Producer

Job Duties

A producer is the “CEO” of a theatrical production. Producers are literally the people responsible for the presentation of a show, since they are typically the ones who make the decision to present in the first place!

Producers are entrepreneurial self-starters who have their fingers on the pulse of the theatre scene. A producer first identifies a show to produce - whether that is a script that they find, write, commission, or are given by an author - and decides if it is a project that is likely to bring in audiences and generate revenue. Whether a production will earn income is often a major concern for producers, since they are broadly and primarily responsible for funding the project from day one. This means that a producer must be well-connected, and able to convince other individuals, companies and funders to buy into a project (often in exchange for a producers’ credit, or for a share of future profits). Traditionally, a lead producer would be the person to put up most or all of the money to pay for a production, with the expectation that it would earn enough profit for them to pay themselves back in the future. Today, many shows are produced not by one producer alone, but by a team of co-producers, or by a tiered group of lead, executive and co-producers, who then divide up the responsibility for fund-raising and other production activities. This is particularly common where the lead producer is also the writer, director or a performer in the show, since they will want to ensure that someone is always keeping an eye on production matters while they are at work on the artistic side.

Because they are the one who is paying for the production, the lead producer is generally deferred to on all major artistic and marketing decisions, and what they say goes. They will typically make decisions on who the key creative team members will be on a production (especially the director and lead performers), and should be kept in the loop about any major changes or artistic decisions that might impact the viability of the production. Usually, a producer will rely on reports from a company manager or production manager to keep on top of what is happening in the rehearsal hall.

In smaller theatre companies, the role of the producer is often combined with that of the production manager or general manager, or you may see variations on the title to denote specific responsibilities. “Artistic producers,” for example, may deal only with the creative aspects of theatrical production, and leave the financing to the general manager or a separate producer role.