Quick Start
Getting from install to live-ready takes under two minutes: one permission to grant and one window to share. Everything else is optional and can be set up later.
1. Grant Screen Recording
Screen Recording is the only permission Stagehand needs — it’s what lets Stagehand actually capture the window or display you choose, via ScreenCaptureKit. Stagehand won’t prompt you automatically at launch: open the Switchboard and click Continue, and macOS will show the system permission dialog.
Jump to Source (⌘⇧F) doesn’t need any extra permission. It brings your source app to the front, but can’t target one specific window if that app has several open.
If you skip the Screen Recording permission, Stagehand keeps reminding you with an inline banner rather than silently failing. See Getting Help if you need to grant it after the fact.
2. Walk through onboarding
The first-launch walkthrough covers exactly what’s below in nine quick steps: permissions, sharing the Output window, choosing a source, the curtain, curtain styles, scenes, and where the menu bar controls live. You can always revisit it later from Help → Welcome to Stagehand….
3. Pick what you’re mirroring
The Switchboard opens automatically. At the bottom, pick the window or display you want to share. Stagehand mirrors it live. Sources rescan automatically every 15 seconds, or force it instantly with ⌘⇧R.
4. Share the Output window, not your source
In Zoom, Teams, Meet, or your streaming tool, share the window named “Stagehand Output”, not your original window or display. This is the one and only thing your audience ever sees: a clean mirror with no title-bar clutter, so you can freely rearrange or hide the real thing behind it.
5. Toggle the curtain
The curtain starts down: your audience sees the curtain, not your content. That’s deliberate: you should never go live by accident.
| Action | How |
|---|---|
| Toggle curtain | Click the button in the Switchboard, or press ⌘⇧B from anywhere |
| Raise curtain | Audience now sees your content, green LIVE badge |
| Drop curtain | Audience sees the curtain again, red CURTAIN badge |
That’s it, you’re live-ready. Everything else here (curtain styles, scenes, output quality, branding) is optional customization. Head to Running the Show for the controls you’ll use every day.