UNC to offer theatre management minor in the fall

The majority of students who come to the department of dramatic art intend on acting, but soon there will be another option off the main stage.

Catering to the students interested in the business side of the theater industry, the new theater management minor will start up in the fall.

Hannah Grannemann, the managing director at PlayMakers Repertory Company and lecturer in the dramatic art department, had been teaching theater management classes for two years when she decided to compile courses into a minor.

“We’ve had theater management courses in the catalogue for a long time,” Grannemann said. “It seemed to me a good idea to expand our offerings and grow the department.”

She said putting together a minor track was quite easy, and she started working on it last summer.

Dramatic art classes from the past are resurfacing, being created and revamped, but the addition of the theater management minor doesn’t require any additional funds or faculty.

Grannemann said she will be teaching DRAM 279, a new class called “Introduction to Theater Management,” in the fall. An existing class, DRAM 193, “Production Practicum,” is being given a management track, DRAM 491 is resurfacing and DRAM 493 is being reimagined for theater management.

“There are four courses that make up the minor track, but we also have cross-listed courses in business in economics,” she said.

The new classes will be available in time for next semester’s registration period, and students can declare a theater management minor in the fall as well. Classes in theater management are not limited to dramatic art majors.

“This is a great next step for the department, and it can attract students who are interested in the arts but don’t necessarily want to be performers,” Grannemann said.

Adam Versenyi, the dramatic art department chairman, said he hopes students will see that there are a variety of avenues for studying and working in the theater.

“Once more, it goes much beyond what you see in performance on the stage,” he said. “I hope they understand that the arts can be looked at as an art form and as a business.”

Junior Rachel Davis took Grannemann’s theater management class last semester and said she’d like to take the new practicum course that is being offered in the fall.

“Often times, working in theater means working on a show here and a show there with gaps in between, and while it’s incredibly rewarding, it can also be incredibly difficult,” she said.

“Working in theater management can offer you the stability of a year-round job with consistent income and benefits, while still leaving you time to work on shows.”

arts@dailytarheel.com