Mark and I spent a grand total of $344.04 in April on our first reading of Tangled.
How did we do that???
Go grab your carpet squares and gather round and I'll tell you.
1. First things first, figure out exactly what you want to do and why. Mark and I wanted to have a concert style reading with refreshments to follow in order to start getting the word out about our show and court a few important people. Make very clear goals and be very clear about the format that will support those goals. If it is your first time out, I would highly suggest a reading. It allows you to see what you've got at a low price and with minimal rehearsal time.
2. Second things second, figure out how much you can spend WITH PADDING. This means if you have $500 don't plan on spending $500. Plan on spending $430 and leave $70 for the random stuff that is going to crop up like that one extra hour of rehearsal space or that hat that Miss Stockaracter just has to have. Mark and I started with $400 and projected a cost of $350.
3. Once you have a budget, make up a budget sheet. I've found that this is ESSENTIAL to staying on budget and staying aware of what's spent. Go into Excel and create five columns: item, projected cost, actual cost, money spent, and notes.
Items: rehearsal space costs, AEA reimbursements, printing, food, etc.
Projected cost: what you believe each item will cost
Actual cost: the quote you receive
Money spent: keep track of what's left your wallet!
Notes: useful for thank you cards and remembering why you did that
Here's mine for the April reading:
4. Time to make like an artist and get creative.
Priorities: What can you absolutely not do without? We decided our big ticket item would be our performance space. We could have gotten free space on Long Island or less expensive space downtown but we wanted to stay in midtown where our VIPs were and we wanted to be able to say we were doing it at MTC, even if it was in a studio, having the name definitely got a few people there.
Make it stretch: Despite the space being our big ticket item it was actually quite innovative of us. We didn't have to shell out $500 for a gross looking theatre but instead spent $135 for a rehearsal space and organized it to make it into a performance space by redirecting the track lighting and creating an entrance, performance space, house space and reception area. Here's my sketch from our first walk through (definitely not to scale and possibly not legible):
Favors: Don't be afraid to ask where appropriate. My dad has an office so I asked him to print our programs. Since they 8.5"x5.5" we were able to print two to a page so he basically donated 50 sheets of printed paper. My lovely roommate baked some gourmet grade cookies (I'm serious, they will kick the A-double-S of any bakery in town) and my friend Adelle made dips and my mom donated crackers and a few cheap bottles of wine.
Make cheap things look expensive: When things look clean, they look expensive. And making things look clean costs nothing. Make sure your rows of chairs are perfectly lined up. Make sure your actors are perfectly styled (in their own clothing of course) and have their music in clean black binders. Cover that "box office" table with a table cloth you borrowed from Aunt Joan. Make your programs simple so they don't look cluttered. Spring for the $1.50 piece of black foam core at Lee's Art Shop to put headshots on. Have friends help by escorting people to seats. Do not underestimate the prestige a reserved seat or a list suggests. And for goodness gracious, make sure you leave time for your make up!
This is a fast and loose rundown to help you out. There are of course many many many many details that I could give you but then this blog entry would be forever long. If you have specific questions please feel free to email me at Alexandra@AlexandraHRubin.com.
Be brilliant, be happy!
