THEATRE PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT

Kick things off by meeting your instructor and seeing what we’ve prepared. We’ll break down the course, the assignments, and the final project, so you know exactly what’s ahead.

• Meet your instructor
• Course structure 
• Assignments & final project overview

Get a clear, practical overview of how productions come together — from teams and timelines to venues and real-world constraints.

• Unpacking the backstage & design processes
• Job roles, departments & what to expect
• Understanding timelines & key milestones
• Differences in disciplines: Theatre, Dance, Opera & Musicals 
• Venue pros & cons 

Assignment #1: Case Study
Based on an existing venue, create an overview of considerations and constraints for a potential production.

Learn how to guide creative teams, balance vision with reality, and turn ambitious ideas into workable production plans.

• Creative team roles: Where they fit in & why 
• Final design parameters & what to look out for
• Unrealistic designs & potentially dangerous design elements
• Managing creative differences
• Offering creative solutions & identifying key parts
• Workshop #1: Brainstorming ways to navigate a scenario

Break down physical design into what’s achievable — aligning creative ideas with budget, time, and the right people to build them.

• Initial design considerations: Roles & departments
• Tour considerations for performances in rep
• Time management for costing
• Targeting builders & suppliers
• Materials, tendering processes, fabrication briefs, elements lists, drawings
• Workshop #2: Assessing design elements

Assignment #2: Tender Pack
Based on a design provided, create a tender pack for building a show.

Understand how to approach complex effects safely and realistically — and decide when “big ideas” make sense for your production.

• Types of effects & what they entail
• Choosing the best effects for your production
• How & when to involve creative teams
• Considerations for engaging with effects professionals
• Identifying the need for departments
• Workshop #3: Assessing designs

Learn how to choose, manage, and collaborate with contractors so your production runs smoothly. Get it right — and they’ll be your most reliable assets. Get it wrong — and it can derail the whole show.

• Who to approach & why 
• Choosing your contractors & freelancers
• Managing changes midway through builts
• Hiring equipment & spaces
• What to expect on work completion 
• Scenery & prop load-ins 

Assignment #3: Load-In Method Statement
Based on designs, information and drawings provided, create a load-in method statement.

Get a working understanding of key technical departments and how to coordinate them without losing time, budget, or sanity.

• Lighting (LX), sound & video
• Costume & WHAM
• Props & armory
• Stage management
• What to look out for

Plan time and money professionally — building schedules and budgets that can handle the unexpected (because something always comes up).

• Scheduling, contingency planning & time buffers
• Cost forecasting & estimations
• Budgeting for different departments
• Union agreements & best practices for welfare and safety

Assignment #4: Budget
Build a budget for a show/set including appropriate contingencies.

Turn health and safety into a practical tool, not a checkbox. Learn how it supports both creativity and production success.

• Writing risk assessments & method statements (RAMS)
• What to include in RAMS 
• Reporting incidents & accidents
• CDM, LOLER, PUWER, IOSH & other acronyms
• The yellow book & why it's so important

Assignment #5: RAMS Pack
Write a RAMS pack for a specific installation.

Navigate the realities of running a show from maintenance and storage to documenting and improving future productions.

• Retainers & contracts: Expectations of a PM through a run
• Preserving scenery & props: Storage after a run
• Working in rep
• Pitfalls of different types of scenery
• Documenting running information for show bibles
• Reporting & debriefing a production

Prepare for when things go wrong (they will). Learn how to respond quickly, calmly, and effectively in live production scenarios.

• Show stops & how to plan for them
• How to react & who to rely on
• Moving scenery & automation
• Illness, injury & staff cover
• Venue issues
• Touring & shipping problems

Assignment #6: Show-Stop Plan
Create a show-stop plan for a hypothetical production.

Understand how to scale productions across venues and teams, managing tours, transfers, and multiple stakeholders simultaneously.

• Co-pros & hires
• Touring & how to advance a tour
• Transfers: Your own & picking up another PM’s show
• Show bibles & record keeping 

Assignment #7: Show Bible
Create a template for a show bible for a hypothetical production.

Build a clear path into production management: from finding the right roles to negotiating contracts and growing your network.

• Career paths in production management
• Building reputation & brand
• Working internationally
• Negotiating contracts & what to look out for
• Judging production size & making time estimations 
• Industry connections & networking events

Final Project: Production Managers Handbook
Build a handbook including a parameters and design timeline; white card report, final model report and fabrication briefs; production costing; staffing plan and trucking schedule; a rehearsal and production schedule; health and safety pack; suppliers lists and key contacts; storage and disposal plan; a show bible.