MA Production Management

From planning tours, transfers, construction and production schedules to overseeing budgets and conducting risk assessments, you’ll explore the essential aspects of managing theatre productions and live events.

Working within studios, workshops and external venues, you’ll develop a deep understanding of the materials and processes used in a professional environment – including working within H&S guidelines and creating technical drawings in CAD.

Specialist classes focused on stage management will quickly boost your ability to work as part of a team of production assistants – or as a production manager – on public College performances.

Collaboration is at the heart of this course. In your RWCMD placements or on those with our industry partners, you’ll learn about different creative disciplines and get a real feel for what it’s like to be a member of a production support team – all in readiness for life after graduation.

The course ends with a public exhibition of your cohort’s work in Cardiff and then for four days on London’s South Bank, which includes an industry night for an invited audience of potential employers

• In this course with hands-on training at its core, you’ll develop and apply your existing knowledge and skills to an advanced specialist field of study at a professional level.
  

• You’ll gain, through the breadth of projects and classwork, a comprehensive understanding of the theoretical and practical principles of managing live productions – making you highly desirable to employers.
  

• Our full-time staff and the visiting lecturers are all practitioners still working in industry, with both national and international profiles. They bring the most current best practices to your training.
  

• As part of our in-house theatre company, you can gain real-world experience throughout the course and gain a deep understanding of what working in a live performance environment is really like. You’ll have the chance to develop a full national tour plan, complete technical drawings in CAD, and take on a senior leadership role in managing a College production (which includes duties like budget control and H&S risk assessments).

• You’ll also have the opportunity to secure placements with some of the leading production companies, such as Bad Wolf, BBC Wales and WNO. Our production and design department also offers placements with leading theatre and opera companies across the UK. 
  

• We’re leading the way in state-of-the-art theatre technology, and you’ll have access to all of our facilities, such as our design studio spaces, prop workshops/paint shop, designated CAD studio, editing suites and large-scale construction and scenic art workshops.
  

• The small cohort size and high level of staff support means that you’re learning in a nurturing and safe working environment.

• Masterclass presentations run throughout the course, delivered by leading international practitioners. Designed to complement individual specialist study needs, these classes allow you to develop a comprehensive appreciation of excellence, multidisciplinary practice and performance collaboration. 
  

• You’ll take part in scheduled visits to local theatre companies, offering additional insight into the industry at work. When major productions visit Cardiff, we’ll try to arrange visits and organise a tour or talk for your cohort.