Flourishing Opportunities in Producing/Theatre Management at the URTAs

01November

Flourishing Opportunities in Producing/Theatre Management at the URTAs

One of the categories of recruiting at the annual URTAs is Producing/Theatre Management. We’re often asked by candidates what that area of study encompasses. The answer is, a whole lot. Whether your interest is marketing, development, executive leadership, arts advocacy, producing, or entrepreneurship, a graduate degree can put you on the path to the career you’re imagining.

At the URTAs in January, five of our member schools will be recruiting MFA candidates in Producing/Theatre Management, including CalArts, Cal State Long Beach, University of Connecticut, Florida State University, and Wayne State University, along with Guest Recruiter Brooklyn College. Each of these programs has a unique focus and pedagogy, providing an incredibly diverse range of programs for potential students to interview with and choose from.

Florida State’s program provides practical training and hands-on experience in a working educational theatre environment, providing in-depth knowledge of all aspects of producing and presenting theatre, as well as an understanding of management principles, personnel management, marketing and fundraising, event planning, and finances.

With a specialization in Producing, CalArts trains creative producers to work with highly developed aesthetics, so that they can recognize and champion original and significant work and invent new ways to support such work.

Cal State Long Beach offers a joint MFA/MBA degree that focuses on both arts administration and business for professional careers in arts management—in performing and exhibiting arts organizations, as well as arts service organizations, government, funding agencies, and arts councils.

University of Connecticut’s online Arts Administration program (which will graduate its first class in 2018) is designed for individuals currently working in the field who wish to expand their knowledge base or advance their careers, trustees who find themselves with new oversight roles, and young professionals that desire to enter the arts administration field. Frank Mack, Associate Professor at UConn, says the most important characteristic they look for in candidates is passion, “All the skill development and conceptual learning we can provide means nothing if the student isn’t passionate about theatre. The real currency of professional theatre companies, large and small, is the commitment of the people doing the work; on stage, back stage — and in the conference and board rooms. Theatre managers need just as much commitment to the art form as theatre artists. It’s that devotion that will see successful managers through good times and bad, and provides the personal satisfaction a career as a theatre manager offers.”

This year, URTA candidate interviews for Producing/Theatre Management will take place in New York City (interviews had previously been held in Chicago) on January 22nd. Best of all, with URTA’s Candidate Award in Arts Leadership, registration for the URTAs is free for all candidates in Producing/Theatre Management. They receive free admission to all Continuing Education events as well.

Mack finds recruiting through the URTAs a uniquely valuable tool, “URTA is a great opportunity for us to meet the candidates in person. Just as directors seek to cast the ideal actor for each role, we seek to bring students who ideally fit our philosophy and curriculum. At URTA, we can mutually assess if UConn is the best choice, based on a shared love for theatre, and shared views on how to engage in advanced teaching and learning in theatre administration.”

Brooklyn College will be a Guest Recruiter at the URTAs in January. Their MFA Performing Arts Management program may be completed (on a full-time basis) in two years. However, candidates must also complete at least three semester-long externships served with leading professional organizations, under the approval and guidance of the program director, Dr. Tobie Stein. Stein echoes the desire of finding individuals with a passion for leading arts institutions but also, “I look for students with some professional background (at least one professional internship), strong writing and math, and verbal communication skills.”

We asked Joe Kvoriak of Wayne State University, what type of skills should MFAs in Arts Management leave graduate school with? Kvoriak replied, “I make sure the students graduate with a firm grasp of how to create—and more importantly, manage/execute—marketing plans, work in a team to solve problems, plan events, develop and retain audiences, and with an understanding of how to read financial documents to make informed decisions, and generally feel prepared to join an organization at a leadership level.”

Stein echoes that sentiment for Brooklyn College’s MFAs, “The goal is to graduate students who are immediately qualified to assume specialized administrative positions with professional arts organizations and, importantly, students who will eventually assume leading management positions in the field.”

Here are just a few examples of MFAs from these schools who have done just that!

• Rachel Maize (CSU Long Beach) – Production Coordinator Oregon Shakespeare Festival

• Meredith Lynsey Schade (CalArts) Commercial theatre producer (Tony award for Vanya and Sonya and Masha and Spike)

• Bil Schroeder (Wayne State) Director of Marketing and Communications at South Coast Rep.

• Lauren Sherwood (FSU) Producing Artistic Director, The Wilton Playshop

• Paul Tetreault (Brooklyn College) Producing Director, Ford’s Theatre

• Michael Vanderbilt (CalArts) FX Production Supervisor, Dreamworks Animation

If you’d like to register for the URTAs, click here!

Posted by URTA  Posted on 01 Nov 
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