The Director and the Producer

Christopher Hewitt Zero Mostel

In The Producers (1968)

The First Modern Director

Georg, Duke of Saxe-Meiningen

Before the modern director

The functions of the director were performed

by…

1. The Playwright

2. The Leading actor

3. The Company manager

Creative Director

1. Creates a “new” work from the play

2. Change the period and location of the

script

3. Adds scenes from other plays

4. Adds songs, dances, projections, a

narrator to help the audience understand

the “message”

5. Usually uses a play in public domain

Orson Welles

“The Voodoo Macbeth”

“The Fascist Julius Caesar”

An Interpretative director places

his emphasis on the playwrights

text

Shakespeare’s Hamlet

Laurence Olivier Mel Gibson

Interpretation & Protagonist's Spine

Shakespeare’s Hamlet

1. Personal tragedy: To avenge the murder

of his father

2. Religious tragedy: To cleanse the Court

3. Political tragedy: To depose Claudius as

King

4. Freudian tragedy: To punish Claudius for

marrying Gertrude

Who chooses the play?

1. Commercial theatre: The Producer

2. The non-commercial theatre: The

Director, often with advice from the “Play

Selection Committee”

Considerations when choosing a

script

1. Variety in style and content

2. Taste and desire of the audience

3. Available actors

4. Production demands

Open Dance Auditions

at NSU

AuditionsOpen auditions:

1. Open to all

2. Used in most non-commercial theatres

3. Used to cast minor rolls in professional productions

Closed auditions:

1. Only those invited can read for a part

2. Used to cast major rolls in commercial productions

Function of the rehearsalTurn the actor into the character

Length of rehearsal period

Equity Theatre (Professional):

• Play: 4 weeks

• Musical: 5 weeks

• A week is 6 days out of 7, A day is 8 ½ hour (During the final week, the day can be lengthened to 12 hours)

Community and Educational Theatre:

• 5 - 6 weeks

• A week is 5 days, A day is 2-3 hours

Types of rehearsal

1. Reading (Actors seated at a table)

2. Blocking (Actor on stage, script in hand)

3. Polishing (Actors become familiar with the

role)

4. Technical (Add sets and lights)

5. Dress (Add costumes)

Actor Dominance

1. Relationship to the audience

2. Character’s height

3. Character’s focus

4. Stage area

5. Scenery

6. Costumes

7. Lights

8. Movement

Hello, Dolly!

Full front

Highest point on the stage

Focus of the waiters

Center stage

Framed by the arch

Red dress

Spotlighted

Stage Directions

• Up stage: Towards the back wall

• Down stage: Towards the audience

• Stage left: From the actor’s perspective

• Stage right: From the actor’s perspective

Stage Areas

Strongest area: Down center

• As an actor moves towards the center he

becomes stronger

• As he moves towards the front of the

stage he becomes stronger

• Stage right is stronger than stage left

Weakest area: Up left

Four Production Designers

1. Scene Designer

2. Costume Designer

3. Lighting Designer

4. Sound Designer

Five Departments of Technical

Production

1. Sets (or Carpentry)

2. Props

3. Costumes (or Wardrobe)

4. Lights (or Electric)

5. Hair (and Makeup)

Unions

1. Director: Society of Stage Directors and

Choreographers (SSDC)

2. Designers: United Scenic Artists of

America (USAA)

3. Stagehands: International Alliance of

Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE)

The Producer

• Head of the company

• Chooses the script or “property”

• Raises the money needed to open the

show

• Hires the director

Theatre Angel

• The investors who fund the production

• If the show is a “hit”, they will receive half

the profits

• Chance of seeing a return on your

investment: About 1 out of 10

Hit and Flop

• Hit: A show which

repays the initial

investment

• Flop: A show which

does not

Three performance formats

1. Long run: An open ended run. Used on

Broadway

2. Limited run: A set number of

performances. Used in educational and

community theatres

3. Repertory: Cycle through a number of

different shows during the season. Used

by major opera and ballet companies.

Also by some summer stock companies.

Longest running shows

• Broadway: Phantom of the Opera. 22

years, still running

• Off-Broadway: The Fantasticks. 42 years

• London’s West End: The Mousetrap. 58

years, still running

• The 10 longest running shows on

Broadway are all musicals

Shortest runs…

Broadway:

• Frankenstein (1981): 1 performance

• Carrie, the musical (1988): 5

performances

• Hot September (1965): 0

performances. Closed during

tryouts

10 Longest Running Shows

1. Phantom of the Opera* (1988)

2. Cats (1982)

3. Les Misérables (1987)

4. A Chorus Line (1975)

5. Oh Calcutta (1976 revival)

6. Chicago* (1996 revival)

7. The Lion King* (1997)

8. Beauty and the Beast (1994)

9. Rent (1996)

10.Miss Saigon (1991)

Three Producing Formats

1. Commercial theatre

2. Educational theatre

3. Community theatre

Commercial Theatre

Goal: To make a profit

Examples:

1. Broadway

2. Off-Broadway

3. Off-off-Broadway

4. The Road

5. Summer Stock

6. Regional Theatres

A Broadway Theatre

• Seats 500 or more

• Ticket for a musical: $ 137

• Type of shows presented: 30-40% original scripts, 50-60% revivals

• Number of performances per week: 8

• Number of new shows per season: 30-40

• Start up cost: Musical: $ 25-30 Million

TKTS Booth on Times Square

Discounted tickets to Broadway

Shows

An Off-Broadway Theatre

• Seats 100 to 499

• Ticket for a musical: $ 75

• Number of performances

per week: 8

• Type of shows presented:

50-60% original scripts,

10-20% revivals

• Number of new shows per

season: 80-90

An Off-off-Broadway Theatre

• Seats 99 or less

• Types of shows:

Original scripts

• Number of

performances per

week: 3 – 4

• Ticket price: $ 20 -

25

The Road

Taking the show to the audience.

1. National Company: Carbon copy of the

Broadway production. Plays major cities.

2. Bus and Truck: Smaller version of the

production. Plays shorter runs (1 to 6

weeks) in smaller cities

Commercial

Summer Stock

• Most located along the East coast

• Perform to tourists

• Present 8-10 shows in 10 weeks

• 8 performances of each show

• Stage mostly musicals and light comedies

• Often present “recent Broadway

successes”

Types of Shows

1. Original un-produced scripts

2. Recent Broadway Successes

3. Modern “Classic”

4. Traditional Classic

Commercial Resident

Regional Theatre

• A professional theatre located outside of

New York City

• One of the first: The Guthrie

• Guthrie wanted to create a resident acting

company in Minneapolis

• Type of shows presented: Original scripts

and both traditional and modern classics

Sir Tyrone Guthrie

1900-1971

• Major British director

• Known for productions of operaand Shakespeare

• Founder of the Canadian Shakespeare Festival, Stratford, Ontario

Educational Theatre

• Purpose: To give students experience in

acting, directing, management…

• Type of shows presented: Classics and

recent Broadway successes

• Two types of programs: Co-curricular and

extra-curricular

Co-curricular

• The production program is part of the

academic program

• Need to be a theatre major to audition

• Found in professionally oriented programs

such as at Yale, NYU, Boston U

Extra-curricular

• The production program is an adjunct to the academic program

• Any student can audition for a show

• Found in most liberal arts colleges

• Type of program at Northern

• Program is Non-profit. 70% of income comes from ticket sales, 30% from student fees

Community Theatre

• Purpose: To have fun

• Type of shows presented:

Modern classics and recent

Broadway successes

• Theatre is Non Profit: Ticket

sales and Season Memberships

produce about 80% of the

income

• Example: Aberdeen Community

Theatre