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Music is self-explanatory, but it is not the sound designer's job to compose original scores (except when it is). Useful software include Audacity, Adobe Audition, and Reaper. QLAB is (for mac) or Ableton Live (for mac and windows) are good for writing sound queues.
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Come up with a preliminary sound design to show the director and prod staff. This is primary plan for what you'd like to hear Find hear. Find sounds for each major event. Be prepared to listen to hundreds of little noises. Now make up a initial soundscape. This the rough draft. Try to run this rough draft in the space. This should help uncover any technical problems before it becomes a real bitch to change things. Now take the rough draft to the director and find out that all your notions of the play were totally wrong. Now begins the collaboration-compromise step of the process. By this point you should have the skills necessary to turn what you have into what the director wants. Be creative, a lot of noises sound similar, a wave sound can be a roar or a train passing if it's played right. Remember that sound is a three dimensional medium, a bell from stage right is different from a bell from stage left and rain comes from the sky.
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