Director as Creative Leader

Undergraduate / Graduate

Directors in the contemporary theater and other creative spaces are responsible for leading teams and individuals through complex production processes. A director must inspire, give space to, manage, and guide production teams, designers, technical staff and actors to create collaboratively. This course will focus on how directors LEAD. We will explore leadership strategies in the theater and in other managerial fields such as sports, business, non-profits, and other creative disciplines. We will dig deep into the director's work as a coach for actors with a focus on creating space for emotional vulnerability, risk-taking, and empowerment in and outside the rehearsal room. Directors in the class will guide others in complex, emotional, dramatic texts to uncover strategies for handling interpersonal challenges. This class requires no previous experience but students must be willing to lead the room and receive feedback on how they do it.