Directing in Musical Theatre: An Essential Guide - Softcover

Deer, Joe

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1032555025 ISBN 13: 9781032555027

Publisher: Routledge, 2026

Synopsis

Directing in Musical Theatre offers a comprehensive guide which will equip aspiring directors with all of the skills that they will need in order to guide a production from beginning to end. This new and fully revised edition includes the latest industry knowledge, examples of contemporary musicals from across the globe, and new sections focusing on contemporary casting, identity, and intimacy coordination.

From the very first conception and collaborations with designers and cast, through rehearsals and technical production all the way to the final performance, Joe Deer covers the full range. Deer’s accessible and compellingly practical approach uses proven, repeatable methods for addressing all aspects of a production. The focus at every stage is on working with others, using insights from experienced, successful directors to tackle common problems and devise solutions. Each section uses the same structure, to stimulate creative thinking:

• Timetables: detailed instructions on what to do and when, to provide a flexible organization template
• Prompts and Investigations: addressing conceptual questions about style, characterization and design
• Skills Workshops: Exercises and ‘how-to’ guides to essential skills
• Essential Forms and Formats: Including staging notation, script annotation and rehearsal checklists
• Case Studies: Well-known productions show how to apply each chapter’s ideas

Directing in Musical Theatre not only provides all the essential skills for students and aspiring professionals alike but also explains when and how to put them to use.

Video links to interviews, profiles, archive footage and behind-the-scenes footage from some of the key productions covered in the book as well as additional exercises and grading rubrics offering clear criteria for grading assignments are available via www.routledge.com/9781032555027.

About this title

About the Author

Joe Deer is Distinguished Professor of Musical Theatre, emeritus and Past Director of The Musical Theatre Initiative at Wright State University, USA. He is also an experienced director, choreographer, actor, dancer, stage manager and artistic director. He is the award-winning director or choreographer of productions from Off-Broadway to America’s finest regional and international stages. Joe has been a musical theatre educator for almost forty years, teaching in New York City at Steps Studio, Dance Theatre of Harlem, The American Dance Machine and many of the world’s finest conservatories.

Edition details

• Publisher: Routledge
• Publication date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1032555025
• ISBN 13: 9781032555027
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 222