Narda E. Alcorn, Chair
Stage managers are leaders, creative collaborators, and primary strategists of the theatrical process. They translate, integrate, interpret, and negotiate multiple visions into a cohesive whole, in service of a live performative piece. Throughout each phase of a production process, stage managers serve as artistic partners to every member of a collaborative team and possess a deep understanding of all theatrical disciplines.
The Stage Management program aims to be intentionally anti-racist in its curriculum and in its pedagogy, providing practical and theoretical knowledge of stage management and the other theatrical disciplines. Anti-racist tools and strategies are learned and examined during the course of study and integrated into the practice of stage management. The Stage Management curriculum embraces the dynamic intersection of theory and practice, and recognizes that theory can be an essential guide to how stage managers fulfill their jobs and cultivate style.
The rigorous interdisciplinary curriculum consists of required courses and electives that provide a wide range of knowledge and training essential for today’s professional. In addition to the classroom requirements, students are assigned stage management positions for productions at David Geffen School of Drama and Yale Repertory Theatre. Stage managers are introduced to mentoring best practices, and they are regularly given opportunities to mentor classmates throughout their production assignments. The curricular and production components are structured to prepare the student for work in the commercial, regional, and nontraditional arenas. Many graduates combine their professional practice with formal educational positions such as lecturer and professor. The program of study is devoted to dismantling historic stage management practices that have upheld systems of oppression. Students are encouraged to integrate anti-racism into their daily practice and foster a culture of inclusion where change, flexibility, and adaptability are an ever-present part of the production process.
Yale Repertory Theatre is especially potent because it serves as an advanced training center for the program. During the first or second year, the student may have the opportunity to work at Yale Rep in a production capacity. As part of the second or third year of study, the student may be assigned as an assistant stage manager on a production. In the third and/or fourth year, provided the standards and qualifications set forth by the program are met, the student may be assigned as the stage manager for a Yale Rep production. This assignment fulfills requirements related to the student’s thesis and provides an opportunity to attain membership in Actors’ Equity Association, the union for actors and stage managers. Extracurricular participation in the Yale Cabaret is also encouraged, subject to prior approval by the program chair.
Plan of Study: Stage Management
Class of 2025
Required Sequence
Year one (2022–2023)
| Course | Subject |
|---|---|
| DRAM 3(06)a/b | Toward Anti-Racist Theater Practice in Stage Management |
| DRAM 6a/b | Survey of Theater and Drama |
| DRAM 21a | Founding Visions |
| DRAM 40a/b | Principles of Stage Management |
| DRAM 59a | Creating a Positive Theater Safety Culture |
| DRAM 80a | Stage Combat and Intimacy for Stage Managers |
| DRAM 100a/b | Stage Management Seminar: Process and Practice |
| DRAM 102a | Introduction to Set Design and Design Techniques |
| DRAM 149a | Production Planning |
| DRAM 158a | Introduction to Sound Design |
| DRAM 700a/b | Stage Management Forum: The Artistic Process |
| Production assignments as assigned | |
Year two (2023–2024)
| Course | Subject |
|---|---|
| DRAM 3(06)a/b | Toward Anti-Racist Theater Practice in Stage Management |
| DRAM 60a | Professional Stage Management Practice in the Equity Agreement |
| DRAM 60b | Professional Stage Management Practice in Performance |
| DRAM 80a | Stage Combat and Intimacy for Stage Managers |
| DRAM 124a | Introduction to Lighting Design |
| DRAM 141b | Law and the Arts |
| DRAM 189a | Costume Production |
| DRAM 191b | Managing the Production Process |
| DRAM 200a/b | Stage Management Seminar: Process and Practice |
| DRAM 600a/b | Theory-Guided Stage Management Practice |
| DRAM 700a/b | Stage Management Forum: The Artistic Process |
| DRAM 800a/b | The Call: Yale Rep Stage Management Staff Seminar |
| One required electives with chair approval | |
| Production assignments as assigned | |
Year three (2024–2025)
| Course | Subject |
|---|---|
| DRAM 3(06)a/b | Toward Anti-Racist Theater Practice in Stage Management |
| DRAM 80a | Stage Combat and Intimacy for Stage Managers |
| DRAM 300a/b | Stage Management Seminar: Process and Practice |
| DRAM 400a | Stage Management for the Commercial Theater |
| DRAM 400b | Current Stage Management Practice |
| DRAM 500a/b | The Stage Manager’s Thesis |
| DRAM 700a/b | Stage Management Forum: The Artistic Process |
| DRAM 800a/b | The Call: Yale Rep Stage Management Staff Seminar |
| Three required elective with chair approval | |
| Production assignments as assigned | |
Class of 2024
Required Sequence
Year three (2022–2023)
| Course | Subject |
|---|---|
| DRAM 3(06)a/b | Toward Anti-Racist Theater Practice in Stage Management |
| DRAM 80a | Stage Combat and Intimacy for Stage Managers |
| DRAM 189a | Costume Production |
| DRAM 300a/b | Stage Management Seminar: Process and Practice |
| DRAM 400a | Stage Management for the Commercial Theater |
| DRAM 400b | Current Stage Management Practice |
| DRAM 500a/b | The Stage Manager’s Thesis |
| DRAM 700a/b | Stage Management Forum: The Artistic Process |
| DRAM 800a/b | The Call: Yale Rep Stage Management Staff Seminar |
| Three required electives with chair approval | |
| Production assignments as assigned | |
Year four (2023–2024)
| Course | Subject |
|---|---|
| DRAM 3(06)a/b | Toward Anti-Racist Theater Practice in Stage Management |
| DRAM 300a/b | Stage Management Seminar: Process and Practice |
| DRAM 500a/b | The Stage Manager’s Thesis |
| DRAM 700a/b | Stage Management Forum: The Artistic Process |
| DRAM 800a/b | The Call: Yale Rep Stage Management Staff Seminar |
| Production assignments as assigned | |
Class of 2023
Required Sequence
Year four (2022–2023)
| Course | Subject |
|---|---|
| DRAM 3(06)a/b | Toward Anti-Racist Theater Practice in Stage Management |
| DRAM 300a/b | Stage Management Seminar: Process and Practice |
| DRAM 500a/b | The Stage Manager’s Thesis |
| DRAM 700a/b | Stage Management Forum: The Artistic Process |
| DRAM 800a/b | The Call: Yale Rep Stage Management Staff Seminar |
| Production assignments as assigned | |
Additional Requirements for the Degree
Anti-Racist Theater Practice Requirement
Stage Management students are required to enroll in DRAM 3(06)a/b, Toward Anti-Racist Theater Practice in Stage Management, in order to fulfill the School’s anti-racist theater practice requirement. Combined with the prerequisite workshop, Everyday Justice: Anti-Racism as Daily Practice, this course offers vital strategies for the lifelong development of individual and communal anti-racist practice.
Theater History Requirement
Stage Management students are required to successfully complete two term-length courses in theater history in order to fulfill the School’s theater history requirement. This may be accomplished either by enrolling in DRAM 6a/b, Survey of Theater and Drama, or, with prior approval of the Program chair, by enrolling in two other theater history courses offered at the School or elsewhere within the University.
Required Elective Sequence
A total of four electives are required after year one from the suggested list of elective courses, other Yale professional schools, or Yale College. All required electives must be approved by the chair.
Suggested electives: DRAM 11a, Theater Organizations; DRAM 111a, Functions of Leadership: Organizational Direction; DRAM 115a, Introduction to Costume Design; DRAM 119b, Electricity; DRAM 121a, Human Resources: Supporting People and Building Culture; DRAM 158b, Recording Arts; DRAM 169a, Shop Technology; DRAM 169b, Stage Rigging Techniques; DRAM 199b, Professional Development for Technical Managers; DRAM 209a, Physics of Stage Machinery; DRAM 209b, Hydraulics and Pneumatics; DRAM 221b, Labor and Employee Relations; DRAM 224a, Introduction to Projection Design; DRAM 249a, Technical Management I; DRAM 249b, Technical Management II; DRAM 253a, Commedia.
Courses of Instruction
DRAM 3(06)a/b, Toward Anti-Racist Theater Practice This course meets both within individual programs and across disciplines, with students and faculty members as fellow learners, using readings, viewings, and discussions in pursuit of these goals: to identify the roots and branches of racism and white supremacy in the structures and practices of theater making in the United States, including at David Geffen School of Drama and Yale Repertory Theatre; to interrogate where the practices do harm and hinder; and to invest in the future by inviting students and faculty to imagine and uplift systems and cultures that do not depend upon or promote supremacy, to build a more just and equitable field.
DRAM 6a/b, Survey of Theater and Drama See description under Dramaturgy and Dramatic Criticism.
DRAM 11a, Theater Organizations See description under Theater Management.
DRAM 21a, Founding Visions See description under Theater Management.
DRAM 40a/b, Principles of Stage Management This fundamental course investigates theater making from the point of view of a stage manager. Through exploration of the nine phases of the production process (pre-production, first rehearsal, rehearsals, pre-tech, tech, previews, opening, performances, closing), students learn artistic and organizational techniques needed to professionally stage manage traditional and nontraditional productions. Management theory is integrated into each step of the nine-phase process, allowing each student to identify how their practice can be informed by theory and to begin cultivating their individual stage management style. Required of first-year stage managers. Narda E. Alcorn
DRAM 59a, Creating a Positive Theater Safety Culture See description under Technical Design and Production.
DRAM 60a, Professional Stage Management Practice in the Equity Agreement An introduction to Actors’ Equity Association, the professional stage manager’s responsibilities within an Equity contract, and a stage manager’s collaborative relationship with all stakeholders in that contractual agreement. An emphasis of this course is on practical use and application of the contract with particular focus on rehearsal work rules and provisions. Specific stage management methods and techniques within the collaborative process of rehearsal and tech are closely considered. As a practical guide, this course uses the AEA/LORT agreement as its primary text and as reference for assignments and discussion. Questions are drawn around professional responsibilities and privileges central to the stage manager’s daily work experience. Students are required to consider these questions of privilege and responsibility as they each further develop a personal professional style where active commitment to inclusive and anti-racist theater practice is a hallmark. James Mountcastle
DRAM 60b, Professional Stage Management in Performance This course continues a study of the professional stage manager working in various situations. Looking at specific methods and practices of the work, the focus shifts in the spring term to processes in place after the show has opened. Among the topics discussed in this course: backstage set-up, cue calling, show maintenance, performance assessment and reports, understudies, replacements, and a stage manager’s close working relationship with actors in performance. Serious consideration of these topics is intended to lead to a candid ongoing discussion of practical realities and principles crucial to the notion of professional stage management as a career. James Mountcastle
DRAM 80a, Stage Combat and Intimacy for Stage Managers This course is designed to provide the stage manager an understanding of the techniques and safety measures employed when staging combat and intimacy. Through both group-led discussion and practical learning, we establish how to create and maintain the safe and equitable room needed for this work. We explore the spectrum of staging emotional and physical intimacy, unarmed combat, swordplay, weapon use and maintenance, theatrical effects, inter-program collaboration, and safety issues. Kelsey Rainwater, Mike Rossmy
DRAM 100a/b, 200a/b, 300a/b, Stage Management Seminar: Process and Practice This dynamic investigation of process is designed to bring the entire program together with core stage management faculty to explore, reflect, and discuss how we approach the art of stage management through the lenses of COVID-19 and anti-racism; and to consider how we can identify the characteristics of white supremacy and decentralize white culture from our current theater conditions and practices. This deep learning encourages various points of view while stressing commitment, compassion, kindness combined with the courage to name and challenge racism, honesty, focus, dignity, and respect for the subjects at hand. Narda E. Alcorn, Laura Brown-MacKinnon, Diane DiVita, James Mountcastle
DRAM 102a/b, Introduction to Set Design and Design Techniques See description under Design.
DRAM 108b, Fundamentals of Music Literacy See description under Design.
DRAM 111a, Functions of Leadership: Organizational Direction See description under Theater Management.
DRAM 112a, Introduction to Set Design See description under Design.
DRAM 115a, Introduction to Costume Design See description under Design.
DRAM 119b, Electricity See description under Technical Design and Production.
DRAM 121a, Human Resources: Supporting People and Building Culture See description under Theater Management.
DRAM 124a, Introduction to Lighting Design See description under Design.
DRAM 141b, Law and the Arts See description under Theater Management.
DRAM 149a, Production Planning See description under Technical Design and Production.
DRAM 158a, Introduction to Sound Design See description under Design.
[DRAM 158b, Recording Arts See description under Design. Not offered in 2022–2023]
DRAM 169a, Shop Technology See description under Technical Design and Production.
DRAM 169b, Stage Rigging Techniques See description under Technical Design and Production.
DRAM 189a, Costume Production See description under Technical Design and Production.
DRAM 191b, Managing the Production Process See description under Theater Management.
DRAM 199b, Professional Development for Technical Managers See description under Technical Design and Production.
DRAM 200a/b, Stage Management Seminar: Process and Practice See description under DRAM 100a/b.
[DRAM 209a, Physics of Stage Machinery See description under Technical Design and Production. Not offered in 2022-2023]
[DRAM 209b, Hydraulics and Pneumatics See description under Technical Design and Production. Not offered in 2022-2023]
DRAM 221b, Labor and Employee Relations See description under Theater Management.
DRAM 224a, Introduction to Projection Design See description under Design.
DRAM 249a, Technical Management I See description under Technical Design and Production.
DRAM 249b, Technical Management II See description under Technical Design and Production.
DRAM 253a, Commedia See description under Acting.
DRAM 300a/b, Stage Management Seminar: Process and Practice See description under DRAM 100a/b.
DRAM 400a, Stage Management for the Commercial Theater The focus of this course centers on stage management for the commercial theater with emphasis on process and current conditions in the industry. As a primer for the stage manager to work in the commercial theater, this course is an in-depth study of the production process according to the theatrical unions who perform backstage on Broadway, including but not limited to AEA, I.A.T.S.E., Local 764/Wardrobe, Local 798/Hair and Make-up, and Local 802/Musicians. Laura Brown-MacKinnon
DRAM 400b, Current Stage Management Practice “If not us, then who? If not now, then when?” This course is an insightful study of those next steps into professional stage management using anti-racism as the platform guide. Through this prism, topics include perception and leadership in today’s ever-changing world, ethics, the development of relationships, problem-solving, networking, and the tools by which to pursue potential employment opportunities. Current topics are at the forefront, as well as a candid and honest look into our theatrical practices and how we can proactively combat racism on both a personal and professional level. Diane DiVita
DRAM 500a/b, The Stage Manager’s Thesis Each third- or fourth-year student must fulfill three requirements in fulfillment of their thesis: stage manage a major production at the School or Yale Repertory Theatre; prepare and submit the production book; write a comprehensive production reflection or write about a stage management topic approved by the program chair. Comprehensive production reflections must include a critical examination of the employment of theory and how it influenced the stage manager’s process throughout the production. Written stage management topics must be approved by the chair no later than the end of the second or third year. Both production reflections and stage management topics must be evaluated and critiqued by two approved independent readers. The final, bound edition of the written thesis is considered by the faculty along with production work in determining whether a degree should be granted. Narda E. Alcorn
DRAM 600a, Theory-Guided Practice: Stage Management and Teaching Theory-guided practice aims to incorporate theoretical frameworks into the stage manager’s leadership and teaching process. Theory-guided practice incorporates perspective, long-term thinking, a point of view, anticipation, innovation, and anti-racism. Students are introduced to such theoretical frameworks as Care Ethics, Utilitarianism, Service Leadership, Adaptive Leadership, and Emergent Strategy to integrate into their process. bell hooks’s Teaching to Transgress and Teaching Critical Thinking serve as foundational texts for students to develop their teaching philosophy. Through class discussions, writing assignments, and critical examination, students actively and intentionally learn to integrate theory into their daily stage management and teaching practices. Narda E. Alcorn
DRAM 700a/b, Stage Management Forum: The Artistic Process This two-term course focuses on stage management techniques and experiences from a variety of collaborators. Through a series of classes and workshops led by professionals in a variety of entertainment fields, students explore artistic process and learn specific management skills pertinent to diverse genres. Topics rotate on a three-year basis and include music theory and practice, dance, opera, event management, industrials, musical theater, touring, film, television, theater for children, theme parks, theatrical technology, computer applications, vocal training, and physical awareness. Open to non-Stage Management students with permission of the chair. Narda E. Alcorn; and other professional program lecturers
DRAM 800a/b, The Call: Yale Rep Stage Management Staff Seminar This weekly seminar discussion is required of all stage management students in their second, third, and fourth years of study. Current issues playing out in Yale Repertory Theatre’s rehearsal rooms and meetings and on its stages are discussed among stage management students working at Yale Rep and with the production stage manager. This course is meant to bring the David Geffen School of Drama stage management student class experience into close alignment with the Yale Rep professional experience and to formalize the relationship of Yale Repertory Theatre as an exemplary teacher in professional stage management at the School. James Mountcastle