Show Calling and Cue Execution

Calls follow a fixed sequence. A standby is given shortly before the cue and names the department and cue number, for example "Standby LX 47", LX being the British abbreviation for lighting; the operator prepares and acknowledges. Some companies, particularly in the United States, give an earlier warning as well. The execution word is "go", placed after the department and number ("LX 47 go") so that the operators act only when they hear it. Crew members avoid saying "go" for anything else on the intercom, and many say "the G word" when talking about cues. The go is timed so that the cue lands on the action it accompanies (a line, a beat, a door opening), since a cue called late misses that moment.

Positions that are noisy or have no view of the stage use cue lights. Conventions differ: in British practice a red light signals standby (on many systems it flashes until the operator acknowledges, then turns steady) and a green light means go, while a single-lamp system uses the light on for standby and off for go.

The calling script is built during technical rehearsals, with each cue placed, each standby written a few lines ahead and complex sequences rehearsed until the caller knows them. Late, early or bunched cues are visible to the audience, which is why calling is treated as a role of its own.