Event Run of Show
On the day, the planner becomes a bottleneck the moment anyone has to ask a question. The run of show exists to make the answers findable without you: every cue timed, every cue owned by a named person, and the recovery written for the three things most likely to slip. It is also the document nobody reads in full — so it ships in extracts, one per supplier.
What This Skill Produces
- The master timeline — cue by cue, with clock time, duration, owner, and the trigger that starts it
- Load-in and load-out schedule — sequenced by dependency, which is where most overruns are actually born
- Supplier extracts — the same timeline filtered to what each supplier needs, because nobody reads 14 pages
- Contingency triggers — the three or four most likely slips, with the decision rule and who makes the call
- The contact sheet — every supplier's on-the-day person and number, not the account manager
- The cut list — what gets dropped, in order, if the schedule runs long
Required Inputs
Ask for these if not provided:
- The event — type, date, venue, headcount, and the format
- The fixed points — what cannot move: doors, speeches, a broadcast slot, a licence end time, sunset
- The suppliers — who is involved, when they need access, and how long they need
- The venue constraints — access times, noise curfew, lift capacity, licence hours, security requirements
- Who decides on the day — the single person who makes the call when something slips
Framework: Fixed Points, Dependencies, Then Everything Else
- Place the immovable points first. Doors, the broadcast window, the ceremony, the curfew. Everything else is scheduled around them, not the reverse.
- Build load-in backwards from the first fixed point. Rig before lighting focus, focus before sound check, sound check before doors. Sequencing by dependency, not by supplier convenience.
- Give every cue an owner and a trigger. Not 'music starts' but 'DJ starts walk-in music on Sarah's cue from the back of house'. A cue with no named owner does not happen.
- Build in float where it is cheap. Ten minutes before a fixed point is worth an hour anywhere else.
- Write the contingencies before the day. Speaker late, rain, AV failure, over-running speeches — decision rule and decider, agreed in advance.
- Publish extracts. Each supplier gets their own rows plus the fixed points. The full document is for the core team only.
- Name one decider. Two people empowered to make calls on the day is worse than none.
Output Format
Run of show: [event] · [date] · [venue] · v[n]
Fixed points: [time — what] · [time — what] · Curfew: [time] · Decider on the day: [name, number]
Load-in
| Time |
Activity |
Supplier |
Owner |
Depends on |
Done |
Show
| Time |
Dur |
Cue |
Trigger |
Owner |
Notes |
| [18:30] |
[30m] |
Doors, walk-in music |
[Venue confirms room clear] |
[name] |
|
Load-out
| Time |
Activity |
Supplier |
Owner |
Depends on |
Contingencies
| If this happens |
Trigger point |
We do this |
Decider |
| [speaker late] |
[5 min before slot] |
[swap to next segment] |
[name] |
Cut list — if running long, drop in this order: 1. [item] 2. [item] 3. [item]
Contacts — [role · name · mobile], on-the-day people only
Supplier extracts issued: [supplier — rows — sent date]
Venue licensing, capacity, curfew and safety requirements are set by the venue and local authority — confirm them directly rather than relying on a schedule. Where an event involves crowd safety, temporary structures, or licensed activity, competent safety advice is required.
Quality Checks
Anti-Patterns
- Cues with no owner. 'The music starts' describes a hope.
- Scheduling load-in by supplier convenience. Produces four vans and one lift at 8am.
- Sending 14 pages to every supplier. Nobody reads it, so nobody follows it.
- No float before fixed points. One small slip cascades into the ceremony.
- Inventing contingencies on the day. The worst decisions are made under time pressure by whoever is nearest.
- Two deciders. Guarantees a stalled decision at the moment one is needed.
- Account-manager numbers on the contact sheet. They are not at the venue on a Saturday.
Example Trigger Phrases
- "Write a run of show for a 200-person launch event"
- "Build the day-of timeline for this conference"
- "What order should load-in happen in?"
- "Write contingency plans for our outdoor event"
- "Create a production schedule for the gala"
1---2name: event-run-of-show3description: Build the minute-by-minute run of show that lets an event run without the planner being asked anything — every cue, who owns it, what happens if it slips, and the version each supplier actually needs. Use when asked to write a run of show, event schedule, show flow, or production schedule, or to prepare the day-of timeline for a conference, wedding, launch, or gala. Produces the master timeline with owners and cues, the load-in and load-out schedule, the supplier-specific extracts, the contingency triggers, and the on-the-day contact sheet.4---5
6# Event Run of Show
7
8On the day, the planner becomes a bottleneck the moment anyone has to ask a question. The run of show exists to make the answers findable without you: every cue timed, every cue owned by a named person, and the recovery written for the three things most likely to slip. It is also the document nobody reads in full — so it ships in extracts, one per supplier.
9
10## What This Skill Produces
11
12- **The master timeline** — cue by cue, with clock time, duration, owner, and the trigger that starts it
13- **Load-in and load-out schedule** — sequenced by dependency, which is where most overruns are actually born
14- **Supplier extracts** — the same timeline filtered to what each supplier needs, because nobody reads 14 pages
15- **Contingency triggers** — the three or four most likely slips, with the decision rule and who makes the call
16- **The contact sheet** — every supplier's on-the-day person and number, not the account manager
17- **The cut list** — what gets dropped, in order, if the schedule runs long
18
19## Required Inputs
20
21Ask for these if not provided:
22- **The event** — type, date, venue, headcount, and the format
23- **The fixed points** — what cannot move: doors, speeches, a broadcast slot, a licence end time, sunset
24- **The suppliers** — who is involved, when they need access, and how long they need
25- **The venue constraints** — access times, noise curfew, lift capacity, licence hours, security requirements
26- **Who decides on the day** — the single person who makes the call when something slips
27
28## Framework: Fixed Points, Dependencies, Then Everything Else
29
301. **Place the immovable points first.** Doors, the broadcast window, the ceremony, the curfew. Everything else is scheduled around them, not the reverse.
312. **Build load-in backwards from the first fixed point.** Rig before lighting focus, focus before sound check, sound check before doors. Sequencing by dependency, not by supplier convenience.
323. **Give every cue an owner and a trigger.** Not 'music starts' but 'DJ starts walk-in music on Sarah's cue from the back of house'. A cue with no named owner does not happen.
334. **Build in float where it is cheap.** Ten minutes before a fixed point is worth an hour anywhere else.
345. **Write the contingencies before the day.** Speaker late, rain, AV failure, over-running speeches — decision rule and decider, agreed in advance.
356. **Publish extracts.** Each supplier gets their own rows plus the fixed points. The full document is for the core team only.
367. **Name one decider.** Two people empowered to make calls on the day is worse than none.
37
38## Output Format
39
40### Run of show: [event] · [date] · [venue] · v[n]
41
42**Fixed points:** [time — what] · [time — what] · **Curfew:** [time] · **Decider on the day:** [name, number]
43
44**Load-in**
45| Time | Activity | Supplier | Owner | Depends on | Done |
46|---|---|---|---|---|---|
47
48**Show**
49| Time | Dur | Cue | Trigger | Owner | Notes |
50|---|---|---|---|---|---|
51| [18:30] | [30m] | Doors, walk-in music | [Venue confirms room clear] | [name] | |
52
53**Load-out**
54| Time | Activity | Supplier | Owner | Depends on |
55|---|---|---|---|---|
56
57**Contingencies**
58| If this happens | Trigger point | We do this | Decider |
59|---|---|---|---|
60| [speaker late] | [5 min before slot] | [swap to next segment] | [name] |
61
62**Cut list** — if running long, drop in this order: 1. [item] 2. [item] 3. [item]
63
64**Contacts** — [role · name · mobile], on-the-day people only
65
66**Supplier extracts issued:** [supplier — rows — sent date]
67
68> Venue licensing, capacity, curfew and safety requirements are set by the venue and local authority — confirm them directly rather than relying on a schedule. Where an event involves crowd safety, temporary structures, or licensed activity, competent safety advice is required.
69
70## Quality Checks
71- [ ] Fixed and immovable points are placed before anything else
72- [ ] Load-in is sequenced by dependency, not by supplier preference
73- [ ] Every cue has a named owner and an explicit trigger
74- [ ] Float exists immediately before each fixed point
75- [ ] Contingencies name the decision rule and the decider in advance
76- [ ] Supplier extracts have been issued, not just the master document
77- [ ] Exactly one person is empowered to make calls on the day
78
79## Anti-Patterns
80- **Cues with no owner.** 'The music starts' describes a hope.
81- **Scheduling load-in by supplier convenience.** Produces four vans and one lift at 8am.
82- **Sending 14 pages to every supplier.** Nobody reads it, so nobody follows it.
83- **No float before fixed points.** One small slip cascades into the ceremony.
84- **Inventing contingencies on the day.** The worst decisions are made under time pressure by whoever is nearest.
85- **Two deciders.** Guarantees a stalled decision at the moment one is needed.
86- **Account-manager numbers on the contact sheet.** They are not at the venue on a Saturday.
87
88## Example Trigger Phrases
89- "Write a run of show for a 200-person launch event"
90- "Build the day-of timeline for this conference"
91- "What order should load-in happen in?"
92- "Write contingency plans for our outdoor event"
93- "Create a production schedule for the gala"
Mohit Aggarwal