Unit One Induction (three weeks)
The Induction period began on 29 September in Stratford East (on Wednesdays students are in Stratford, on Thursdays in Bloomsbury) with several classes led by Andrew McKinnon about the MA and its various contexts in UK theatre and performance. He also took a series of sessions on ‘Reading (and Learning from) a Budget’.
Dr Fleur Rothschild took three classes introducing academic environments and requirements, covering such essential matters as resources, techniques and strategies for study at this level.
Students also began to attend a series of ten weekly classes this term taken by Julius Green (Producer, Bill Kenwright Limited; Birkbeck Honorary Research Fellow). Over this term Julius leads students through many core issues central to the work of professional producing; and he analyses in considerable detail relevant contracts, budgets, deals, negotiation, scheduling etc.
Units One and Two (four weeks)
In these weeks students moved into some different areas of teaching and learning from those in the Induction; beginning with an introduction to some of the work and methodologies of Theatre Royal Stratford East in a lively session led by Jan Sharkey-Dodds, Head of Youth Arts and Education for TRSE.
As a group students attended three performances -
• WICKED at the Apollo Victoria (with grateful thanks to Michael McCabe and Neil Laidlaw);
• NINA AND SHAZ at the TARA studio (Language Laid Bare Productions – produced by Sarah Clews, a member of the 0910 MA CP cohort); and
• REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL at Theatre Royal Stratford East (Graeae / TRSE / Wolsey Theatre Ipswich co-production).
These shows were discussed in subsequent classes.
Experienced guest practitioners who took interactive sessions were
• Neil Laidlaw, independent producer, member of the WICKED management team;
• Bill Gee, Associate Producer, Artsadmin, recently Producer for the first Milton Keynes International Festival;
• Emma Haughton, co-Director of ArtsAgenda (Rotozaza, Gravity & Levity, Hydrocracker, Groupe Zur, et al );
• Jeremy Goldstein, London Artists Projects, producer of Marisa Carnevsky’s GHOST TRAIN; and
• Laura Kriefman, choreographer, producer, programmer of Tristan Bates Theatre.
Julius Green’s regular classes continued during this period; and Andrew McKinnon took a series of classes on ‘Contracts and Creative Teams’, analysing the relationship between creative producers and artists and looking particularly at a series of practical issues that regularly arise for producers.
Students also experienced in practice some elements of presentation and assessment with the help of a ‘dry-run’ assessment session.
Units One and Three (five weeks)
Julius Green’s regular classes continued during this period, though he took a short break to rehearse the Theatre Royal Windsor pantomine.
The title of Unit Three is ‘Production Finance’. A significant focus was the UK funding / fundraising context, launched in a session led by Charlotte Jones, ITC’s Executive Director. Andrew McKinnon then took a series of detailed classes on funding, going carefully through application processes and forms for ACE / GfA as a representative example of governmental and local authority funding and also looking at some relevant aspects of funding from trusts and foundations, including aspects of ‘the funded journey’ relating to one of his own projects.
Students also began to look at possible projects that they might like to produce, starting quite small with perhaps a Research and Development (‘R&D’) idea or a small ‘tryout’ reading or workshop production, for example.
Again several guest tutors – all very experienced producers – spoke about their work in freely interactive sessions. These began with a workshop from Neil Laidlaw on aspects of Excel. Other guests included
• Karen Fisher, TRSE Associate Producer
• Tim Jones, Executive Director ‘motiroti’.
• Laura Kriefman, on presenting and preparing to pitch projects.
• Katie Harper, Administrator 'Stage One’ (SOLT’s training arm)
• Jeremy Goldstein, on issues involved in fundraising.
The class also attended a preview of TRSE’s pantomime RED RIDING HOOD; and in the final week of term, looking forward to Unit Four, Chris Hill, director and writer, led students through a ‘Creative Beginnings’ workshop, working on exercises about initiating creative projects.
Students also delivered their first Assessment Exercise, which consisted of completing and delivering
• two Practical Exercises (one set by Andrew McKinnon on actors’ remuneration, the other set by Julius Green on theatre deals);
• an oral Presentation on the question ‘How has the work of Unit Two altered my overall view of the role of the creative producer?’; and
• an Essay (1500 words) on this subject with up to 500 words of Supporting Material.
Classes resume on 12 January 2011.
