Research & Information
What are arts employers looking for, and how do you build those skills? Center Theatre Group engages in research, works with the higher education community, and talks with other employers and theatre professionals to create resources for early-career theatre professionals. Educators, please check out our Classroom Materials page as well.
2020 Theatre Alumni Career Survey Presentation
Center Theatre Group conducted a research study in fall 2020, measuring the impact of the pandemic and the events of the past few months on early-career theatre professionals. Building on our Southern California Alumni Survey in 2018, this new report looks at what we can learn from the experiences of recent graduates as they navigate the pandemic and post-pandemic field. The survey collected over 300 responses from early-career theatre professionals representing over 120 colleges and universities from across the United States.
We encourage continued study of the anonymous raw data and can provide it to educators and researchers. If interested, please email education@ctgla.org.
Download Presentation Transcript
Southern California Alumni Survey Executive Report
The Southern California Theatre Alumni Survey was designed by Center Theatre Group to better understand the scope of career training currently being provided to early-career theatre artists, technicians, and managers, both within and outside of higher education institutions. We were also curious about what career-related skills students felt were critical to their success in pursuing a live theatre career, as well as any barriers they identified to entering that field. The survey collected over 300 responses from alumni representing more than 30 college and universities.
Ready to Work: Career Training, Skills & Knowledge Theatre Students Need to Step into the Workforce
Created by theatre professionals and representatives from more than 30 local colleges and universities, these lists can be used by educators, students, and field practitioners to inform the training opportunities we provide to the next generation of theatre artists and managers. While not comprehensive, they represent one group’s thoughts on how best to prepare students—outside of craft—to enter this rewarding but competitive field.
Center Theatre Group and the creators of these lists hope they will be helpful as we look ahead at how we train and prepare diverse theatre students to enter rewarding, sustainable careers in the field.
Bilingual English/Spanish Career One-Sheets
These one-sheets are designed to be printed front/back in English and Spanish.
- How to Talk to Your Parents About the Arts/Cómo Hablar con Tus Padres Sobre las Artes
- Working in Los Angeles Theatre/Trabajando en el Teatro en Los Ángeles
- College Auditions 101/Audición para la Universidad 101
- College and Career Options for Actors and Designers/Opciones de Carreras Para Actores y Diseñadores en la Universidad
Translatable Skills Gallery
Educators and others are welcome to download and utilize these word clouds/graphics, which we created to illustrate the many career paths theatre students can take that utilize their skills.
