Backstage crew: which light reads a cue without lighting the stage?

A crew member in black in a dark theatre wing reading a paper cue sheet by a dim red light from their headlamp, with the lit stage a soft glow beyond the curtain.

Backstage in the dark? The light that reads the cue must not reach the stage.

Before the show you check cable runs under the work lights. During it you read cues and cable labels at floor or table level in the dark, with a cue sheet, a headset, a prop or a cable in your hands.

Short answer

If the venue’s running lights and the approved cue light already let you read the cue sheet and the label, keep them. If you need your own light: the Nitecore NU20 Classic headlamp, which gives 1 lumen white or 1 lumen red straight from off and switches on without a flash, and the TINI3 keychain light as a second light with its own battery.

See the kit ↓

The job at a glance

Reading a cue sheet, a cable label or coloured mic tape at floor or table level in an indoor theatre, or an event or AV job with the same task, without light reaching the stage, the audience or a camera.

This guide does not cover live electrical work, connecting energised equipment, rigging, climbing, ladders, overhead attachment, hazardous areas, moving scenery or emergency response. The venue’s exit and emergency lighting is a separate system, and a personal lamp does not replace it. SCDF Fire Code clause 8.1.1 says a failed exit light must not leave any area in darkness.

  • 1 lumenon the NU20 Classic, white or red, straight from off
  • 97 hourson 1 lumen white, on one charge
  • 3 secondsafter switch-on, a second press makes it brighter
  • 0 flashwhen you switch it on from off with a short press

The six tasks

  1. Pre-set under the work lights. Read cue sheets and check that dummy labels are legible. Paper and labels at arm’s length.
  2. Show state, cue or cable label. One hand holds paper or a headset, or both hands are on a prop or cable. You must see the exact cue wording or a label on a cable at floor or table level.
  3. Colour reading. Match coloured tape, ink or marks to a reference. You must see the colour of the real tape against its printed name.
  4. Note reading. Hold a page of notes and read it.
  5. Lamp unavailable. Pause the reading and follow the venue’s plan. You must see the same cue or label on a separate light.
  6. Post-show reset. Secure props and close down. You must see the floor and the props.

Your job, step by step

Your venue’s running order decides the real sequence. No source gives clock times, so each step has a place label.

Pre-set, before the showHeadlamp off
Work lights on, checking cable runsThe work lights are on, so you read cue sheets and check the dummy labels by them.
Two crew in black walking and crouching along taped cable runs in a theatre wing under bright work lights, headlamps worn but switched off.
In the wings, on cueLowest light
Read the cue sheetShort press R from off for 1 lumen red, pointed down at the sheet.
A crew member in black in a dark wing reading a cue sheet, lit only by a small dim red light from their headlamp.
At floor levelLowest light
Read a cable labelShort press Power from off for 1 lumen white, with your hand cupped round the lamp and pointed at the label.
A crew member crouching in a dark wing with a hand cupped round their headlamp, a small pool of white light falling on a labelled cable taped to the floor.
During a scene changeHeadlamp off
Both hands busyUse the installed running light, or an owned lamp the venue approves.
Two crew in black carrying a wooden stool between black curtains in near darkness, lit only by a blue running light strip along the base of the wall.
At the prompt deskHeadlamp off
Read a page of notesOur planning figure is one 6 minute block. The small light on the desk does the lighting.
A crew member in black writing on a clipboard at a small desk in a dark wing, lit by a small desk lamp, their headlamp switched off.
If your lamp is unavailableSecond light
Pause and follow the venue’s planOur planning figure for the pause is 5 minutes.
After the showHeadlamp off
Reset under the work lightsSecuring props and the rest of close-down happen under the installed work lights.
A crew member in black coiling a cable in a theatre wing under bright work lights, a colleague winding cable behind, headlamps switched off.

How much runtime does your light need?

About 11 minutes of light across a show, and about 16 minutes if the lamp is unavailable for 5 of them.

Those are our planning figures, not a measured show: 20 cue checks at 8 seconds each, 10 label checks at 12 seconds each and one 6 minute block of notes. One charge of the NU20 Classic gives 97 hours on 1 lumen white and 53 hours on 1 lumen red. Runtime is not the question on this page. The TINI3 gives 85 hours on 1 lumen.

Charge the NU20 Classic by USB-C in about 1h20, and the TINI3 in about 1h30 on a 5V/2A adapter.

How close you need to see

First-person view of two hands holding a cue sheet lit by a dim red glow, a cable with a paper label on the floor at their feet and a colleague's shoulder in the dark beside them. Beside you: a colleague who must not be lit In your hand: the cue sheet At your feet: the cable label

Illustration, not a measured beam pattern.

What you are lighting

  • The cue sheet: a page in your hand
  • The cable label: a strip of tape at floor level
  • A colleague beside you: someone who must not be lit

No source gives a reading distance, a font size or an allowed amount of spill, so this page gives none. Point the lamp at the paper, because a beam aimed outward can reach the stage. We have not measured how far a 1 lumen light shows from the audience or on camera.

Coloured light changes how tape looks. ETC, which makes stage lighting, says our eyes only see the light an object reflects back, so a green light on a red dress makes it look black. Check your real tape under the light you will use.

What each press does

Learn these in the wings before the show. This is the NU20 Classic, which has a Power button and an R button for red.

You do What happens
Short press Power from off 1 lumen white
Short press R from off 1 lumen red
Press Power again within 3 seconds Each press steps up: 38 lumens, 200 lumens, then off
Press after 3 seconds Off
Red on, press R again within 3 seconds 13 lumens red, then slow flashing, then off
Red on, hold R for 1 second Off
White on, hold Power 360 lumens
Hold Power from off 20 lumens at 1 second, then a flashing 360 lumen SOS at 3 seconds. Never do this backstage.
Hold both buttons for 3 seconds from off Locks. It flashes 3 times, then once on every press while locked
Hold both buttons for 3 seconds while locked Unlocks, and comes on at 1 lumen white

Four small indicator lights show for 2 seconds whenever a light comes on. We have not measured how bright they or the lock flashes are.

The TINI3, the second light

You do What happens
Hold Power from off 1 lumen
Short press Power from off Comes on at the last level and colour temperature, which could be a bright one
Hold Mode, on or off 600 lumens while you hold it
Hold both buttons until the bar fills while locked Unlocks, and comes on at 1 lumen

It comes locked, and a small screen lights up when it switches on.

If the battery runs down, or the lamp fails

Battery runs down

Charge both lights before the call. Both batteries are built in, so there is no spare to swap.

Lamp fails or gets lost

A second light with its own battery, the TINI3. It covers a short reading task, not walking or running a show on failed lighting.

Practical checklist

  • Ask the venue whether a personal light is allowed, before you buy one.
  • Lock the NU20 Classic in your pocket. Lock it away from the stage, because it flashes 3 times going in.
  • Unlock it in the wings. It comes on at 1 lumen, and the unlock press flashes it once.
  • Never hold the button from off.
  • Keep the TINI3 locked in a different pocket from the NU20 Classic.

The kit we’d pack

NU20 Classic headlamp
Main light
NU20 Classic headlamp
S$49
  • 1 lumen white or 1 lumen red straight from off
  • 97 hours on 1 lumen white on one charge
  • Waterproof and dustproof (IP66)
  • 38 g with the cord headband
View product →
TINI3 keychain light
Second light
TINI3 keychain light
S$79
  • 1 lumen from a hold of the power button, 85 hours at that setting
  • Handheld on a key clasp, so one hand is busy while you use it
  • Splash resistant (IP54)
  • 20 g
View product →
Headlamp and keychain light S$128

Each light is the other’s backup, because each has its own battery. A small light you already own also works.

Already own a light? Check it against this list.

  • It has a lowest setting you can reach straight from off, without stepping through brighter ones.
  • You know what a second press within a few seconds does.
  • You can lock it so it cannot switch on in your pocket.
  • You have a second light with its own battery.
  • The venue allows it.

Other lights that also work

NU30 headlamp
Red and more runtime
NU30 headlamp
  • The lowest white is 6 lumens, from a double press of Power, for 97 hours. Red goes down to 5 lumens, for 73 hours.
  • Hold Power from off and it comes on at 100 lumens.
S$79
View headlamp →
HA15 UHE headlamp
Takes AA batteries
HA15 UHE headlamp
  • The lowest white is 6 lumens, from a double press of Power. An alkaline AA battery is included and gives 82 hours at that setting.
  • Hold Power from off and it comes on at 100 lumens.
S$69
View headlamp →
Tube 2.0 keychain light
Lowest price
Tube 2.0 keychain light
  • A short press gives 1 lumen white. A second press within 3 seconds jumps to 55 lumens.
  • Unlocking it also starts at 55 lumens, and it has no red.
S$15
View light →

Runtimes are for the setting and battery listed.

What the handbooks say

The UCF handbook is one teaching theatre’s procedure, not a rule for every venue. None of these sources used or endorse Nitecore gear.

Questions

Red or white backstage?

The NU20 Classic starts at 1 lumen in both. Short press R from off for red and short press Power for white. We have not measured which colour shows less from the audience or on camera, so we do not say either one does.

Will it flash when I switch it on?

Not the NU20 Classic. A short press from off gives 1 lumen, white or red. Never hold the button from off, because that route reaches a flashing SOS. See What each press does.

Can I use my phone?

A phone takes one hand, and a lamp on your head leaves both free for a prop or a cable. We have not measured how much light a phone screen throws, so we cannot compare it with a lamp.

Does glow tape do the job?

The one handbook we read says it does not belong in the dark areas. See What the handbooks say, and ask your stage manager.

Is this light certified for hazardous areas?

No. None of the lights on this page is certified for explosive atmospheres. The instructions for the NU20 Classic, TINI3, NU30 and HA15 say not to use the light on flammable or explosive materials, and the Tube 2.0 instructions say nothing either way.

The venue has running lights, do I need this?

If the running lights and the approved cue light already let you read the cue sheet and the label, keep them and buy nothing. Check an owned light against the list in the kit section.

What does this guide not cover?

It covers reading a cue sheet, a cable label or coloured tape at floor or table level. The list of what it leaves out is in The job at a glance.

Questions about your own gear? Contact the team.

Sources and credits

  1. Theatre UCF Stage Management Handbook, revised August 2026: tools, running lights, glow tape and pre-set. cah.ucf.edu
  2. ETC, BluesSystem running lights. etcconnect.com
  3. ETC, Stage lighting design part 6: colour. blog.etcconnect.com
  4. SCDF, Fire Code 2023, clause 8.1 exit lighting and exit sign. scdf.gov.sg
  5. Nitecore, NU20 Classic manual. nitecore.com
  6. Nitecore, TINI3 manual. nitecore.com
  7. Nitecore, NU30 manual. nitecore.com
  8. Nitecore, HA15 UHE manual. nitecore.com
  9. Nitecore, Tube 2.0 manual. nitecore.com
  10. Nitecore Singapore, product pages and prices, 6 October 2026. nitecore.sg

This is a buying guide for small lights, not a stage management or safety procedure. The venue’s running lights, exit lighting and cue system are the venue’s responsibility. None of these lights is certified for hazardous atmospheres.

We have not tested these lights in a theatre. The switching figures are from our product documents.

Scene illustrations on this page were created for this guide and do not show a specific venue or production.

Last reviewed 6 October 2026.