# Spikemark

> Practise stage management: hear a director's blocking note, place the actor on a ground plan, write the shorthand, then call warn, standby and go on the right words.

Spikemark is a practice tool, not a substitute for a stage management course or for the conventions of your own production. Spikemark is not affiliated with any performers' or stage managers' union or association, any play publisher or licensing house, or any school or theatre.

## How it works

Blocking drill: the browser's own voice reads a director's note ("Mrs Hale crosses down left to the stove and sits"). The user chooses the actor, places them on a ground plan of 9 or 15 stage areas, and writes the shorthand ("MH X DL, SIT") in a notation key they set themselves. Each note is graded in four parts: actor, area, move and shorthand, with the miss named (for example the stage right and left mirror).

Calling drill: a scene is read one utterance per line. The user calls warn, standby and go from a prompt book with the cue points marked. Timing comes only from each line's start and end; a go is on time within 0.9 s (Easy), 0.6 s (Standard) or 0.4 s (Hard), and a standby must come at least 1.5 s before its go.

## Content

- Trifles by Susan Glaspell (Project Gutenberg ebook 10623): 5 scenes.
- A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen, translated by R. Farquharson Sharp (Project Gutenberg ebook 2542): 3 scenes.
- The Proposal by Anton Chekhov, translated by Julius West (Project Gutenberg ebook 7986): 3 scenes.
- The Bear by Anton Chekhov, translated by Julius West (Project Gutenberg ebook 7986): 3 scenes.
- 137 invented blocking notes and 56 cues in total.

## Tool pages

- [Home](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/): what Spikemark is and how the blocking and calling drills work.
- [Daily blocking drill](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/blocking/): the free daily blocking drill: spoken director's notes from a public domain scene, placed on a ground plan and written in shorthand, graded.
- [Practice by script](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/practice/): every scene by script, untimed or as a timed run against the note clock.
- [Calling drill](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/calling/): a scene read aloud line by line while you call warn, standby and go on the right words, graded on timing.
- [Projection](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/projection/): class mode: a big ground plan, notes read to the room, answers revealed on the teacher's cue, printable key.
- [Prompt book pages](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/prompt-book/): printable prompt book pages: blocking key legend, area grid, cue sheet with your own cues, and run sheet.
- [Progress](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/progress/): drill totals, accuracy by part, history, JSON export and the certificate of practice.

## Guides and references

- [Guide](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/guide/): what a stage manager writes and calls, in one page, and the hub for every guide below.
- [Blocking notation explained](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/guide/blocking-notation-explained/): the shorthand stage managers use for crosses, entrances, sits and turns, with a starter key.
- [Stage areas and the grid](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/guide/stage-areas-and-the-grid/): the 9 and 15 area stage grids, stage right versus house right, and how to read a ground plan.
- [How to call cues](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/guide/how-to-call-cues-standby-warn-go/): warn, standby and go: when each is called, what the words are, and how timing is judged.
- [Building a prompt book](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/guide/building-a-prompt-book/): what goes in a prompt book, page by page: script pages, blocking, cues, contact and run sheets.
- [Blocking a public domain scene](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/guide/blocking-a-scene-from-a-public-domain-play/): taking blocking for a scene from Trifles, step by step, with the notes and the shorthand a stage manager would write.
- [Stage management class drills](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/guide/stage-management-class-drills/): a five lesson plan for a stage management unit using projection, blocking and calling drills.
- [FAQ](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/faq/): questions about the drills, the notation, the scripts, grading, privacy and what is free.

## Optional

- [Full reference text](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/llms-full.txt): every guide, the prompt book notes and the FAQ as Markdown in one file.
- [Privacy](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/privacy/): what stays on your device (everything).
- [Terms](https://spikemark-web.pages.dev/terms/): terms of use; a practice tool, not a course or a qualification.

## What it is not

- Spikemark is not affiliated with any performers' or stage managers' union or association, any play publisher or licensing house, or any school or theatre.
- Every scene comes from a public domain script on Project Gutenberg, cited by its ebook number. The staging, the ground plans and the cues are invented for practice.
- Any name you type, for a certificate, a class or a cue sheet, stays in this browser. Nothing is uploaded.

## Pricing

Free today. Everything on the site is free, with no account, and no paid plan is on sale in this build.

## Notes

- Support: socialreminderinfo@gmail.com