Here is a list of characters from The Backstagers.
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Jory
The newest member of the Backstagers. New to St. Genesius, he didn't think he'd fit until he found the rest of the crew kids Jory is eager to learn about the magical world of theatre. And the magical world under the theatre.
- The Hero: A more downplayed version due to character rotation, but the story still focuses on him.
- Naïve Newcomer: Jory is new to the Backstagers, and serves as the Audience Surrogate into the magical world behind the curtains.
- Official Couple: With Hunter at the midway point of the series.
- The Watson: Being the new member of the Backstagers, he has to be shown the ropes. This also serves a purpose in introducing readers to the world of the Backstagers.
Hunter
The main carpenter of the St. Genesius workshop, and he's really passionate about building things! He can make just about ANYTHING with his trusty pink rotary hammer, and he can even make most of it "actor-proof."
- Berserk Button: He has two.
- First is school drama critic Quentin Quackenbush, because he never acknowledges the sets Hunter builds for the plays. He once used his drill to seal Quentin's locker and got a month of Saturday detentions for it. In Hunter's opinion, it was worth it.
- In the character designs, he seems to loathe Stephen Sondheim and refuses to allow anything the man's created onto his stage.
- Big Beautiful Man: Hunter is explicitly designed to be a bit overweight, with a visibly big belly, and is also genuinely handsome and attractive as well as charismatic, confident, and an unapologetic gay flirt.
- The Casanova: His very first interaction with Jory is to dramatically flirt with him. This is lately revealed to be mostly an act, as he admits in the second issue he was eager to impress Jory.
- Official Couple: With Jory at the midway point of the series.
- Real Men Wear Pink: Is openly gay and wields a sparkly pink drill, but is also a master craftsman who can build, construct, sew, and cook.
Aziz
Aziz is Sasha's best friend, and the straight man of the group. More serious, mature, and level-headed one there, whether they're trekking through the prop storage shed or magical wonderlands.
- Ambiguously Brown: While his actual ethnicity isn't stated outright his name implies that he's Middle Eastern.
- Cloudcuckoolander's Minder: Is this to Sasha, having promised Sasha's parents he'd keep him safe.
- Deadpan Snarker: Has a very dry and sardonic wit.
- Straight Man: As mentioned, he serves this role. He also happens to be the only member of the Backstagers who is a cis straight guy.
Beckett
The mad lighting genius of St. Genesius. He can be a bit... sensitive about letting anyone else touch the lightboards, but that's just because he knows they super expensive, and while a totally dark house might be a cool artistic choice one time, it'd be pretty dangerous for every show.
- Dark Secret: In “The Final Blackout”, Beckett reveals that he was forced to take tap dancing lessons when he was younger. He then requests Let Us Never Speak of This Again.
- Gadgeteer Genius: Straddling the line between this and Mad Scientist when up in his booth, Beckett is good enough with his lights that he is able to run a show from a single handheld control pad, as well as set an entire show's light cues to run on autopilot while Beckett runs into the Backstage. Before his transfer, he helped one of the Angels with a "Stitch-o-matic".
- The Grinch: For most of the Valentines issue, Beckett is this for Valentines Day in place of Christmas. He gets over it.
- Ship Tease: With Bailey.
- Trademark Favorite Food: Seems to be rather fond of Twizzlers and Diet Coke.
- Trans Tribulations: He's a transgender boy who transferred from Penitent Angels. When accidentally meeting up with his old Backstagers crew, there's bad blood between him and Genevieve over his departure at the worst possible time. After some initial hostility, Genevieve apologizes when she understands Beckett had to leave for his own sake.
Sasha
A human embodiment of light and energy, Sasha loves everyone and everything. He has a tendency to get into dangerous situations, but his positivity usually sees him through! Sasha is the worst at being quiet backstage.
- Berserk Button: He detests Halloween as a day he sees as one where people go around dressing up and maliciously tricking others.
- Cloudcuckoolander: He largely operates on his own wavelength. For example, he thinks that clowns are "real" in the sense they are a separate species and is rather upset when he realizes a teacher was dressing up as one for Halloween.
- The Cutie: Sasha is absolutely precious... and he KNOWS IT, using his impossible cuteness in the Valentines Day issue to acquire mass amounts of Valentines candy.
- Friend to All Living Things: A bit of ditz, Sasha is more than happy to make friends with tool rats given the first opportunity.
- Incorruptible Pure Pureness: He's essentially sunshine personified.
- Older Than They Look: Despite looking and acting like a child, Sasha is actually the second-oldest of the Backstagers and a junior student.
Reo
Reo joins the crew in The Ghost Light. Despite being a modern witch, he adheres to none of the traditional stereotypes of the term.
Tim and Jaime
Tim and Jaime are the current stage managers and leaders of the Backstagers.
- Hypocrisy Nod: After Tim insists the Backstagers view their homework as their second obligation during tech week, Jaime chimes in they can treat it as sixth or seventh if they please. Tim states they have to set a good example, at which point Jaime reminds him there's an AP English paper he hasn't started yet.
- Passing the Torch: Due to their imminent graduation, they are training Hunter to take their place.
- Team Mom: And Team Dad. The two tend to act as the "parents" of the Backstagers.
Kevin and Blake McQueen
Kevin and Blake McQueen are the lead actors, often the first to treat the Backstagers as less than dirt, and lording over the other actors with iron fists.
- Creepy Twins: They are... very close to one another.
- Hypocrite: They mock the Backstagers the same way jocks would mock them, but the irony is completely lost on them. Until one of them goes missing and they acknowledge how awful they treat others.
- Jerk Jock: Or at least, the stage equivalent. They are to the Backstagers what actual jocks would be to THEM.
- Large Ham: The two are individual halves of a giant ham. They make a production of everything.
- The Prima Donna: They both make rather unreasonable demands of the Backstagers, and even when they give the twins what they want they'll still complain.
Bailey
Spoiler Characters
Elliot Rample
Faculty Advisor of the St. Genesius theater, he was a member of the old Backstagers crew of 1987, as Monkey.- Mentor Archetype: Is this to the Backstagers, through his prior experience with the Backstage.
- My Greatest Failure: He managed to get the 1987 crew out of the tunnels one by one... except for Polaroid, who was too far back, and by the time Rample found him, Polaroid was long dead. The Valentines Day issue reveals that Rample keeps a photo of himself and Polaroid with him, and every Valentines Day he retreats backstage to the lights room to remember Polaroid.
Polaroid
The primary antagonist of the initial run. A ghostly figure haunting the backstage area. His real name is Tommy.- Came Back Wrong: Mr Rample drew him in the sketchbook and threw it off the Patchwork Catwalk. Since anything drawn into the sketchbook affects the backstage tunnels, he came back, although this Polaroid is a dangerous and malicious entity.
- Dead All Along: He claims that he and the Backstage crew of 1987 all died in the backstage. In reality, he's the only who never made it out alive.
- Dying as Yourself: As Mr. Rample erases Polaroid from the sketchbook, Polaroid's ghost's face changes into the normal human face he had prior to his initial death.
- Nightmare Face: Most appearances of Polaroid show his face as a combination of Glowing Eyelights of Undeath mixed with Hidden Eyes topped off with a jagged Slasher Smile.
- The Nicknamer: He's the one who gave Elliot Rample his nickname of "Monkey", from his high-pitched, monkey-like laugh.
Dionysus
The Greek god of, among other things, theater. He either found or created the artifacts of theater in a cave while he was younger.- Demonic Possession: Divine Possession, technically. He hops into Sasha’s body to communicate with the other Backstagers.
