General Manager

GENERAL MANAGER Job Description

Playful Productions is one of the leading independent theatre production companies in the West End.

Current and recent producing and general management work includes Inter Alia, Born With Teeth, The Fifth Step, Wicked, Moulin Rouge! The Musical and MJ The Musical. We also have many plays and musics in development and preproduction.

We are passionate about presenting high-quality shows to audiences across the UK and beyond. We are committed to a workplace culture that embraces equality, diversity and inclusion across all departments.

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The General Manager is accountable for the day-to-day management of West End productions, including both Broadway and international transfers, tours, new productions and large-scale productions.

The General Manager will lead the delivery of allocated productions, taking responsibility for running these on budget and to schedule. They will lead the production process from start to finish, overseeing budgets, schedules, negotiations, recruitment of production staff, processes (including accounts, payroll, royalties, marketing, technical), company welfare, press nights and travel/accommodation.

The General Manager will be the point of contact for creative teams, authors, co‑producers, the company, venue and other stakeholders. They will bring extensive management and decision‑making experience in order to deliver Playful’s work to the highest standard.

The General Manager works on more than one production and is an experienced escalation point for all issues that arise. They manage the Production Coordinators and Production Assistants that work with them on their productions.

• Accountable for the effective delivery of productions from pre‑production to closing
• Oversee new productions in development from a General Management point of view, liaising with Producers and advising on all aspects of the setup of a production
• General Manage Broadway transfers, international transfers, UK tours, workshops and new productions
• Draft production budgets
• Forecast, monitor and reconcile weekly running budgets and pre‑production expenditure
• Work with the Directors on casting where required, and work with casting directors to coordinate the casting process
• Lead the recruitment and appointment of senior production staff, including conducting interviews and negotiating contractual terms
• Oversee the recruitment of other production staff
• Negotiate deals for creative teams, cast and stage management and technical production staff in line with budget and union agreements and maintain a record of deals done
• Draft and negotiate high level production contracts and oversee the drafting of all production contracts ensuring contracts are issued accurately, and no later than two weeks prior to an individual’s start date as a minimum requirement
• Update the Head of Contracts with the status of issuing all production contracts
• Report to, update and liaise with Producers and Executive Producers regularly on the status, budget and progress of a production
• Update the Managing Director and Directors regularly on the status, budget and progress of a production, signing off key decisions with them and copying them into correspondence as and when appropriate and requested
• For touring productions work with the company tour booker to schedule and secure bookings for UK touring productions
• Ensure that touring contracts accurately reflect negotiated deals
• Work closely with the Company Management team of each production on the management of all production staff including the effective handling of employee relations, contractual, performance and conduct matters
• Work closely with the Production Manager of each show on the management and delivery of the production
• Work closely with the Health and Safety Consultant on each show to ensure health and safety policies and procedures are implemented and followed
• Ensure the distribution of Investment Prospectus’ and draft and issue investment papers as and when required
• Ensure all aspects of the production are suitably insured
• Monitor developments in union agreements and ensure that Playful Productions fulfils its…