Directing & Production

Directing a middle school play is equal parts chaos, wonder, and pure magic, especially when your cast list could grow to 50, 60, or even 80 students. The following 10 strategies come from...

Are you the only drama teacher trying to build a thriving theatre program on minimal resources?  Theatre can happen anytime, and anywhere. You can produce powerful theatre experiences without fancy...

Everyone has a “show must go on” story. Sets collapse, lines are forgotten, and sometimes the light board even catches fire. I’ve seen an actor run offstage while the rest of the cast improvised...

A 48-hour theatre project can energize students, build community, and teach collaboration under pressure. The idea is that you have a play, you have your actors, and you commit to being together...

You’ve been there: The cast is fighting. No one knows their lines. The set isn’t finished, and opening night is in two days. Maybe the flu has swept through your cast, or maybe the whole production...

Marketing a production can feel overwhelming. How do you get people in the seats when your audience seems limited to friends and family? From creative social media campaigns to school outreach and...

One of the most empowering projects you can take on in your program is to give your students the opportunity to run a production themselves from beginning to end. It shows students that theatre is...

I love starting the rehearsal process on a new show! There is so much promise and energy in the room when the performers come together for the first time. And of course, I want to focus that energy...

Directing first-time actors is both exciting and challenging. New performers often arrive with enthusiasm, curiosity, and a desire to belong. But they may also carry anxiety, uncertainty, or...

Every rehearsal is important, but not every rehearsal is created equally. Sometimes actors or spaces are only available for a limited time, or maybe you’re rehearsing in a class period. When...

You’ve picked your next play or musical - hooray! The script is chosen, the dates are set, and your students can’t wait to hear what it is. Now comes the next big step: How do you share the news in...

Theatre teachers are often faced with staging productions in less-than-optimal spaces. Whether it’s on a platform in the corner of a classroom or the stage in the cafeteria, theatre teachers have...

You did it! Your performance is done. But we don’t want all your students to just disappear after the curtain closes, especially if you’ve got more performances coming up. This article is focused...

Before the performers arrive at the performance space, the student technicians are already there and hard at work. For the purposes of this article, “student technicians” refers to the entire...

The hour before a performance starts is always an exciting and potentially nerve-wracking time. Everyone is feeling their feels, there are many moving parts and tasks that need to be completed in a...

When you’re creating a rehearsal schedule for your upcoming production, whenever possible you should only call student actors to rehearse for the scenes they’re actually in. There’s no sense in...

Starting a new production is exciting — and sometimes a little overwhelming. One of the first big decisions you’ll make is whether to tackle a one-act play or a full-length play. Both have their...

It’s a struggle to stage a production with little or no funds, but it’s not impossible! If your program is new or small, chances are you’re dealing with a tight budget. So how do you stage a show...