Stage director to stage manager
A stage director already meets 17% of what the stage manager role asks for. The move turns on 26 required skills not yet in the profile.
86.7/ 100
1 How much of what a stage manager is expected to do is already part of a stage director’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the stage manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A stage manager role treats 5 of its required skills as things a stage director already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- analyse a script
- cue a performance
- determine context to present the work
- develop drama production process
- identify technical resources for performances
What stands in the way is 26 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 10 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A stage manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a stage director background worth leading with.
- already held determine context to present the work management skills
- already held cue a performance management skills
- already held prompt performers communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held write technical riders communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held manage prompt book communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held identify technical resources for performances communication, collaboration and creativity
All 10 carried skills, including the 5 the stage manager role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 45 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn adapt artistic plan to location required
- still to learn adapt to artists' creative demands required
- still to learn analyse the scenography required
- still to learn interpret artistic intentions required
- still to learn intervene with actions on stage required
- still to learn promote health and safety required
- still to learn safeguard artistic quality of performance required
- still to learn support a designer in the developing process required
- still to learn understand artistic concepts required
- still to learn negotiate health and safety issues with third parties required
- still to learn translate artistic concepts to technical designs required
- optional, not held prepare stage weapons optional
- optional, not held plan pyrotechnical effects optional
- optional, not held plan weapon use on stage optional
- optional, not held read musical score optional
- optional, not held work safely with stage weapons optional
- still to learn prevent fire in a performance environment required
- still to learn follow safety procedures when working at heights required
- still to learn react to emergency situations in a live performance environment required
- still to learn use personal protection equipment required
- still to learn work ergonomically required
- still to learn work with respect for own safety required
- optional, not held ensure safety of mobile electrical systems optional
- optional, not held work safely with chemicals optional
- optional, not held work safely with pyrotechnical materials in a performance environment optional
- optional, not held ensure health and safety of visitors optional
- optional, not held perform first fire intervention optional
- optional, not held provide first aid optional
- still to learn analyse music score required
- still to learn analyse the artistic concept based on stage actions required
- still to learn write risk assessment on performing arts production required
- still to learn use technical documentation required
- optional, not held obtain stage weapon permits optional
- optional, not held document safety actions optional
- optional, not held obtain pyrotechnic permits optional
- optional, not held keep up with trends optional
- still to learn coordinate the running of a performance required
- still to learn organise stage required
- still to learn coordinate pre-show checks required
- still to learn use communication equipment required
- still to learn work safely with mobile electrical systems under supervision required
- optional, not held operate pyrotechnical control optional
- optional, not held set up pyrotechnical equipment optional
- optional, not held store stage weapons optional
- optional, not held store pyrotechnical materials optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a stage manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 coordinate the running of a performance practise this
- 02 organise stage practise this
- 03 adapt artistic plan to location practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 10 skills that carry over
- already held analyse a script skill
- already held cue a performance skill
- already held determine context to present the work skill
- already held develop drama production process skill
- already held identify technical resources for performances skill
- already held follow time cues skill
- already held manage prompt book skill
- already held organise rehearsals skill
- already held prompt performers skill
- already held write technical riders skill
19 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held obtain stage weapon permits optional
- optional, not held prepare stage weapons optional
- optional, not held store stage weapons optional
- optional, not held document safety actions optional
- optional, not held ensure safety of mobile electrical systems optional
- optional, not held obtain pyrotechnic permits optional
- optional, not held operate pyrotechnical control optional
- optional, not held plan pyrotechnical effects optional
- optional, not held plan weapon use on stage optional
- optional, not held read musical score optional
- optional, not held set up pyrotechnical equipment optional
- optional, not held store pyrotechnical materials optional
- optional, not held work safely with chemicals optional
- optional, not held work safely with pyrotechnical materials in a performance environment optional
- optional, not held work safely with stage weapons optional
- optional, not held ensure health and safety of visitors optional
- optional, not held keep up with trends optional
- optional, not held perform first fire intervention optional
- optional, not held provide first aid optional
15 held skills the stage manager role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role acting techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role adapt a script skill
- not needed by the target role adapt designers’ work to the performance venue skill
- not needed by the target role assemble an artistic team skill
- not needed by the target role carry out auditions skill
- not needed by the target role communicate expectations of fight actions skill
- not needed by the target role direct an artistic team skill
- not needed by the target role ensure visual quality of the set skill
- not needed by the target role evaluate art quality skill
- not needed by the target role find a replacement for stage manager skill
- not needed by the target role maintain blocking notes skill
- not needed by the target role manage budgets skill
- not needed by the target role read scripts skill
- not needed by the target role select music for performance skill
- not needed by the target role work with playwrights skill
Common questions about this move
Can a stage director become a stage manager?
Yes, and it is a career change move. A stage director already covers 17% of what a stage manager is expected to do: 10 skills carry over, 5 of which the stage manager role treats as required.
What skills does a stage director need to become a stage manager?
26 required skills are missing, plus 19 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is coordinate the running of a performance.
How hard is the move from stage director to stage manager?
Its learning distance is 86.7 out of 100, which is the career change band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.