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Must the show go on?
Angela McPake Chairman A&WMTC
Everyone agreed that our 2010
production of Mack and Mabel
was a great artistic triumph. It
was also the show that very nearly
bought the curtain down on a
society that had been in existence
for 60 years. A combination of
expensive staging, spiralling
costs in every direction and poor
ticket sales (we sold 45% of the
seats: a new low for us even in the
recession) meant we lost £12,000
on the production. We only had
£10,000 in the bank.
A crisis meeting was called, open
to everyone who had an interest,
whether or not they were current
members. Our long standing
Chairman, Bob Chaloner
explained the predicament and
outlined the options; fundraise to
clear the debt and get money in
the bank for future productions
or fold the society. We also had
a number of vacancies on the
committee of Management,
and this was putting pressure
on the other members so we
agreed before the meeting that
we also needed to fill those
roles to be able to continue.
The meeting was well attended
and there was a really strong
sense that we should find a way
to carry on. There were some
huge positives to come out of
the meeting- new committee
members (past members, parents
of past members and someone
who was aware how much one of
her friends enjoyed being involved
and wanted to help) and some
great fundraising ideas. There
were also people there who were
very passionate about our carrying
on but whom we haven’t seen
since (fundraising or working on a
production) which is an enduring
frustration!
With additional committee
members, we started work. One
of our new members worked in
marketing and was passionate
about ‘our brand’ and appealing to
a younger audience- both as cast
and, well, audience. So came a
new name- we became a Musical
Theatre Company rather than
an Operatic Society. Would we
have changed our name without
the problems we were having?
Undoubtedly not, but the issues
made us review everything we did
and gave us a chance to change
things. We had a new logo created
that we use on everything we do.
A new presence on Facebook and
Twitter and a revamped website
all followed. There were lots of
conversations about brand values
and company culture at committee
meetings- definitely mind-blowing
for some of our older members!
The major focus, though, was
fundraising. We had members who
did all sorts of sponsored activity-
cycle rides, runs and any manner
of other physical feats. We had
fundraising events of every hue,
became experts at things you can
collect and sell- clothes, mobile
phones, wire, ink cartridges and
CDs to name a few, and started
raising the profile of the Company
by appearing at local events,
markets and shopping centres and
shaking money tins as we went.
Despite being in existence for
more than 60 years, it was a huge
shock to realise how few people
knew we existed even in our own
home town. There was, though, an
enormous outpouring of goodwill
which meant that people, who had
previously had no involvement,
were prepared to help us or point
us towards possible sources of
funding.
Although we had agreed that
we wouldn’t mount a production
until we had enough money in the
bank, a year in and enthusiasm
was beginning to wane as it felt
as though we would never hit the
target. We decided we needed a
focus and agreed that we would
commit to doing a show the
following year and make sure we
got to our fundraising target before
the show went on.
Deciding on the right show
was crucial. We needed it to
be relatively easy to stage and,
above all, at the cheaper end of
the scale. For the first time (I
am embarrassed to admit) we
employed all those techniques we
used at work but had never really
transferred to our hobby. Once we
had a short list of shows that we
believed we could afford, we did
some market research. We actually
asked local residents what they
would want to see and how much
they would be prepared to pay for
a ticket. We ended up with two
clear favourites, for one of which
we were then denied the rights, so
this narrowed the choice to one!
Before we committed to the show
we drew up a detailed budget.
Previously, the Treasurer had done
that job, based on the previous
year’s costs, meaning that the only
person who really felt committed
to the budget was he. This time,
the budget was compiled by
the people who spent most
of the money - the Chairman,
the Treasurer, the Production
Secretary, the Stage Manager and
the Wardrobe Mistress. Speaking
as one of the group, it certainly
focuses you on what you have
to spend and on sticking to the
budget. Despite our need to
watch costs, the Marketing team
produced a Marketing plan and
we committed roughly 8% of our
total budget to marketing the show.
This was a first for us, as it was
never really seen as that important
- which is perhaps why so many
people didn’t know we existed.
Despite careful budgeting, it was
still going to cost us over £1000
per person to put each cast member
on stage (by the simple sum of
dividing the total cost by the
number of cast). A scary statistic
when you are so focused on cost!
It wasn’t all about money
though, and last May we started
rehearsals for Boogie Nights. Not
a great piece of theatre but it could
be done on one set, had a small
orchestra, we could costume it
ourselves with the help of EBay
and even people who didn’t think
they ‘did’ musical theatre knew the
music in it. It was also a fun show
and hopefully would be enjoyed by
new cast members. It turned out
that we had one of the best shows
ever, because of a great cast who
helped create a great atmosphere
on stage and off.
Some of our cast had stayed
with us during our fundraising
year but lots hadn’t and we had
had to find new members. Some
of those new members have been
great and a number are now on
our committee. It is quite hard for
everyone though, when you have
a big influx of new committee
members. There are lots of things
you just know about if you have
been around amateur theatre
for any time. If you are new to
it, you don’t, so you need to be
prepared for lots of explaining.
New members also bring a new
perspectives, which is brilliant,
but it is sometimes difficult not
to take searching questions as
a criticism of what we have
done before. I do think we are
a stronger group for those new
members and new enthusiasm.
We finished
Boogie Nights
at
a break-even point, having had
a Community Support grant that
just covered the modest loss we
actually sustained. Considering
the £12,000 loss on the previous
show, we considered that a major
achievement.
Fundraising continues apace
as part of what we do in the
normal run of things. There are
still challenges for us, as for most
other theatre groups. Our core
audience is getting older, there is
lots of competition for the limited
money in people’s pockets, so
getting a big enough audience is
challenging. We only have one
theatre (using the term loosely)
large enough in our area - so we
have to pay the amount the council
demands in rent and there is
nothing to help us push the costs
down. Potential cast members are
hard to find as they have lots of
pressures on their time and most
committee members work full
time these days and fit our musical
theatre jobs around everything else
happening in our lives! Despite
those challenges though, we are
more committed than ever to
carrying on and are much more
business focused than we ever
were before. We certainly don’t
take our company for granted and
feel lucky to be able to do what we
love- most of the time, at least!
In November we are producing
Singin’ in the Rain
. Our newest
challenge, therefore, involves lots
of water!