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Tools & Templates

Run of show template

A minute-by-minute run of show with cues for AV, MC, performers and catering.

A stage manager seen from behind at the side of a Toronto stage during a live event, headset

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The run of show (ROS) is the single document every vendor works from on the day. Copy the table below into a spreadsheet, one row per cue.

Time Duration Cue Who AV / lighting Notes
16:00 120 Load-in: AV, décor, entertainment Production Work lights Dock closes 17:45
18:00 60 Doors; cocktail hour; roaming magicians MC / Ent Playlist A, uplights amber Two performers, 60–80 guests each
19:00 5 Call to dinner; welcome MC Mic 1 live, walk-up sting
19:05 60 Dinner service Catering Playlist B at -12 dB Dietary codes on seating chart
20:05 30 Headline act Ent Stage wash, follow spot 10-minute reset before
20:40 15 Remarks and awards Exec Slides, mic 2 Names phonetically on cue card
21:00 120 Dance floor opens DJ Dance look Last call 22:30
23:00 60 Strike All Work lights Out by midnight curfew

Rules

  • One owner per cue. Never “everyone”.
  • Times are the moment the cue starts, not when to start getting ready.
  • Print it. Phones die and Wi-Fi fails.
Stage manager in a headset calling cues from the wings at a hotel gala

How to build yours from the template

Start with the fixed points you cannot move: the venue access time, the doors, the meal service time agreed with the caterer, and the curfew. Enter those first. Then add the program around them, one row per cue, working forward from load-in. For each row, fill in the start time, how long it lasts, what happens, the single person responsible and what the AV and lighting team need to do. Use the notes column for anything a vendor must know at that moment, such as a microphone handover or a dietary flag.

Once the draft is complete, read it aloud from top to bottom with the stopwatch running. Gaps, overlaps and impossible transitions become obvious very quickly when you have to say them in sequence.

Versions and sign-off

A run of show changes many times before the event. Put a version number and date in the header of every copy, and send the full document to everyone each time it changes rather than sending only the edits. Ask the venue, the caterer, the AV team, the MC and the performers to confirm they have the latest version in the final week. On the day, the event lead holds the master copy and announces any change on the radio channel or in person, never by text alone.

Common mistakes

  • Scheduling speeches during meal service, when cutlery and servers drown out the speaker.
  • Leaving no time between a performance and the next cue for the stage to be reset.
  • Forgetting to schedule a sound check and a walk-through before doors open.
  • Writing vague owners such as the team or staff instead of a named person or role.
  • Not building in a buffer before the curfew for strike and load-out.

When to use it

Draft the first version once the venue and the main vendors are booked, usually a couple of months out. Refine it after the final walk-through with the venue, and lock it a week before the event. The Academy lesson on writing the run of show explains each column in detail, the encyclopedia entry defines the term, and the vendor contact sheet is the natural companion document to print alongside it.

Related guides, venues and vendors