Real-life 9 to 5s: Spotlight on Laura Manderson

What is your job?

Vice President and Head of Amateur Licensing, Theatrical Rights Worldwide (UK).

Tell me a little about what that entails day-to-day?

TRW looks after the live stage performance rights for a catalogue of musicals and plays, on behalf of the authors of those titles. We determine availability, draft contracts, distribute authorised performance materials, collect royalties and distribute them to the author pool, and deal with any unauthorised or unlicensed productions of the works contained in our catalogue.

How did you get into it?

Absolutely, 100% by chance – I did not know that the wonderful (and niche) world of theatrical licensing existed until I began doing this job. I trained as a singer originally, and was working for a holiday resort as Lead Vocalist, when someone that I knew was offered the opportunity to head up the new UK office for TRW. They needed someone to come along to work with them in the role of Licensing Assistant, and offered the position to me. Best decision I ever made! Now, 7 years later, I head up the UK office.

What do you most enjoy about your role?

I love being surrounded by, and dealing with, people who love theatre, day in and day out. There aren’t many offices where you can belt out show tunes all day and practice your lines for your latest amateur productions with your colleagues, and then chat about your favourite shows with customers who call too.

What qualities or personality traits do you have that you think make you successful in your role?

Reliability, perseverance, attention to detail, passion for theatre, and good customer service skills all help, for sure.

Do you have any tips for people who might like to do something similar?

This particular job is a little niche (there are only a handful of licensing houses in the world, which look after the majority of the shows you can think of between them) so it can be tricky to get into. This job does not require any specific qualifications, but a willingness to learn new things and throw yourself into experiences is a must in any role. For theatre fans, I would say that there are a whole host of roles out there, aside from performing, which mean you are still working within the industry and helping to make theatre happen across the world, so it is a great idea to do some research into all the possible options and find the niche which fits you best.

If given the chance to do musical theatre for a living instead, would you take it?

Oh I harboured those dreams for many years, during my Musical Theatre degree and beyond – had you asked me that at 18, I would have said yes without a moment’s hesitation! However, I very quickly realised that there are many, many people out there with far more talent than me, so I am happy to keep performing as a beloved hobby, and enjoy watching them strut their stuff.