Director - AfterWork Theater

AfterWork Theater is a non-profit organization that enriches the everyday lives of adults by creating the opportunity to participate in theatrical experiences that promote fun, community, and creative self-expression. No audition required.



We are seeking community-driven Directors to helm a variety of programs including fully-staged musicals, musical revues, weekly classes, and more. All of our programs meet on nights and weekends in NYC. In the past five years, we have proudly produced more than 30 shows featuring more than 400 New Yorkers from all walks of life.



Responsibilities may include:

- Attending on-boarding and production meetings

- Community-building through theater exercises

- Casting (guided by AWT’s Diversity Mission - see below)

- Scene work/character work

- Blocking

- Musical blocking

- Choreography (unless a separate choreographer is hired)

- Developing creative vision along with production into a plan for sets, costumes, lights, etc.



The ideal candidate will have at least three years of experience directing musical theater productions in either professional or community settings.



While it is important to have a directorial vision, maintaining a high morale and supporting AWT’s mission of fun, community, and creative self-expression is paramount to all else. If the participants are not having fun something is not working. For the most part, AWT participants are not professional actors and part of the director’s role will be to foster personal growth within participants while balancing the incredibly wide variety of experience and abilities in the room. Applicants should be, first and foremost, fiercely compassionate community builders with a masterful ability to generate a safe, creative, and inclusive space. Directors will be trained in the unique processes and communication styles that make AWT what it is.



Compensation varies depending on program size and job scope (e.g. director vs director/choreographer) but ranges from $1000 for small-scale productions to $3500 for full-scale musicals.



AWT’s Diversity Mission

AWT is committed to being a diverse, inclusive, and critically conscious community, not just in intention but in action and impact. As a group of storytellers, we believe that the more perspectives represented in the space the more authentic and rich our stories – and thusly our experiences of telling them – will be.



Beyond that, we acknowledge that we are in a position to either replicate or disrupt oppressive systems depending on the practices, policies, and choices we make day-to-day. Creating a space in which every individual feels free to achieve their full potential relies on our being deliberate and responsive in all that we do.



Integrity dictates that this responsibility be reflected at every level of AWT including participants, creative staff, and organizational leadership. We invite all AWT stakeholders to hold us accountable for fulfilling on this commitment.



How to Apply

If you are interested in taking on a challenging and yet rewarding leadership experience in theater, please submit a cover letter and resume to ct-hiring@afterworktheater.org with the subject line “AWT Director – YOUR NAME.” Please include answers to the following questions in your cover letter:



- Do you know anyone in the AfterWork Theater Community?

- What excites you about this opportunity?

- What experience do you have working with large groups of people (more than 50)?



We will be reviewing applications on a first come, first serve basis through March 30.