Directing

M.F.A. and Certificate

The Directing department at Yale School of Drama admits a few talented individuals each year who have demonstrated the potential to become professional directors. They bring to the School of Drama a wide range of sensibilities, but they share some crucial qualities. They are generators of ideas and projects. They are not afraid to take risks, and they take responsibility for the philosophical and political implications of their work. They have a deep respect for the artists with whom they work. Above all, they have lively imaginations, an appetite for hard questions, and a robust curiosity about the world beyond their own cultural borders.

The Directing department’s entire aim is the education of the director as creative artist and leader. To that end, in course and production work, emphasis is placed on developing the director’s unique artistic imagination and mastery of collaborative leadership. We want our directors to leave Yale School of Drama able to make theatre that reveals our world to us in surprising ways; that speaks to us now, whether the project is a new play or old, whether it centers on a text or is derived from material not based on the written word.

Our core courses are the Directing Practicum, which engages the student over three years in a practical exploration of theatrical composition – the relationship of form to content – through studio exercises, experiments, and projects; the Directing seminars, which expose the director to a broad range of dramatic writing, to the history of the art of directing, and to contemporary theories and practices in our field; and the Scene Study Lab, where directors and actors develop their ability to creatively collaborate through scene work and critical feedback. In addition, throughout the academic year, the Directing department hosts master classes and labs with visiting artists from around the world.

Hands-on production work involving intensive collaboration with fellow students in all departments of Yale School of Drama is central to our training. Throughout their three years at the School of Drama, directors practice their craft in diverse forums, ranging from scene work to full productions in various performance spaces. First-year directors serve as assistant directors on School of Drama productions, participate as directors in the first-year collaborative workshop project, and direct one new play by a student playwright. In the second year, directors serve as assistant directors on Yale Repertory Theatre productions and direct one verse project and one new play. Third-year directors direct one new play in a fully supported production, as well as a full production of their own thesis project. In addition, all directors are encouraged to direct productions for Yale Cabaret. Additional projects may be assigned to directors in all three years.