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stage-manage

[steyj-man-ij]
verb (used with object), stage-man·aged, stage-man·ag·ing.
  1. to work as a stage manager for: When he wasn't acting, he stage-managed a repertory theater.
  2. to arrange or stage in order to produce a theatrical or spectacular effect: The clients were most impressed with the way she stage-managed the whole presentation.
  3. to arrange or direct unobtrusively or in secret: He stage-managed Mediterranean black-market operations from his secluded villa on the Riviera.
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verb (used without object), stage-man·aged, stage-man·ag·ing.
  1. to work as a stage manager.
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Origin of stage-manage

First recorded in 1875–80; back formation from stage manager
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for stage-manage

Historical Examples

  • Now, another thing: How'd you like to have me stage-manage this dbut of yours?

    The House of Torchy

    Sewell Ford

  • Not satisfied with this, he proceeded to stage-manage the place.

  • She might haul him over the coals as much as she liked; but he wanted to stage-manage the position of the coals.

    The Second Fiddle

    Phyllis Bottome

  • She began to stage-manage my productions without waiting for my suggestions.

    Nat Goodwin's Book

    Nat C. Goodwin

  • A triangular party, when two out of the three share certain poignant memories, is by no means the easiest thing to stage-manage.

    The Lamp of Fate

    Margaret Pedler

British Dictionary definitions for stage-manage

stage-manage

verb
  1. to work as stage manager for (a play, etc)
  2. (tr) to arrange, present, or supervise from behind the scenesto stage-manage a campaign
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012