I am the Stage Manager for a newly formed Community Theater Group.  The first play I managed had twelve in the cast.  This next musical (opening in a week) has a cast and crew of fifty between the ages of 7 and 70.  Most of them have never acted before and know nothing about backstage manners (although I have explained the rules). I am having a terrible time with the older teens who think they are hot stuff and refuse to listen to me.  I shush them until I am blue in the face and they still act up backstage.  The director won't kick them out of the production - one of the teens is her son.  I am terrified that they will distract me during the performances.  How do I handle these rowdies without blowing up? 

I second Sandy's recommendation... grab two stagehands, one for each side, and put 'em on crowd control. The bigger they are, the better. My first job as an assistant stage manager was on a production of Annie. I was young at the time and still learning, but I understood that part of my job was keeping the kids in line. It helped that I was large and not afraid to take someone out of the theater to talk to them. These were also all good kids, but at little excitement backstage can lead to all sorts of things. I ended up doing this sort of thing for that group several more times, mainly because I was good at it. All the kids liked me, enjoyed my company, but they knew that was for the green room and the back halls, not the backstage area.

Good luck!

Thank you all for the great advice!  This is a wonderful website - I'm so glad I found it. I have two large men in mind to ride herd on the teens (one of them is a retired police officer, too).  I have been trying to use humor to keep the cast in line as I am rather height disadvantaged.  I yelled at them all once when I lost my temper at their antics and sounded just like a witchy mom!

Not sure I want to give any of the older teens a promotion to Assistant SM as the two ringleaders are already influencing the younger teens in smoking/swearing/fighting sessions during break time.  But I will try with the Director's son at rehearsal tonight.  I have asked the Director to have these boys make their stage entrances in separate corners as they get very rambunctious just prior to their scenes.

And thanks, Sandy, for the kind words.  I have been feeling rather unappreciated lately as lots of local media attention has been focused on the cast and Director (and none on us hard-working backstage workers!).

My first reaction is to take one or two of the offenders out to the parking lot and shoot 'em as an example to the others.    But perhaps that's a bit extreme.

Seriously though I'd have gotten the parents involved as soon as possible to keep them in their place.  And if they're still a problem the director or someone with the authority should get rid of them.  We don't get "paid" enough in ct's to put up with that. And for all the emotional, understanding and touchy feely nature of what we do there's still a certain discipline and decorum that must be respected and adhered to. Summarily getting rid of people like this is the kindest thing we can do for ourselves.

I don't know how practical this is for the theatre you are in but another possible idea is to post an ASM who knows the show at the stage door entrance. Only those who are in the upcoming scene would be allowed backstage. Once they are done with their scene then they exit to the green room until their next scene.  If an actor is only in one or two scenes then once they are done all their scenes they go to the green room and stay there until curtain call. This works very well for the CT's I work with.  We don't need a sentry.  The actors who work on our plays know from the start what the usual routine is for shows.  Of course it helps that the two diffenrent stages only have one door leading to the backstage area.  Both also have a speaker on in the green room so the cast waiting there can follow where the show is.  Another factor is that we don't so large cast musicals and seldom do shows with children in the cast.  

     Do you have an audience for dress rehearsal?.  Maybe you could have a few 'plants' (theatre friends who you trust to help with this) in the audience who could listen for backstage noise. Then after the show have them come to the green room and tell the entire cast how much they did or didn't enjoy the show. If there's excess noise they heard, then tell the cast.  "Hey, the show was good but what spoiled it for me was all the noise coming from backstage.  I missed some really good stuff on stage because of the backstage noise.'  Another idea and this is a 'mean one'.  Start a rumour that there is a list being kept of those who won't listen to the SM and who continue to make noise and disturb the show.  All those on the list will be 'blacklisted' from being in any shows.

     One time at a show I was working on in the middle of a rehearsal run through an actor on stage actually stopped the run and complained of the backstage noise.  And it was adults making the noise.  After that there was never a problem. 

     Just tossing some ideas out.