Community Theater Green Room Discussion Board: Random musings of a first time producer

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Tom_Rylex
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Topic: Random musings of a first time producer
Posted: 7/08/06 at 2:09am

That's all this is, random musings. I haven't posted in a while, and just wanted to hear from some friendly thespians.

I finally decided to produce a show for my CT group. A musical, at that. I've been around long enough to know what I was getting into, but boy am I tired, and we still have a month to go.

I've got a little bit at stake on this show, so I hope all goes well. I took the job because I wanted to enforce respect for the various roles in theatre, I believe that's what makes the group stronger in the end. But that meant standing up to various members of my group, because I was doing things differently than the status quo.

I don't really have any horror stories (yet), things actually seem to be doing well. My directoral team gets along well, we have a great cast, and I seem to have someone for each chair position (except for set, which I have to get up in 4 hours to do). I've even been able to try out some new publicity ideas.

It's just the shear volume of stuff that is wearing on me. I've been working on some aspect of the show for the better part of this year. I know that sounds a little nuts, but I really want a CT show to be a good experience for everyone, and that means a lot of pre-planning. Months of it, if you haven't done this job before...

Enough random musings.

-Tom

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
-R. Frost

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Playwright
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Posted: 7/08/06 at 12:42pm

Hi Tom,

Sounds like you are on the right path to a good production. Good on you for delegating out jobs. I did that with my current production and it made it so easy on me.

Tonight is the 3rd performance of my own play. As well as being the playwright, I also produced and directed it. As I said I delegated most of the work but I did do all of the marketing myself because I wanted total control over what went out- couldn't give away the plot of the story ahead of time.

I managed two TV appearances- one of them a live interview during the news and a taped interview going on the TV news today with their entertainment reporter. Last person he interviewed was Martin Short. I also had several newspaper stories (one profiling my leading man and I) and a live radio interview along with my leading man. Also did an interview for a Pod Cast show. That interviewer will be do an interview with my leading man as well.

I think because of all my marketing opening night sold out two days before we opened. That totally amazed me becasue it was a brand new play by a basically unknown writer. But, I've been getting rave reveiws for the production. One review by a well-respected thespian circulating via email said in part- "f you haven't already ordered tickets for this show, do so, becasue this could be the sleeper that everybody will be talking about."

Anyway, break a leg, have fun, relax and don't forget to breathe!!!!!

Sondra

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Joan54
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Posted: 7/10/06 at 8:16am

I don't think it sounds nuts to work on a show for a year. I get started on costumes and sets for our shows at least six months in advance and the other two principals in our group start reading groups for the script at about the same time. We enjoy it more when we can work at leisure and it makes for better shows. I hate everything being thrown together at the last minute...it's not fun and the show usually reflects that.

Let us know if some of the new marketing works out.. We're trying a fund raiser in a local vineyard in a few weeks.....cheap wine, cheese and crackers and a group of actors doing some scenes. We'll see how it goes.

Now..at risk of sounding like a fussy mother...maybe you're tired because you're getting up in four hours to build sets! You have to learn to pace yourself.... theater is supposed to be an enjoyable experience. Here's what I do....after my day job and whatever errands need to be done after work I make sure I take a break for at least an hour before I start theater work....not neccesarily on the couch with a book ( although that's nice) but at least a chat with my daughter or pull a few weeds in the garden and talk to the neighbors. Then I work at home or at the "theater" with whatever needs to be done....but never later than ten o'clock. I have found that most of the work done after 10 is crap and has to be re-worked anyways. Then an hour or reading or TV...always into bed by 11. A nap on Sunday afternoon is encouraged. This way my energy levels stay high and some really good work gets done. Turn the phone off, turn the computor off and take a break rather than trying to push through too much.

I know all of the details can be overwhelming.....isn't it funny how lists grow rather than shrink? A list at the first reading will be short: "Edit, Cast, Advertise etc" But each of these items grows to be another list which splits again and again. In costuming I start out with a simple cast list and end up with a groaning three ring binder full of notes about missing buttons and such.

Anyways....hope all of your work pays off...now turn off the computer and get to bed.

"behind a thin wall of logic panic is waiting to stampede"

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jayzehr
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Posted: 7/10/06 at 6:10pm

I like to save those lists of things to do to look at after the show is finished. Then I can tell myself, "Well, as overwhelming as this seemed at the time, I did get everything done." This helps me keep slightly less insane the next show when I'm looking at equally overwhelming lists.

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Tom_Rylex
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Posted: 7/12/06 at 11:42pm

Joan,

Thanks for the affirmation. I won't know how well publicity worked until the final ticket sales, but things seem to be positive.

One of the publicity things that I added for this show was an audition workshop. Not only did we kickstart audition publicity, but it gave us a chance to help people who might have given a poor audition otherwise.

Another one that I tried has been our human interest press release. We surveyed the cast, and were able to come up with a good number of human interest story stubs. We sent that out to a variety of media outlets, along with an invitation to our press day (in a couple of weeks). I've already been contacted by one newspaper who wanted to do a story immediately. I'll let you know how press day worked out.

I don't disagree that I'm tired because I'm not sleeping. But, as Jake or Elwood might say, "I'm on a mission from God." I'd like to show our group the direction I would like to see us go in terms of putting together and running shows. It's a lot easier to make a point when you can just show them.

I hope it takes, because I won't be producing again for a long time (a few years at least). I like the way things are going so far, but it's just too much to ask of my wife/kids/school/work/other for me to do this more than once.

Back to work! There's props to be made! Here's an aside: I'm working on a cauldron right now. I'm using muslin over chicken wire, and spray painting it black. I'm sure I'll find out soon enough, but do I need to have multiple layers for the chicken wire to not show?

-Tom

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
-R. Frost

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Joan54
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Posted: 7/13/06 at 7:45am

Yeah...probably. Muslin doesn't cover a lot of bumps. Go to the thrift store ( or your own overstuffed linen closet) and buy a mattress pad....you know it's cotton and sort of quilted. Wrap that around the chicken wire and spray it - the paint will make it stiff. Then you can cover everything with the muslin and pull the muslin tighter so that it looks more like metal. Buy a can of spray adhesive and the muslin will stick to the padding without a lot of sewing and tucking.

I am working on lutes for "Taming of the Shrew". One has to look real and the other has to be broken over the actor's head. I made them out of bamboo vegetable strainers and thin plywood...kind of having fun.

Hope the cauldron works out....oh remember to use flat paint....not shiny...the flat paint will hide a lot of bumps.

"behind a thin wall of logic panic is waiting to stampede"

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jayzehr
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Posted: 7/14/06 at 2:44pm

Tom:
How did you work the audition workshop? What sort of things did you do and how was it different from the audition itself? I'm thinking about doing that this fall as well.

Jay

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Tom_Rylex
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Posted: 7/15/06 at 5:58pm

Jay,

The workshop was roughly divided into two parts, lecture and activity. We had experienced directors who lead the workshop.

The lecture was geared as an introduction to the audition process, particularly for newcomers to theate. They discussed many elements of audition etiquette, and talked about what they look for in general when they see someone audition. They covered things that are obvious (no gum chewing, don't argue with the audition team) to more subtle points (body language, why you're auditioning as soon as you enter the room).

The activity was a mock audition process. Since ours focused on vocal and dance, we didn't do a full scale mock audition. What was different relative to a real audition, is that the auditioners would let the participant know what they were thinking about the audition, and coached them with specific things that would improve their audition.

The mock audition also did not use anything related to the actual auditions. The purpose was not to teach them how to get a part in our upcoming show, it was to show them how to improve their chances for any community theatre that they tried out for.

Hope that answers a few questions.

-Tom

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
-R. Frost

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jayzehr
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Posted: 7/15/06 at 10:36pm

Thanks Tom, that was very useful. I think we'll try to do that for our next play. How far ahead of the auditions was the workshop? And was it just one night?

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Tom_Rylex
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Posted: 7/19/06 at 11:46pm

The workshop was a few days before the auditions, and it was only one day.

-Tom

P.S. Cauldron's done! Will post a pic when I get back. Still needs the light and dry ice though.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
-R. Frost

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Topic: Random musings of a first time producer( Topic Closed)

Author	Message
Tom_Rylex Star Joined: 5/07/05 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 60	Topic: Random musings of a first time producer Posted: 7/08/06 at 2:09am
	That's all this is, random musings. I haven't posted in a while, and just wanted to hear from some friendly thespians. I finally decided to produce a show for my CT group. A musical, at that. I've been around long enough to know what I was getting into, but boy am I tired, and we still have a month to go. I've got a little bit at stake on this show, so I hope all goes well. I took the job because I wanted to enforce respect for the various roles in theatre, I believe that's what makes the group stronger in the end. But that meant standing up to various members of my group, because I was doing things differently than the status quo. I don't really have any horror stories (yet), things actually seem to be doing well. My directoral team gets along well, we have a great cast, and I seem to have someone for each chair position (except for set, which I have to get up in 4 hours to do). I've even been able to try out some new publicity ideas. It's just the shear volume of stuff that is wearing on me. I've been working on some aspect of the show for the better part of this year. I know that sounds a little nuts, but I really want a CT show to be a good experience for everyone, and that means a lot of pre-planning. Months of it, if you haven't done this job before... Enough random musings. -Tom
	The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep. -R. Frost

	IP Logged

Playwright Celebrity Joined: 4/01/06 Location: Canada Online Status: Offline Posts: 126	Posted: 7/08/06 at 12:42pm
	Hi Tom, Sounds like you are on the right path to a good production. Good on you for delegating out jobs. I did that with my current production and it made it so easy on me. Tonight is the 3rd performance of my own play. As well as being the playwright, I also produced and directed it. As I said I delegated most of the work but I did do all of the marketing myself because I wanted total control over what went out- couldn't give away the plot of the story ahead of time. I managed two TV appearances- one of them a live interview during the news and a taped interview going on the TV news today with their entertainment reporter. Last person he interviewed was Martin Short. I also had several newspaper stories (one profiling my leading man and I) and a live radio interview along with my leading man. Also did an interview for a Pod Cast show. That interviewer will be do an interview with my leading man as well. I think because of all my marketing opening night sold out two days before we opened. That totally amazed me becasue it was a brand new play by a basically unknown writer. But, I've been getting rave reveiws for the production. One review by a well-respected thespian circulating via email said in part- "f you haven't already ordered tickets for this show, do so, becasue this could be the sleeper that everybody will be talking about." Anyway, break a leg, have fun, relax and don't forget to breathe!!!!! Sondra
	IP Logged

Joan54 Celebrity Joined: 10/03/05 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 207	Posted: 7/10/06 at 8:16am
	I don't think it sounds nuts to work on a show for a year. I get started on costumes and sets for our shows at least six months in advance and the other two principals in our group start reading groups for the script at about the same time. We enjoy it more when we can work at leisure and it makes for better shows. I hate everything being thrown together at the last minute...it's not fun and the show usually reflects that. Let us know if some of the new marketing works out.. We're trying a fund raiser in a local vineyard in a few weeks.....cheap wine, cheese and crackers and a group of actors doing some scenes. We'll see how it goes. Now..at risk of sounding like a fussy mother...maybe you're tired because you're getting up in four hours to build sets! You have to learn to pace yourself.... theater is supposed to be an enjoyable experience. Here's what I do....after my day job and whatever errands need to be done after work I make sure I take a break for at least an hour before I start theater work....not neccesarily on the couch with a book ( although that's nice) but at least a chat with my daughter or pull a few weeds in the garden and talk to the neighbors. Then I work at home or at the "theater" with whatever needs to be done....but never later than ten o'clock. I have found that most of the work done after 10 is crap and has to be re-worked anyways. Then an hour or reading or TV...always into bed by 11. A nap on Sunday afternoon is encouraged. This way my energy levels stay high and some really good work gets done. Turn the phone off, turn the computor off and take a break rather than trying to push through too much. I know all of the details can be overwhelming.....isn't it funny how lists grow rather than shrink? A list at the first reading will be short: "Edit, Cast, Advertise etc" But each of these items grows to be another list which splits again and again. In costuming I start out with a simple cast list and end up with a groaning three ring binder full of notes about missing buttons and such. Anyways....hope all of your work pays off...now turn off the computer and get to bed.
	"behind a thin wall of logic panic is waiting to stampede"
	IP Logged

jayzehr Celebrity Joined: 8/11/05 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 537	Posted: 7/10/06 at 6:10pm
	I like to save those lists of things to do to look at after the show is finished. Then I can tell myself, "Well, as overwhelming as this seemed at the time, I did get everything done." This helps me keep slightly less insane the next show when I'm looking at equally overwhelming lists.
	IP Logged

Tom_Rylex Star Joined: 5/07/05 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 60	Posted: 7/12/06 at 11:42pm
	Joan, Thanks for the affirmation. I won't know how well publicity worked until the final ticket sales, but things seem to be positive. One of the publicity things that I added for this show was an audition workshop. Not only did we kickstart audition publicity, but it gave us a chance to help people who might have given a poor audition otherwise. Another one that I tried has been our human interest press release. We surveyed the cast, and were able to come up with a good number of human interest story stubs. We sent that out to a variety of media outlets, along with an invitation to our press day (in a couple of weeks). I've already been contacted by one newspaper who wanted to do a story immediately. I'll let you know how press day worked out. I don't disagree that I'm tired because I'm not sleeping. But, as Jake or Elwood might say, "I'm on a mission from God." I'd like to show our group the direction I would like to see us go in terms of putting together and running shows. It's a lot easier to make a point when you can just show them. I hope it takes, because I won't be producing again for a long time (a few years at least). I like the way things are going so far, but it's just too much to ask of my wife/kids/school/work/other for me to do this more than once. Back to work! There's props to be made! Here's an aside: I'm working on a cauldron right now. I'm using muslin over chicken wire, and spray painting it black. I'm sure I'll find out soon enough, but do I need to have multiple layers for the chicken wire to not show? -Tom
	The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep. -R. Frost
	IP Logged

Joan54 Celebrity Joined: 10/03/05 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 207	Posted: 7/13/06 at 7:45am
	Yeah...probably. Muslin doesn't cover a lot of bumps. Go to the thrift store ( or your own overstuffed linen closet) and buy a mattress pad....you know it's cotton and sort of quilted. Wrap that around the chicken wire and spray it - the paint will make it stiff. Then you can cover everything with the muslin and pull the muslin tighter so that it looks more like metal. Buy a can of spray adhesive and the muslin will stick to the padding without a lot of sewing and tucking. I am working on lutes for "Taming of the Shrew". One has to look real and the other has to be broken over the actor's head. I made them out of bamboo vegetable strainers and thin plywood...kind of having fun. Hope the cauldron works out....oh remember to use flat paint....not shiny...the flat paint will hide a lot of bumps.
	"behind a thin wall of logic panic is waiting to stampede"
	IP Logged

jayzehr Celebrity Joined: 8/11/05 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 537	Posted: 7/14/06 at 2:44pm
	Tom: How did you work the audition workshop? What sort of things did you do and how was it different from the audition itself? I'm thinking about doing that this fall as well. Jay
	IP Logged

Tom_Rylex Star Joined: 5/07/05 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 60	Posted: 7/15/06 at 5:58pm
	Jay, The workshop was roughly divided into two parts, lecture and activity. We had experienced directors who lead the workshop. The lecture was geared as an introduction to the audition process, particularly for newcomers to theate. They discussed many elements of audition etiquette, and talked about what they look for in general when they see someone audition. They covered things that are obvious (no gum chewing, don't argue with the audition team) to more subtle points (body language, why you're auditioning as soon as you enter the room). The activity was a mock audition process. Since ours focused on vocal and dance, we didn't do a full scale mock audition. What was different relative to a real audition, is that the auditioners would let the participant know what they were thinking about the audition, and coached them with specific things that would improve their audition. The mock audition also did not use anything related to the actual auditions. The purpose was not to teach them how to get a part in our upcoming show, it was to show them how to improve their chances for any community theatre that they tried out for. Hope that answers a few questions. -Tom
	The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep. -R. Frost
	IP Logged

jayzehr Celebrity Joined: 8/11/05 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 537	Posted: 7/15/06 at 10:36pm
	Thanks Tom, that was very useful. I think we'll try to do that for our next play. How far ahead of the auditions was the workshop? And was it just one night?
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Tom_Rylex Star Joined: 5/07/05 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 60	Posted: 7/19/06 at 11:46pm
	The workshop was a few days before the auditions, and it was only one day. -Tom P.S. Cauldron's done! Will post a pic when I get back. Still needs the light and dry ice though.
	The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep. -R. Frost
	IP Logged