What to look for in software for calling a show
Plenty of shows are still called from a paper book, and called well. Software is worth it only if it does the paper book's job at least as well, then saves you the evenings of re-typing. Here is what to check before you trust one with a show.
It works with no internet
A booth often has no wifi, and a touring venue certainly does not promise one. Anything that needs a connection to open the script, or that stops when a licence check fails, is not fit to call a show from. Cuemark activates once over the internet and then runs offline; it checks about once a month and treats a check it cannot make as nothing at all.
Cues stay on the word
A cue belongs to a word, not to a position on a page. Check what happens when you zoom, or open the file on a different-sized screen: the mark should still sit on the same word.
Numbering copes with the tech
Each department needs its own running numbers, point cues (12.5) when something is added between two others, and a way to renumber in script order once the tech settles. If the software makes you number everything by hand, you will be doing it at the worst possible moment.
There is a view for calling, not just marking
Preparing a book and calling from it are different jobs. When you are calling, you want the next cue large and in its department's colour, the standbys coming up, and the page following you. In Cuemark that is show mode (F5), which also times the run and writes the show report.
It is readable in a dark booth
A white page at full brightness is the brightest thing in the auditorium. Look for a dim control, and ideally a red theme: red light keeps your night vision. Cuemark has both, and its highlighter swatches carry a letter so you can tell them apart under red.
You can step through without the trackpad
Your hands are on the headset button and the cue lights. A foot pedal, a Stream Deck or a QLab cue should be able to move you on. See driving the script from QLab, a Stream Deck or a pedal.
The paperwork comes out of it
Cue sheets for each department, a master cue list and books for the operators should come out of the marks you have already made, as PDF and as CSV for anyone who wants a spreadsheet. If you would still be typing cue sheets by hand, the software is only half the job.
Scanned scripts are handled honestly
Many rehearsal scripts arrive as scans. The software should say when a page is a scan, let you place cues on it anyway, and read the text on your own machine if you want to search it. It should also flag anything a machine read, so nobody calls a cue off a line no person has checked. More in marking up a scanned script.
Your script stays yours
Rehearsal scripts are licensed, and some producers are strict about where they go. Find out whether the software uploads the script anywhere. Cuemark does not: the PDF, the OCR and your marks stay on your own disk.
It runs on the laptop you have
Booths are a mix of Macs and Windows laptops, often not new ones. Check both are supported, and that the book you save on one opens on the other.
Try it before the tech, not during it
Mark up one scene and run it in rehearsal beside your paper book. If it keeps up there, it will keep up in the tech. Cuemark's trial is free with no time limit and comes with two sample scripts: try it here.