Resign from stage, depressed (4,4)
I believe the answer is:
step down
'resign' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'stage depressed' is the wordplay.
'stage' becomes 'step' (I've seen this before).
'depressed' becomes 'down' ('down' can be a synonym of 'depressed').
'step'+'down'='STEP-DOWN'
'from' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for step down that I've seen before include "Resign, retire" , "decrease in output" , "Leave office" , "Give up office" , "Resign from office" .)