<p>I just graduated high school and I will be attending a local community college in the fall. I am still deciding what I want to do. I have always been interested in theatre. I have been the stage manager for my high schools drama department for 2 years and I would like to continue to be involved with theatre. I can tell my parents are not thrilled about me taking this path but it is what I want to do. After I finish my 2 year I will go to a 4 year. Are there any good theatre schools in Maryland? What is the outcome that I will be able to do technical theatre as my career? What kind of jobs could I get? I just really need some advice anything would be helpful!</p>
<p>People with technical theatre degrees are usually in much higher demand than people with degrees in acting or directing. And Stage Managers have the highest pay under “Equity Scale”. Yes, it is usually freelance work, one project at a time.</p>
<p>I hope your community college has a theatre department so that you can continue your stage management work (or whatever other field of theatre you are interested in).</p>
<p>KEVP</p>
<p>If your school does not have a theatre department, consider volunteering at a community theatre. It could give you the chance to develop your skills and make connections that may help you in the future. You might even be able to work for pay! Also, keep track of what you do and collect your work to put into a portfolio. I’m not sure about schools in Maryland, but I’m going to school for tech in NY and my portfolio earned me some scholarship money.</p>
<p>Thank you for your advice and the portfolio is a great idea :D</p>
<p>Happymomof1 posts here. Her child went two years at a MD CC and then transferred to a MD 4-year (I believe) to complete her degree. Try to PM her.</p>
<p>:-)</p>
<p>Sent from my DROID RAZR using CC</p>
<p>Thank you!</p>
<p>There is a recent thread called “Help!” and the OP is called Marylandchick. There is a lot of advice on there about schools in and near Maryland that have theatre departments. A good place to start your research…</p>
<p>I can’t help you find a school, but…</p>
<p>It’s easy for me to say “don’t worry” about what your parents think, but I know everyone’s home situation is different. I switched majors in undergrad from advertising to theatre my sophomore year. My mom was OK with it. All my dad wanted to know is how good are the job prospects. I really didn’t know at the time. I was just having so much fun doing shows I didn’t really think about that too much. In the end, staying on the production side was the smart move. There are so many more good paying jobs to be found in production than in acting, directing, design, etc.</p>
<p>The best thing about technical theatre is there are tons of jobs outside theatre which use the exact same skill set. Depending on the size of city you live, you could call your local IATSE office and look into doing stagehand work calls even while in school. You’ll probably start out as a “box-pusher” on concert or theatre load in-out calls. Hard work, but decent money and tons of exposure to professional gear and stagehands. Many of those calls are at night and wouldn’t necessarily interfere with school. Again, if your city has a decently-sized convention/trade show business IATSE could book you on work calls for the Audio-Visual side of stagehand work. Similar to concerts and theatrical calls, but mostly daytime work for beginners. </p>
<p>If stage managing is really your thing, just find your school and as many shows as you can. This way you’ll really learn if you like doing the work. If it sticks, work in the best summer stock program you can get into during your school breaks. After your junior year or graduation you’ll want to get into an internship program at the highest-level regional theatre that you can. Most will only want to do a half-season internship, but with a little negotiating you might be able to wrangle a full season. It worked for me when I told them I wasn’t going to move Lexington, KY to Seattle for 4 months.</p>
<p>Great advice thank you so much for your time! I’m going to look up the IATSE office right now</p>
<p>University of Maryland has an excellent program for technical theatre majors. There is amazing talent coming out of that school with many transitioning straight into DC theaters either before or after graduation.</p>
<p>There are plenty of fall-backs here. Stage management offers good employment prospects and so do production management, event management, and theater management. These other specialties may or may not be offered at your transfer school, but sometimes it’s a lateral move once you start working. If it turns out that stage management is not quite what you want, well, these other areas offer solid alternatives. And in contrast to stage management, production, event, and theater management often offer permanent positions. Moreover, I agree with kyndcookie about the transferability of skills. A few years experience in any of these positions will give you relevant experience for any management job. It happens a management track in theater is actually a very good move for those who want to start working as soon as they graduate.</p>