this system they might call Lights 1, Sound 2, Lights 3. It is acceptable in this system for there to be gaps in one discipline's cue stack. In this system, it is sometimes also acceptable for a single cue to control two or more separate actions. For example, a stage manager may call "Lights and sound 45" if the two are supposed to go simultaneously. Many show control systems are also easily capable of this sort of simultaneous cueing ability.