3-MONTH DISTANCE LEARNING PROGRAMME
Stage Directing Course
From Concept to Production
For anyone preparing one of their first productions as a director. Over twelve weeks of distance learning you prepare your own play from the first reading to a production plan, and gather your decisions on concept, space, light, style, blocking and rehearsals in a Director's Book. Your tutor reads every assignment and replies with individual written feedback.
The presentation describes the programme week by week. We send it to you personally, with the next start dates.
DURATION
12 weeks, 120 hours of study
FORMAT
Distance learning, in English
FEEDBACK
Individual and written, every week
TUITION
€2,450
From the first reading to a production plan
Between the first reading of a play and the first rehearsal, a director decides what the production asks, what the stage looks like, how the light changes, which style the actors play in, where people stand and move, and how the rehearsal weeks are spent.
The programme takes these decisions in order, one working document a week, and each document builds on the one before. The episodes you mark in your script become the timeline of a one-page map of the production. The map becomes a scene-by-scene plan, and the plan's notes on space become your ground plans. By Week 12 the documents form one Director's Book that your designers, stage manager and actors can each read.
Who the programme is for
The programme is a 12-week course in theatre directing for people who are about to direct a production, or are seriously preparing to, and want to plan it from the concept to the first rehearsal. It is written with three situations in mind.
01
A school production this year
You teach drama and direct a production with your students each year. You can bring this year's production into the programme and plan it week by week, around the school timetable.
02
Your first production as a director
You know plays from inside one role, as an actor, or from the page, as a writer. Directing asks for decisions about the whole stage, and the programme works through them one at a time, on the play you want to direct.
03
A production with your company
You direct for an amateur, community or independent company, with the people, the hall and the evenings you have. Your concept, ground plans and rehearsal plan are built around those conditions.
It also suits assistant directors preparing a first production of their own, and designers, stage managers and choreographers who are moving into directing.
Applicants need a high school diploma and prior experience in the performing arts. Each week you write about your own production in English, so the programme suits people who like to think through their decisions on paper.
Your own play, from Week 1 to Week 12
In Week 1 you choose the material you will work on for all twelve weeks. It is a one-act play, or an extended scene of 25 to 40 minutes from a full-length play, with at least two characters and a strong central conflict. It can be the play you are preparing for your next production, in any language. Your written work is in English.
For Weeks 1 to 9, all you need is the play. In Week 10 you plan your rehearsals for your real or planned conditions, such as a school timetable, a company's evenings or a theatre's schedule.
That week you can also try out one scene. You can work with actors, such as your class, your company or colleagues, or with objects and one partner, following a protocol from the course. Your notes from the try-out go into your Director's Book, and your tutor compares them with your plan.
THE WORKED EXAMPLE IN EVERY LECTURE
Anton Chekhov, The Bear (1888)
A one-act comedy. Each lecture shows the week's step on this play, from the Director's Statement to the blocking notation. You then do the same work on your own play.
What you work on
Twelve weeks in four stages. Each week adds one document to your Director's Book.
01
WEEKS 1 AND 2
Concept and text
You start with why this play, and the question your production asks. You write them as a Director's Statement, a short text that sets out your reading of the play and your concept for the production. In Week 2 you divide the play into events and episodes and mark up your script for rehearsal.
02
WEEKS 3 TO 6
Map, plot and space
A direction map shows the tension, rhythm and turning points of the whole production on one page. A direction plot sets out your decisions scene by scene, in a table your designers can start from. You draw ground plans of three key moments to scale for your type of stage, from a proscenium to theatre in the round, with sightlines and the actors' moves. In Week 6 you revise everything so far and bring it into a direction grid, one table that holds all your decisions scene by scene.
03
WEEKS 7 TO 9
Light and style
A lighting brief for the whole play describes each change of light in words, tied to a line or an action. Then you name the style of your production, find its conventions in your own documents and rework one episode on paper in contrasting styles to test which of your decisions belong to the production.
04
WEEKS 10 TO 12
Rehearsals and the Director's Book
Questions for table work, blocking notation for two key scenes, notes an actor can play, a rehearsal plan for your conditions and a checklist for the first rehearsal. Then your documents become one book with an introduction, checked for contradictions and revised, and you write a reflection on your process.
The programme presentation describes every week in detail.
How distance learning works
Each week follows the same cycle, and you choose when to study within it.
1
Read the week's written lecture. It explains one step of preparing a production and shows it on The Bear.
2
Apply the step to your own play.
3
Send your work within the week.
4
Your tutor reads it and replies with individual written feedback.
5
Take the feedback into your next documents.
NIPAI calls this Learning by Doing. Each tool goes to work on your production in the week you learn it.
ONE WEEK IN PRACTICE
Week 7. The lighting brief
You write a lighting brief for your whole play, with at least one change of light in every episode, from the pre-show to the final image. For each lighting cue you note the line or action that starts it, describe the new light in words, give the time the change takes and say what the light does for the scene. The lecture shows the same brief for The Bear in two styles. Equipment and colour filters are the lighting designer's or technician's choice, and your brief tells them what the audience should see and feel.
Written feedback from your tutor
Your tutor reads each assignment against the criteria for that week and writes to you about your production. The feedback starts with a decision that already works and then turns to what needs more work. It refers back to your earlier weeks, so your documents stay consistent as the book grows. In Week 6 and in the last two weeks you revise earlier documents with the feedback in hand.
The feedback stays with you in writing, to reread before rehearsals.
What you finish with
The programme prepares your production up to the first rehearsal. The method becomes fully yours in a rehearsal room, and the book is written for you to take there.
01
A Director's Book for your production
The working book of your production, with your analysis, plans and decisions in one place, from the Director's Statement to the blocking notation, joined by an introduction and cross-references. In US classrooms it is often called a director's prompt book. It is written so that your designers, stage manager and actors can each find their part.
02
A rehearsal plan for your conditions
Built around a school timetable, a company's evenings or a theatre's schedule, with questions for table work and a checklist for the first rehearsal.
03
Twelve weeks of written feedback
On your own decisions, from Week 1 to Week 12.
04
NIPAI Certificate of Completion
Issued when you complete the programme.
Other NIPAI programmes
Depending on where you are in your work, one of these may fit better.
3 MONTHS
The Director and the Play
Close reading of a play for rehearsal, from the first reading to the plan for your first rehearsal.
3 MONTHS
Choreography and Blocking in Performance
The stage picture, positions and groupings.
3 MONTHS
The Director and Stage Lighting in Performance
Describing stage light precisely and writing a brief a lighting designer can act on.
Programme details
Duration
3 months, 12 weekly sections
Study time
120 hours, about ten hours a week on average
Format
Distance learning with written lectures, weekly assignments on your own play and individual written feedback from your tutor
Language
English
Your material
A one-act play, or an extended scene of 25 to 40 minutes from a full-length play, with at least two characters, chosen by you
Tuition
€2,450
Includes twelve written lectures, twelve assignments with individual written feedback and the NIPAI Certificate of Completion. Funding options depend on the programme, timing and your profile.
Entry requirements
A high school diploma and prior experience in the performing arts
Admission
Send the application form with your CV and links to your work. Each application is reviewed individually, and accepted applicants receive registration, a study contract and enrolment documents.
Certificate
NIPAI Certificate of Completion
Continuing at NIPAI
If you later apply to the 12-month Theatre Directing Certificate or the 18-month Advanced Theatre Directing Diploma, your completed programme can be reviewed as part of your pathway, and tuition alignment can be discussed during admissions.
Terms
Participation is governed by the NIPAI Terms and Conditions. Terms and Conditions
Next step
Programme presentation
Every week of the programme in detail, with the next start dates. We send it to you personally.
A question about your production
Tell us which play you are preparing, where, with whom and when. We will answer with your production in mind.
Application
Send the application form with your CV and links to your work. Each application is reviewed individually.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need directing experience?
You need prior experience in the performing arts, for example as an actor, teacher, writer, designer or stage manager. Directing experience is welcome and optional. The programme starts from the first decisions a director makes and is written for people preparing one of their first productions.
Is the programme suitable for drama teachers?
Yes. You can bring the production you are preparing with your students and plan it week by week. The work includes ground plans for your hall or studio, blocking notation that lets you rebuild a scene after an absence, a lighting brief your technician can work from and a rehearsal plan built around the school timetable.
Do I need actors?
For Weeks 1 to 9, all you need is the play. In Week 10 you can try out one scene, with actors such as your class, your company or colleagues, or with objects and one partner, following a protocol from the course. The try-out is optional, and your tutor compares it with your plan.
Can I work on a play I am already preparing?
Yes. Choose a one-act play, or an extended scene of 25 to 40 minutes from a full-length play, with at least two characters, and keep the same material for all twelve weeks. If you are preparing a full-length production, choose the part of it you most want to work on. The play can be in any language, and your written work is in English.
How is this programme different from The Director and the Play?
Both programmes take twelve weeks and follow the same weekly cycle of a written lecture, an assignment and individual written feedback. The Director and the Play works through the text of the play in depth, from its events and conflict to the plan for your first rehearsal. The Stage Directing Course includes text analysis in Week 2 and then turns to concept, space, light, style and blocking, gathered in a Director's Book.
How much time should I plan?
The programme is planned at 120 hours over twelve weeks, about ten hours a week on average. You choose when to study within each week.
Can I study from home, alongside my work?
Yes. The programme is distance learning, so you study from wherever you are and send your work in writing. It is planned for people who teach, rehearse or work at the same time, at about ten hours a week.
Are there live classes?
The programme is taught entirely in writing. You read each lecture and send your work at times that fit around your work and rehearsals, and your tutor's feedback comes in writing too.
When does the next programme start?
The next start dates are in the programme presentation, which we send to you personally on request.
Can my school or theatre pay for the programme?
Yes. On request, NIPAI can provide your school, theatre or company with an invoice or payment confirmation, confirmation of your admission and a programme description for their records or a funding application. NIPAI's own partial financial support is awarded only for the 12-month and 18-month programmes. Other routes are described on the Funding at NIPAI page.
What does the certificate confirm?
The NIPAI Certificate of Completion confirms that you completed the Stage Directing Course, a 12-week distance learning programme of 120 hours of study. It is a private professional certificate issued by NIPAI. Schools, theatres and education authorities set their own rules for recognising professional development.
Can I use my Director's Book in a portfolio?
Yes. The book documents how you prepared one production, and directing MA and MFA programmes often ask applicants for a production concept, a play analysis or a prompt book. Each programme sets its own requirements and makes its own admission decisions.