Drama director vs stage director

The differences between drama directors and stage directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a drama director and a stage director. Additionally, a drama director has an average salary of $54,078, which is higher than the $51,404 average annual salary of a stage director.

The top three skills for a drama director include musical theatre, technical theatre and literature. The most important skills for a stage director are musical theatre, performance schedules, and drama.

Drama director vs stage director overview

	Drama Director	Stage Director
Yearly salary	$54,078	$51,404
Hourly rate	$26.00	$24.71
Growth rate	8%	8%
Number of jobs	9,793	4,770
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 67%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Average age	40	40
Years of experience	4	4

Drama director vs stage director salary

Drama directors and stage directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Drama Director	Stage Director
Average salary	$54,078	$51,404
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $107,000	Between $24,000 And $106,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between drama director and stage director education

There are a few differences between a drama director and a stage director in terms of educational background:

	Drama Director	Stage Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 67%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Most common major	Theatre	Music
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Drama director vs stage director demographics

Here are the differences between drama directors' and stage directors' demographics:

	Drama Director	Stage Director
Average age	40	40
Gender ratio	Male, 33.3% Female, 66.7%	Male, 54.1% Female, 45.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 6.4% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 8.0% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.7% Asian, 6.4% White, 65.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	14%	14%

Differences between drama director and stage director duties and responsibilities

Drama director example responsibilities.

Achieve staff competence with 4 staff members, encouraging the growth and development of one staff member into a leadership position.
Direct high school musicals and chorus.
Make props, sets and costumes, audition and choose children for speaking/singing/dancing roles.
Develop scripts, direct cast, organize set design, choreograph dance numbers and create costumes.
Develop and implement leadership training and discipleship program for student leaders.
Help develop, implement, and maintain the goals and objectives of the student IEP.

Stage director example responsibilities.

Direct and manage production of plays in company's annual Shakespeare festival.
Collaborate with design team to come up with costumes, set pieces and overall look of the shows.
Supervise an assistant drama director and counselors in training.
Supervise an assistant drama director and counselors in training.

Drama director vs stage director skills

Common drama director skills

Musical Theatre, 23%
Technical Theatre, 18%
Literature, 16%
Costumes, 7%
Easter, 7%
Drama Program, 6%

Common stage director skills

Musical Theatre, 35%
Performance Schedules, 25%
Drama, 16%
NYC, 6%
Costumes, 6%
PowerPoint, 6%

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Director responsibilities

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Drama Director
Drama Director vs Stage Director

Updated January 8, 2025

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