Commercial Theater Development Graduate Certificate
Through an exciting new partnership with Nederlander Worldwide Entertainment, the Arts Administration Program is now offering a new advanced certificate program to train arts professionals who wish to work in the commercial performing arts. Nederlander Worldwide Entertainment is a member of the Nederlander companies, which own and/or operate some of the world’s greatest theaters, produce and present premier entertainment, and serve as consultants and talent bookers both for their own facilities and other renowned entertainment venues in the US and abroad.
This advanced certificate program provides early and mid-career performing arts professionals with the opportunity to gain advanced training in the development and production of commercial performing arts productions. Classes are taught by leading practitioners from New York’s Broadway theater industry, and include site visits to New York City where students will interact with leading figures in the commercial art world. Students will gain skills in managing commercial arts venues, securing and developing commercial productions, engaging with new technologies and innovative partnerships, and programming performing arts productions. Students will complete an intensive internship with a commercial performing arts enterprise in either the US or international market.
The certificate is open to both domestic and international applicants, and can be completed in a single calendar year. Commercial Theater Development Certificate courses are also open to students enrolled in the MS in Arts Administration. Students enrolled in the certificate have access to all the resources of the department and the University.
All courses are available on campus or online, except the internship (international students must attend on campus).
The certificate is open to qualified applicants who have earned a bachelor’s degree from a fully accredited college or university in the United States or abroad. All candidates for admission are selected on the basis of undergraduate transcripts, academic and personal references, and related work experience.
For more information please contact artsad@bu.edu.
Newsweek magazine ranked Boston University’s online programs #4 in the nation in its 2023 survey.
More on Nederlander Worldwide Entertainment
Established in 1912, the Nederlander family of companies has developed an extensive network of performing arts venues in the US and abroad. On Broadway, Nederlander venues include the Brooks Atkinson Theatre, the Gershwin Theatre, the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, the Minskoff Theatre, the Palace Theatre, the Neil Simon Theatre, and the Richard Rodgers Theatre. Other US venues include the Hollywood Pantages in Los Angeles and renowned theaters in Chicago, San Diego, San Jose, Oklahoma City, North Charleston, and Durham and Greensboro, North Carolina, as well as the Adelphi, Alwych and Dominion theaters in London’s West End.
Nederlander Worldwide Entertainment was founded by Robert Nederlander, Jr., a third-generation member of the family. The company manages theaters and presents Broadway productions in emerging international markets, produces international productions for Broadway, and undertakes cultural education initiatives.
Nederlander Worldwide established the first foreign joint theater venture in China in 2005, to tour Broadway productions there. In recent years, it has developed and managed several performing arts centers managed on the Broadway model in Xi’an and Shanghai, China. In 2012, the company embarked on similar ventures to develop the Zorlu Center for the Performing Arts in Istanbul, Turkey, and theaters in Taiwan. In January 2019, the company announced a new venture with Hard Rock International to bring premier Broadway theater to its resort properties worldwide.
In addition to advising in the development of the certificate curriculum, Nederlander Worldwide is assisting the program in arranging for students to meet with leading practitioners in the industry and to secure internships in the US and abroad.
Certificate Faculty
MET a Professor: Melissa Caolo
Meet Melissa Caolo, BU MET Lecturer of Advanced Graduate Certificate in Commercial Theater Development.
Course Requirements
The certificate consists of five graduate courses for a total of 20 credits, as listed below.
Courses: (Five courses/20 credits)
- /
Transfer of Credits to Degree Program
Upon completion of the certificate, interested students may apply for admission to the Master of Science in Arts Administration degree program. If accepted, all successfully completed credits earned toward the certificate may be applied toward degree requirements.