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Stage Management
This five-day course will give you an introduction into the world of stage management and the skills required, including the art of blocking and cueing to music.

Key information:
- Course dates:
- Course 1: Mon 24 – Fri 28 July 2023/Course 2: Mon 31 July – Fri 4 Aug 2023
- Course times:
- 10am–5pm
- Age:
- 16+
- Art form:
- Production Arts
- Fees:
- £565
- Deadline:
- 5pm, Sunday 9 July 2023
- Level of study:
- Short Courses & Summer Schools (ages 18+) | Short Courses & Summer Schools, Workshops & Saturday Centres (ages 4-18)
- Mode of study:
- In-person
- Venue:
- Guildhall School of Music & Drama
- When:
- Summer Schools (July–August)
Course info
Course 1 & 2 are now full. Please join our waiting list and we will contact you if a place becomes available.
Ages 16+
Course Dates & Times
Course 1: Monday 24 July – Friday 28 July 2023
Course 2: Monday 31 July – Friday 4 August 2023
10am–5pm
About Stage Management
This five-day course will give you an introduction into the world of stage management and the skills required, including the art of blocking and cueing to music.
Stage Management teams are at the centre of any production or event and without them, live performances would not be able to happen successfully. Skills required include communication, coordination and organisation.
Who is the course for?
Anyone over the age of 16 with an interest in production arts in theatre or related industries. If you love communicating, organising and being part of the central hub of a production or event, then this course is for you.
What can I expect?
During the week you will:
- Develop an understanding of the different roles within stage management
- Develop basic prop making and prop sourcing skills
- Learn about the processes required in managing a production
- Learn the art of blocking
- Learn the art of cueing a drama production
- Learn the art of cueing to music
- Gain an understanding of the essential elements required in
- Develop an understanding of the creative process
At the end of the week, you will put the skills you gained to practice in a final staged project.
Do I need anything for the course?
- Folder
- Pencil
- Ruler
- Pritt stick
Course Fee
£565
Participation Bursaries are available for this course (Please note the application deadline for participation bursaries is 12 June 2023.)
Course 1 & 2 are now full. Please join our waiting list and we will contact you if a place becomes available.
Eligibility
- For everyone aged 16+.
- Participants must have sufficient English language skills to cope with course demands.
About the Course Tutor
This course is taught by Helen Barratt, Head of Stage Management at Guildhall School.
Helen completed a BA in English and Drama at Sheffield University before training in technical theatre / stage management at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. She went on to work in several regional theatres including Sheffield Crucible and Liverpool Everyman before moving to London to be ASM/ Book Cover on Miss Saigon. Since then, she has worked at the National Theatre, several West End theatres, toured both nationally and internationally, group managed a ceremony team at the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics and production coordinated anniversary concerts for Les Misérables at the O2 and Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall.
After ten years as a Deputy Stage Manager, she moved into Company Managing and spent fifteen years working on a variety of productions including Wicked, Avenue Q, Spring Awakening, Curious Incident, Return of the Jedi for Secret Cinema and a highly acclaimed version of Sweeney Todd in a pie shop.
She moved into education in 2018 at Mountview to find a new challenge and joined Guildhall in 2022.