Theatre Design & Technology - Spring 1982 - 6

A Professional Evaluation of Academic

Stephen Langley, one of America's best recognized authors
on theatre management, wrote "Training for Theatre Management" in the MarchiApril 1979 edition of Theatre Crafts. Langley's article points to the interest in theatre management training
beginning with the 1960's. It was during that period that the
complicated economic and administrative problems of not-forprofit arts organizations were identified. Langley's thoughts
exemplify the present concern among professionals and educators for properly trained managers.
The following analysis deals with the question of quality in
university trained managers from the perspective of professionals in the field.

Existing Training
Published information is available about degree programs in
arts administration. The best known is The Survey of Arts
Administration Training in the United States and Canada distributed by the American Council for the Arts (June 1977). The
Survey lists twenty programs in the U.S. and Canada which offer
(performing) arts administration degrees. Only one offers a
specific theatre management degree-the Yale School of Drama program. The other programs are based within schools of
business, arts administration institutes, or as adjunct programs
between an art department and the business department or
school.
Of the twenty programs described in the Survey, five offer
Master of Fine Arts degrees, six offer Master of Arts degrees
(two are based within schools of business), and four offer Master
of Business Administration degrees. All the programs require
study in the general areas of arts, marketing, accounting and
management. Whether the institution utilizes a quarter or semester system, the average length of training is two years,
requiring fifteen to twenty classes plus some type of formal
thesis or essay at the end of study.
Internships are integrated into many programs and range in
length from three to twelve months. Students may be required to
arrange their own internship, the university may have in-house
positions which act as internships, or professional organizations
work with the institution in hosting interns for a fixed period of
time.
Since many of the programs utilize courses from a number of
colleges and departments within the institution, faculty members
may come from business, public affairs, social sciences, computer sciences, journalism, the arts, and visiting lecturers from
professional organizations. In many instances, a single person
serves as program director and instructor/advisor. The program
director will coordinate the various courses and help plan the
student's degree program.
When reviewing these programs through the Survey and
individual college catalogs, one sees an efficient use of existing
resources and faculty. But such efficiency raises the question of
whether or not these arts administration degree programs are
effectively training managers for the not-for-profit theatre.
The inference that one draws is that the programs are
designed to train managers who will find permanent employment in the professional field. Whether these graduates ultimately working in theatre are properly trained is a question best
answered by professional managers in the field.

Professional Managers Surveyed
Twenty-eight not-for-profit professional theatre managers
were contacted and asked to answer an evaluative survey (see
"Questionnaire" and list of participants). Twenty participated in
the survey: seven by telephone interview and thirteen by written
questionnaire. The purpose of the survey was to obtain opinions
about the state of theatre management training in the United
States.
All of the theatres had contact with theatre management
training programs in some way. Three had staff members who
were currently or who had been faculty members. Nine had
served as guest lecturers. Fifteen of the respondents had hired
graduates of the degree programs, and eighteen had involved
interns with their theatres. Some said their knowledge of training
was based upon their contact with other theatres employing
interns and graduates or based upon conversations with professional managers.

Objective Rating
The actual rating of training in the United States presented a
picture which was not altogether optimistic. Of the twenty
managers participating, only three respondents rated the quality
of graduates as "outstanding" (graduates are prepared for staff
positions of high responsibility in middle or top management).
Five others rated graduates as "good" (graduates are prepared
for staff positions of responsibility but require a year or less of
residence to fully apply their knowledge). Five professional
theatre managers surveyed rated the quality as "average"
(graduates are capable of handling responsible assignments but
lack either experience or knowledge to assume a staff position).
Two respondents said graduates were "below average" (gradUates have a good understanding of management theory but lack
application skills necessary for staff positions or assignments
without supervision). No respondents rated the graduates as
"poor" (graduates have minimal understanding of management
theory and are not competent to complete assignments of
responsibility).

Subjective Rating
The subjective responses indicate five general deficiencies in
training which require better solutions. First, there was general
agreement that the students are exposed to the current skills
through formal courses; but, as a second point, the students
lack an appreciation for how basic theoretical knowledge should
be applied to actual situations. Third, many of the respondents
felt that the faculties of the degree programs do not have
enough professional contact or credentials to prepare and
acquaint the students with the real world. Fourth, the training of
graduates is too general and not specific to the problems of notfor-profit theatre. Fifth and finally, the students in the programs
do not have a commitment to theatre.
In regard to the first two problems, Bernard Havard of
Atlanta's Alliance Theatre Company said that most graduates
he has known are ill-prepared for major policy decisions because they lack the knowledge of how the artist, audience and
theatre's business correlate. He said that many times graduates
think that business acumen alone can solve problems. Such

Kent Neely is managing director of the University Theatre of the University of Minnesota.

C 1980. Kent Neely

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Spring 1982