Got a bit of stage fright while applying for your dream job? As a stage manager, you know how to organize everything in and around the stage. The lights, props, sounds, and curtains must all fall into the right place. The same goes for your resume.
Let’s orchestrate a stage manager resume highlighting your expertise like a perfectly timed cue, making employers eager to welcome you into their theaters.
This guide will show you:
- A stage manager resume example better than 9 out of 10 other resumes.
- How to write a stage manager resume that will land you more interviews.
- Tips and examples of how to put skills and achievements on a stage manager resume.
- How to describe your experience on a resume for a stage manager to get any job you want
Want to save time and have your resume ready in 5 minutes? Try our resume builder. It’s fast and easy to use. Plus, you’ll get ready-made content to add with one click. See 20+ resume templates and create your resume here.
Sample resume made with our builder—See more resume examples here.
Why limit yourself to a resume for stage manager positions? Expand your repertoire with our other guides:
- Acting Resume Sample & Guide
- Artist Resume Sample & Guide
- Writer Resume Sample & Guide
- Music Resume Sample & Guide
- Production Coordinator Resume Sample & Guide
- Event Manager Resume Sample
- Event Planner Resume Sample & Guide
- Event Coordinator Resume Sample & Guide
- Creative Director Resume Sample & Guide
- Video Producer Resume Sample & Guide
- Art Director Resume Sample & Guide
- Theater Resume Sample & Guide
- Performing Arts Resume Sample & Guide
- Production Assistant Resume Sample & Guide
- Visual Merchandising Resume Sample & Guide
- Sample Resumes for Any Job
Stage Manager Resume Template
Stephanie Seay, Stage Manager
stephanie.q.seay@gmail.com
330-807-5025
Professional Summary
Effective Stage Manager with 5+ years of experience. Skilled at managing stage crews and running rehearsals. Seeking to deliver production excellence at The Cleveland Playhouse. At the Grove City Theater, led expansion drive from small productions with attendance of 100 to sold-out shows with audiences of 1,100. Managed 22 shows with budgets of $30,000+.
Work Experience
Stage Manager
Grove City Theater
March 2015–May 2019
- Worked on project to expand attendance from 100 to 1,100 in one year through using existing budgets more efficiently to deliver more satisfying sets and shows.
- Presided over a three-year period of 95% sold-out shows.
- Stage managed for 22 shows with budgets of $30,000+.
- Worked with casts and crews of 50–100 theater professionals.
Assistant Stage Manager
Findlay Theater
April 2014–May 2015
- Organized and directed a cast and crew of 30+ for 20 shows.
- Contributed to fundraising drive that raised $150,000 in 10 months.
Education
2010–2014 Ohio State University
BA and Theatre Major
- Maintained GPA of 4.0 in stage management coursework.
- Stage managed 5 school productions with casts & crews of 50+.
Skills
- Technical Skills: Running rehearsals, coordinating stage crews, overseeing performances
- Soft Skills: Leadership, interpersonal skills, communication, time management
Activities
- Volunteer fundraiser, Toledo Playhouse. Personally raised $110,000.
- Avid cyclist as self-care.
Here’s how to write a Stage Manager resume that gets jobs:
1. Choose the Best Stage Manager Resume Format
Stage Managers coordinate with stage crews, assisting and leading set designers, crafts workers and lighting and sound technicians. They attend rehearsals and keep pace with changes. A stage manager resume should prove you can serve as the de facto director when the curtain rises.
Nobody will hire a scattered stage manager.
So don’t write a scattered stage manager resume.
Use the best of the resume formats available—the chronological resume template. It puts your latest hits front and center.
- The best resume headings start with your name in large font. Then add “Stage Manager” and the city.
- Wondering how to write a phone number on resume? Put it in a cluster with your email and social media addresses.
- The sections of a resume are experience, education, and “bonus” sections like volunteering, awards, or media mentions.
- Save your resume file as a PDF unless the job posting warns not to.
Pro Tip: What are the right fonts for resumes for stage manager jobs? Use Arial or Cambria to make it easy for the director to read (and hire you)!
2. Write a Stage Manager Resume Objective or Resume Summary
Here’s your curtain-up moment.
You know you need to make a strong entrance.
Do that with a resume summary if you’ve got 2+ years of stage manager experience.
That’s an opening paragraph below your header. It summarizes your stage manager resume.
Not as seasoned? Write a career objective. They talk up your skills a bit more.
In either kind of professional profile, list:
- “Stage Manager”
- Years of experience
- Goal (Example: increase ticket sales)
- Organization you’re applying to
- A couple stage manager skills from the job posting
- Two big theater achievements that fit skills they want.
Pro Tip: Since this is a summary for your theatre stage manager resume, you need to write the rest of your resume first. That way you’ve got plenty to summarize.
3. Bind Your Resume to the Stage Manager Job Description
Why don’t you get callbacks?
The hiring team wants you to fit the job perfectly.
Here’s how to write experience in a resume:
- Add business job titles to every job, plus dates and organization names.
- Know how to tailor a resume. That means:
- List 3–5 bullets under each position in your work history. Add stage manager accomplishments that prove your skills.
- Include numbers like, “1,100” or “$30,000” to show you're no lightweight.
Pro Tip: Use key resume phrases in your stage manager resume to keep directors and producers nodding with enthusiasm.
4. Energize Your Stage Manager Resume Education Section
Want the job?
There’s a special way to show education on a resume.
Add school name, degree, and dates. But—
List stage manager achievements.
If you excelled in stage management coursework or built sets, list those in your education section.
In a first job resume, you can lay out education like a series of jobs. (Stage managing a production of Our Town would be a single “job.”)
Pro Tip: You don’t need to show GPA unless it was impressive or extremely recent. You’re better off using the space for big accomplishments in a stage manager resume.
5. Show Stage Manager Skills in Your Resume
Here’s a list of skills to put on a resume for stage manager jobs:
Stage Manager Resume Skills
Hard Skills:
- Stage management experience
- Running rehearsals
- Coordinating stage crews
- Managing designers and set builders
- Realizing the director’s vision
- Theater arts training
- Calling cues during performances
- Overseeing performances
- Marking out set dimensions in rehearsal halls
- Updating prompt book
- Scheduling
Soft Skills:
- Interpersonal skills
- Leadership
- Active listening
- Collaboration
- Creativity
- Verbal and written communication
- Delegation
- Attention to detail
- Time management
- Problem solving
- Calmness
- Crisis management
- Efficiency
- Perceptiveness
But—
Stick to the stage manager skills from the posting, plus a few.
Pro Tip: Make sure to give a good mix of technical skills and soft skills in your theatre stage manager resume. The director and producer want to hire well-rounded people.
When making a resume in our builder, drag & drop bullet points, skills, and auto-fill the boring stuff. Spell check? Check. Start building a professional resume template here for free.
When you’re done, our easy resume builder will score your resume and our resume checker will tell you exactly how to make it better.
6. Add Other Sections to Your Stage Manager Resume
Prove you’re not a dud.
How?
Add bonus sections to your stage manager resume.
Choose from:
- Activities
- Awards and honors
- Professional associations (SMA)
- Conferences (especially if you spoke at them)
- Media appearances
- Publications
- Fitness and self-care
- Hobbies
- Volunteer efforts
Should you list foreign languages on a resume for a stage manager jobs? If they’ll help this job, yes. List them as skills or put them in a special “Languages” section.
Pro Tip: Here’s how to put volunteer work on a resume: if it proves key stage manager skills, give it a full section. If not, add it to an “Activities” section of your stage manager resume.
7. Send a Cover Letter With Your Stage Manager Resume
How important is a cover letter for stage manager positions?
Very.
A stage manager cover letter can put them on the edge of their seats.
But cover letters should not be ordinary.
- Know how to format cover letter in the 3-paragraph style.
- Make your cover letter opening lines sing with your most eye-catching fact. It can be about your career or their organization.
- In the middle, show you fit this stage manager job. Add more theater accomplishments that will convince them.
- Know how to close a cover letter with an offer. “I’d love to talk to you about ways to increase bookings by 20%” works well.
- How long is too long for a cover letter? Half a page is the right length.
Send them a follow up email after a job application. Schedule them for a few days, a week, and two weeks. Each one is another shot at glory.
Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:
See more cover letter templates and start writing.
That’s it!
That’s how to write a stage manager resume.
Do you hate your resume for stage manager jobs? Does your theatre stage manager resume make you cringe? Give us a shout in the comments. We’d love to talk!
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