Tidbits from a stage buff

The show must go on. . . . In the theater, that spunky adage holds true even if the leading lady really does break a leg.

But just what does it take to make a play happen (strikes notwithstanding)? Veteran Broadway producer and onetime theater brat Thomas Schumacher offers an insider’s look in “How Does the Show Go On? An Introduction to the Theater” (Disney Publishing Worldwide, $19.95).This lively, kid-friendly guide, written with Jeff Kurtti, covers all things theatrical, from what “will call” means (“Who’s Will and Why Should He Call?”) to an explanation of lights, props and wardrobe -- and even why “playwright” isn’t spelled “playwrite.” (Plays, like iron railings, he reminds us, are “wrought.”)

The book takes a hands-on approach, with archival pullouts and inserts that include costume sketches, script pages, a facsimile of a ticket to “The Lion King,” a copy of a Playbill theater program and actors’ before-and-after wig and makeup transformations.

“My mission with this is that I’m purely a zealot,” Schumacher says. “My only goal is that it gives kids a chance to know more about it.” Examples from Disney productions are many, as Schumacher, the head of the company’s theatrical wing, references mostly shows he has worked on: “The Lion King,” “Tarzan,” “Aida,” the upcoming “Little Mermaid” and more.

His informative but informal narrative approach leaves ample room for such tidbits as how playwright David Henry Hwang likes to lie down to write, or how a packet of stage blood leaked all over an actor during a show.

“Inevitably I’m at a dinner party telling the story about the night somebody missed a performance or some wacky thing happened on stage -- you learn more if someone makes it real and kind of colorful.”

Excerpts:

* “The lobby is a large gathering area where people can meet their friends, stand and visit with each other, find the restrooms (a great idea before every show -- moms are right about that!).”

* “Lyricists have to know a great deal about poetry, a great deal about playwriting and character development, a great deal about song structure -- and a great deal about patience. Ask any lyricist and he’ll tell you why that last bit matters.”

* “The mind is like an umbrella -- it won’t work unless it’s open! Keep that in mind every time you go to the theater.”

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Lynne Heffley