ONLINE CLASS:

BUSINESS OF THEATER

This 5-week class is for theater artists of any discipline to learn about theater as a business in order to produce your own work and better understand the priorities for your work no matter your role within a production.

This class might be for you if you are:

  • A theater artist of any discipline (actor, writer, director, designer, and more) looking to create and produce your own work.

  • An emerging producer looking to better understand the nuts and bolts of the business.

  • An artist looking to better understand the business in order to gain clarity about priorities and know better how to advocate for their work.

In this class you will:

  • Demystify the way theater actually takes place as a business.

  • Discuss the differences between commercial and not-for-profit theater.

  • Have a startlingly realistic introduction to fundraising for both donations and investments.

  • Learn about and put into practice budgets, contracts, and option agreements.

  • Survey the distinctions between productions and production budgets from Showcase Code to Broadway.

By the end of this workshop you will:

  • Understand the ins and outs of theater as a business--from indie theater to Broadway.

  • Possess the tools to embark on any producing project in an informed and prepared way.

  • Better understand how you as an artist are pitching yourself to different types of theaters by understanding their business models.

FACULTY
John Gould Rubin

SCHEDULE
Mondays from 6:30pm – 9:30pm ET

LOCATION
Online!

PRICING
Returning Students: $280
New Students: $320
Learn about our 
Payment Plans.

FOR MORE INFO
Learn more about 
How It Works.
For more information, please call 212.840.9705 x215 or email 
espa@primarystages.org.

REGISTRATION AND SCHEDULE

Instructor: John Gould Rubin (Director, Turn Me Loose Off-Broadway; former Co-Artistic Director and Executive Director of LAByrinth Theater Company)
Mondays from 6:30pm – 9:30pm ET
February 24, March 3, 10, 17, 24

  • Zoom Meeting is easy to start, join, and use to collaborate online in a personable way via desktop or mobile without complicated set-ups. The Zoom Meeting Host (your ESPA instructor or administrator) sends out a meeting link and at the time of your class, you just click the link to launch the virtual classroom via your web browser. In the Zoom Meeting, each participant can share their webcam so that you're not only hearing your instructor and classmates but seeing them too, making it feel similar to being in one of the studios at ESPA. Other exciting collaborative Zoom features include Breakout Rooms in which students can meet in smaller groups, “Raise Your Hand” feature to better facilitate balanced conversation, Screen Sharing, and Chat. If you can't log in via a computer, there are also options to phone into the meeting so you can still participate in the class even if you find yourself without computer or internet access. And Zoom has an Apple and Android app, making it possible to take part in class from any device.