Filling out the form for TWM doesn't tie you to the show, it just allows them to give you an accurate quote based on your venue, seating capacity, how many performances you are planning to give and your ticket pricing.

 

HTH!

However, there is no requirement to pay anything until you sign the contract.  If you order a perusal script you will have to pay about $20 shipping ($19.75 was what mine was) for that just to view it for 2 weeks.  However, if you decide you want to keep it because you are doing the show, you can send them $200 + the $20 and the signed contract and then pay the balance of your royalties before you get your scripts and other materials but you get to keep the perusal ones. Or you can send your shipping fee for the perusal materials and ship them back to them.   They have actually been very helpful to work with and you can even call them and talk to them and they will send you your quote.

 

It may be based on percentage but it has to be a pretty high percentage.  Our Christmas show is by a published author that used to be local and he is letting us do it for 7% of the house which is actually a better deal.  I hope we can have full houses for Charlie but given the time of the show and past history, I hope for at least half to 3/4 houses and I told them this too and they took that into account when they gave me the quote or so the letter says.  By my figuring, they are charging me about 19% and that is if I practically sell out the house for all 4 shows which could happen but that to me is a pretty steap percentage.

 

What formula they use I do not know.  Our royalties for Babes in Arms were also quite steep in percentage because we had to list such a big house knowing full well we would not sell even half for most shows.

 

I told them that here too and they said they accounted for that.

 

When we did Complete Works this summer - you were to estimate your house and pay 10% of that to the licensing company and then you sent an accounting of your box office and paid the difference - they recommended you estimate low.  This is the way they did all of their plays.  So yes some companies do a box office percentage.

 

All 3 different companies and each were different in how they did it.

 

What companies have you actually paid royalties to that you can speak with such authority? What shows have you taken through production?  I thought Narnia is your first show and it doesn't open until Christmas Eve and hasn't even begun rehearsals yet.

 

I think it is important for anyone to get a quote based on their particular circumstance and not rely on a formula as you can see I have paid from 10% to almost 20% so it is a wide range depending on the play and the script company.  That price did not even include the rental for music if we go with orchestration.

When we did Complete Works this summer - you were to estimate your house and pay 10% of that to the licensing company and then you sent an accounting of your box office and paid the difference - they recommended you estimate low.  This is the way they did all of their plays.  So yes some companies do a box office percentage.
I don't know which house this was through, but some do operate differently, yes. I was referring to musicals, not plays. Many houses handles plays the same way (Samuel French, Dramatic Publishing, Dramatist, etc) in that they charge amateurs a flat fee per performance (usually between $75 and $100). Few of the companies have a different way (the only one that comes to mind is Playscripts.com) in that you pay the flat fee upfront and then submit a signed box office report to them and pay 8% (if that is more than you already paid)

That price did not even include the rental for music if we go with orchestration.
I did not say it did, did I? Orchestra ranges very broad. Almost all musicals from Dramatic Publishing (including Narnia) are a flat $350+$100 deposit. Piano Scores or Accompaniment CD's tend to be about $250+$100 deposit.

MTI seems about the same as well, generally between $900 and $1,200 (at least from the quotes I have received for up to 3 weeks). Samuel French wanted $800 to rent scores for "The Secret Garden".

For the "big" two musical publishers (MTI, R&H), R&H tends to have the lowest royalties and rental fees. Evita from R&H (with the same ticket and seating) was about 10% with a rental of $400.

If you add in the cost of the Orchextra or Instrumentalease, that runs about $400 a week with a minimum of 4 weeks.

I think it is important for anyone to get a quote based on their particular circumstance and not rely on a formula as you can see I have paid from 10% to almost 20% so it is a wide range depending on the play and the script company.
YES. No single person can tell you exactly what the cost will be. I have never been quoted anything near 20% though. Hell, Les Miserables was only quoted at 14%, and that is probably one of the best selling shows.. If you'll notice in my original post, I stated that the only way to get a sure number is to request a quote. The figured and formula I gave were to get a very rough estimate. IN 95% of the cases, the formula I have will give you a fairly good ballpark figure for most any licensing house. Sure, there are some exceptions, but most of the time that formula will work.

At least, it was pretty close to what you were quoted? In fact, VERY close. So how can you turn around and say that my formula would have put you at 19% Royalty? No it would no. If your paying $145 per performance (after the first performance if $345 - which is new to me. No other licensing house I have received a quote from has charged more for the first performance). $145 of $1,000 is 14.5%, if it not? Is that not what I said could be on the high end?

$145 of $1,000 is not 19%, no matter which way you toss the coin.

PS) This is just my opinion, but I really think you should raise your ticket prices a little more. Most community theaters I can find charge at least $16 for adults. Only a select few I have ran across are lower than this. I understand your desire to be open to more people - but in some cases, people actually perceive a higher price to be a higher quality production (rather it is true or not). I'm not saying jack it up to a huge amount, but I really think your under pricing your shows at $12/$8. NOW, before you go asking me were I have the experience to make this advice - It is not mine. I took that directly from the book "Presenting Performances" by Thomas Wolf, which is a very helpful guide is setting prices, finding sponsors, etc.

We are doing $20/$15/$12 for Narnia and we already have people bugging us to buy tickets (they don't go on sale at the BCT box office until the 27th).

 

I intended to raise my prices which in fact these are over Babes in Arms but I guess I had sent for a quote before I decided to do that.  I may amend that with at least $15 but since I don't need the scripts until January, I will see how Scrooge Variations does with higher ticket prices first.   I just fear they are going to charge even more.  I am however going to talk to someone and show them the math and ask if they usually charge that high of a percentage - it seems high to me too but it is what it is and we are advertised so we are doing the show and I don't want to screw that up.

 

Good luck with Narnia.

 

The pricing range they are referring to is actually at the door $12/$10 and presell from cast members $10/$8 but I think I will see about $15/$12 and $13/$10 maybe. I don't think I have published prices yet.

 

Thank you for your research.