Stage machinery and rigging

Above a stage the verb that matters most is anschlagen: it is the moment a load is joined to a hoist, when the slings, the shackle and the chain go on, and nothing may move until it is done. Away from the flies the same verb does half a dozen other jobs, and a learner meets all of them. Einen Zettel am Schwarzen Brett anschlagen is to put a notice up; eine Taste anschlagen is to strike a key, and einen anderen Ton anschlagen is to change one’s tone with somebody. A dog schlägt an when it barks a warning, and a treatment schlägt an when it begins to work. What holds the senses together is a blow against something, still plain in sich den Kopf anschlagen, to bump one’s head. In the rigging sense the verb is separable and irregular: Wir schlagen die Last an zwei Punkten an, die Last ist angeschlagen.