Fringe in Full Swing

So my Capital Fringe Festival show, The Diary of a Dancer, is in rehearsal in NYC. Down here in DC I am starting the marketing. I started a Facebook group and Mary has her own Facebook page. You should add her by clicking here. There will be some fun updates I am sure.

Postcards just arrived! Thanks to my talented fellow Fringe producer, Anne Kohn. I wrote about her theatre company a while back, No Rules Theatre Company and now they are doing a Fringe show too.

The biggest challenge we face is our 1st show has a crappy timeslot (Saturday July, 11th at 11am). I am hoping we can sell out that first show maybe by giving something away??? Anyone have any ideas on how to make the first and earliest show sell out? Give me a shout or leave a comment.

Update

Well tomorrow turned into a week and a half later.

Things are busy here. We have Avenue Q coming in next month which is pretty exciting. I am working my Capital Fringe Festival show, The Diary of a Dancer, which is now fully off and running. Not to mention a third project that has yet to be announced that I am so excited about. It has run into many bumps but keeps on moving forward which is so nice. A friend of mine says do something every day that scares you. Well this new project is super scare and super excited.

I have decided twice a week is a good amount of blogging. Not setting a goal for the blog keeps making it okay to push back and writing five times a week was simply just too much. So I will shoot for two new posts every week. Wish me luck with everything and if you want to really support me buy a ticket!

The Return

I have returned from my long absence. So much to catch up and so many thought! First off the Tony Awards are coming up and I have only seen one show! American Idiot and I loved it. Apparently people think it won’t get the Tony for Best Musical and I think they may be right. It was such a great show though and I really hopes it wins. Go see it!

I am really going to get better about blogging. It won’t be every day and probably won’t be as long of posts but it is back.

Tomorrow there is so much on the Capital Fringe Festival and my show, The Diary of a Dancer.

Fringe Project 10 - And So It Begins…

The Diary of a Dancer will be my Fringe Show! I am soooo excited to be working on this show. Author Wade Dooley contacted me months ago to put his show in for the running for my Project Fringe show. The show I will produce at the Capital Fringe Festival this summer. His show was a wonderful musical about a retirement community that had many great characters and some fun music but ultimately was just too big for me to budget at Fringe.

Then he came back with the idea of using the main character from that musical and creating a one-man show. I was instantly intrigued and loved all the work he has put into the show.

Then there was the whole application process for Fringe. You have to apply and wait to see if you even get accepted. We have been accepted and I have put the first payment in $250 (including the application fee) and I have to make the rest of the payment a week from Friday.

I am going to start a three part fundraising project for this show. My goal is to raise $1,000 to cover the fees involved in Fringe and to help pay the rest of the costs involved in producing a show. The total budget today is $4,430. Scary right? Stay tuned for how you can help!

Project Fringe 10 – Moving Forward

I have been amazed recently by this one man show that is playing in one of my theaters. I guess it is technically not a one man show since there are two people on stage but really one person is carrying the show. I have been stopping by to see full houses and am truly amazed by the potential of a one man show. The script and story have to be spot on and the production must be first class. But with a cast of one the gross potential is much high and makes the production way less risky.

You only have a cast of one to pay and possibly a hundred less costumes. I am not ready to announce it yet but in looking at doing a Fringe I discovered two things. First the quality of production was less than I thought and second the chance of recoupment was also less than I had planned. The Capital Fringe Festival in Washington DC charges a total of $825 to just get in the door when all is said and done. At Fringe the houses are relatively small so with a 100 percent attendance gross of a 50 seat house I would be looking of $2,250. That doesn’t leave a lot for actors, sets, costumes, directors, designers or marketing. Also remember that is 100 percent attendance. Try and think of Fringe like Broadway. There will be many shows playing at once. Sure a couple of them will be hits but that’s a couple out of many. And some of them could be flops.

Weighing all of those factors I have decided two things. I want a one man show for my first time and second I want to partner up with Producers who have done Fringe before.

Again because of no one signing anything yet and not even being excepted yet I will wait to announce what the show is and who the partners are but I have to say I am starting to get excited. More to come soon hopefully…

Ask My Frends - Producing at Fringe Follow Up

Incase you haven’t read Jamie’s first post please go back and do so. I asked Jamie Galhon to do a follow up post about what it was like after Capital Fringe. What she liked and learned from her time as a producer. Jamie is a Georgetown Grad and now works in the Artistic Department at Arena Stage. Don’t let the work artistic fool you though. She is very business savvy and will be producing huge hits all over town really soon.

Skywriter: The Fringe Redux

"Skywriter came and went. The Fringe madness peaked and subsided, and I and the rest of The Angry Young Theatre Company lived to tell the tale. Lessons learned, challenges overcome, and a little sweet success as well. So, here goes...

When I last blogged, we were heading into our one two-hour technical rehearsal, getting ready to open, and praying that the Zip Car pick-up truck we rented would be big enough to fit our set. Luckily, the set arrived in one piece (albeit not without some extensive rigging and one slightly terrifying and point-and-laugh inducing trip across town), and tech went as well as one could hope given the circumstances. We opened to a good sized house; our venue had 60 seats, and were pleased to see the seats continue to fill as the run went on. We ended up selling out 3 of our 5 total shows, thanks largely to our amazingly supportive friends, their word of mouth, and some good press. All told we ran at an average 94% capacity, not adjusting for the comps in each house. This totally met, if not exceeded, our initial goal of 60% capacity throughout the run. Then again, when we made that goal we didn't really know what to expect, or what we were doing for that matter.

Looking back, I wish I had found a way to get those first two shows sold out. Having full houses to kick off the run would have more or less ensured success the following weekend. After all, everyone wants to go see the shows that are selling out, even if they don't know the content. When the tickets were tallied and we got our check from Fringe (a pre-set % of the total box office), we were able to recoup all direct expenses. At the start of this endeavor, everyone in the company had agreed to give their time for free (this was a true labor of love, after all), and we focused on keeping costs down throughout the process, which meant finding free rehearsal space, re-furbing materials into our set, etc., and our actors knew from the get-go that this was not a paid gig. That said, we all had our fingers crossed that we would do well enough to a.) not run me into debt, and b) pay our artists and ourselves for our commitment and hard work on the project. Thankfully, even after reimbursing company members for their direct expenses, we had enough left over to pay all four of our actors, our writer, director, stage manager, and producer (me). The money was by no means indicative of the worth or value of the contribution everyone put in, but regardless, I was proud to be able to walk away knowing we did what we could in that regard.

But of course, in the end, it really wasn't about the money (though money is nice). It was about putting up a new play that I believed in, that had something important and relevant to say to THIS community, with a host of artists I respect. It was about creating something from nothing and sharing it with the world, about having the opportunity and challenge to do so; it was about pushing myself and growing in the process, with my friends and colleagues. Would I do it again? In a heartbeat."

What I Learned at the Summit – Part 1

This weekend was the 3rd Annual GLBT Economic Summit in Washington, DC. This was my second year in attendance and I learned so much again I thought I would share the big points in a couple of blog posts. The Summit is put on by the Office of GLBT Affairs, the Office of the Deputy Mayor of Planning and Economic Development for Washington DC, the Washington Economic Partnership and PEN- Metro DC’s LGBT Chamber of Commerce. As you can see, this Summit was no joke.

One of the Keynote Speakers was Harriet Tregoning the Director of the Office of Planning. Right away I sat there and thought, I will probably learn some business stuff but tying this into theatre is going to be tough. Then she delivered her keynote and she spoke about how DC should and can grow highlighting three ways to do so, Green Jobs, Retail and the Arts. Yes, the Arts took on a pretty big role in her speech. In fact she mentioned my company by name twice and she didn’t just talk about the big theatres but addressed smaller ones like the Fringe Festival and the Atlas Theatre.

She highlighted that in DC there are over 75,000 “creative” jobs. Which are everything from museums to media to theatre. She also said that of those jobs about 5,200 were in the performing arts. Most of the jobs were in media and communications in DC. In fact almost half of the creative jobs were in media.

Tregoning spoke about how we need the arts everywhere and how important they were to a thriving community. She said that the arts brought business to areas and helped with restaurants and retail. She encouraged us to think of creative ways to use empty space in the city and talked about having a rehearsal in a store front or even someone painting portraits and how that was more interesting than just an abandoned store front.

Why was I so excited about her speech? Because this room was full of business men and women, most of whom had nothing to do with the arts. Yet here stood someone from the planning office taking one third of her speech to discuss how the arts impact and should be thought of when planning the city.

Bonus – Tree Tweeting – She also was asked about trees in the city and she mentioned that you are responsible for watering any trees in front of your house even if it is not directly on your property. She went on to say that they are working on having your trees tweet you. This way you are reminded if the tree has not gotten rain in a while that you should water it. I just thought that was neat and had to share. More from the summit tomorrow.

Project Fringe 10 - Part 4 7.17.09

We are really making progress with Project Fringe. I have a partner in producing this show. His name is Clayton Smith. I have worked with Clayton briefly in producing a reading of one of his plays. Clayton is a bright young grad student in Chicago. He has written for this blog, and it is #2 in the top-ranked pages of the blog. Clayton will be heavily involved in the creative aspects of script formation. He will also play a key role in fundraising and marketing.

Speaking of the creative part, I am down to three ideas, though only two of them are fully formed. I want to get a director involved to help choose the piece. There is a local, young director who has assisted on a lot around town and directed a lot of readings and smaller productions. Next season will mark his directing debut of a main stage at a regional theatre in D.C. I won’t reveal his name yet, but he seems interested, and I will let you know once we move forward.

So a partner is attached, and a director and script are getting closer. Now to work on a marketing plan and budget with my partner Clayton. Stay tuned to see who will be playing the “director” in this adventure and what script will make the final cut.

Vacancy

So I was thinking about Capital Fringe, the Hip Hop Theatre Festival, and the Source Festival. They are all theatre festivals with low budgets, but they're all important to the Arts in Washington. They take place in the summer when most regional theatres are dark or mostly dark. I was thinking of how these festivals often bring in out-of-towners.

Why don’t regional theatres that have artist housing in the area lend a hand to these younger festivals? I am not saying they should give housing for free, but at Arena I know we had apartments sitting empty in the summer months. Maybe the festivals could pay for upfront costs, like cleanings, and maybe even have them cover ten percent of the cost. So if, let's just say, “Big Regional Theatre XYZ” had 10 empty apartments for which they paid $1,500 each month, they could give it to the festival for $150 a month, plus cleaning cost. Then “Big Regional Theatre XYZ” could make something off the apartment and help out a smaller festival.

Would this work? I know the devil is in the details, but if I got together Festival leaders and General/Company Managers, could they work out a plan to make this happen for next summer? Who knows. I will forward this blog to them and ask them to comment on the blog. And if you have ideas, you should comment too.

Project Fringe 10 – Part 3 – 7.10.09

Since I am going to produce a show for Fringe next year I figured I should start promoting them in the hopes that you will go see a show this year and come back next year to see my show. If you have read the blog about producing at Fringe, then you know at least one show you should see. I know I am buying tickets.

As a producer, part of our job is research. I will be seeing several shows this year to get a feel for how the festival is run. I will also be talking to many producers, like my friends Jamie and Cory, who are producing at this year's Capital Fringe.

I am mostly curious about budgets. How much they spent, how much they raised, and how did they do it. Part of my research will be to talk to people really involved in Fringe. One of my new Facebook friends is helping them with marketing and PR, and hopefully we will have lunch next week so I can pick his brain about how it is all going.

My last update with Project Fringe is that there is a late entry. I got a call yesterday from a young writer in NYC who has a new musical I am interested in. He seems very smart, and he pitched the idea yesterday and sent me some things to read. So now we have 3 good shows in the running.

Project Fringe 10 – Part 2 – 7.9.09

Time to update you on where we are with this project. With everything happening the last couple of weeks, I have been behind in this, and I need to try and stay more focused. So far, two ideas have really moved to the forefront.

This first is by two writers that I have never met, but I know them through friends, and I still am not sure how our paths never crossed. They are working on a musical adaption of Animal Farm. They really stepped up and came up with an outline and several demo songs for me. I have to say I am really impressed with the work they have put into this project, and it leads me to believe they will continue this work ethic all the way through, which is very exciting. I like the piece, and the songs are really cute. I can totally see myself doing this piece.

The second option is a new idea from friend of mine who is WONDERFUL writer and with whom I really want to work. His idea is less flushed out, and he would need to team up with someone to write the music, which I believe he has already started pursuing. I love the idea he has, but I am not sure how fast he can work to get the script and idea done. Although I don’t need a script now, the idea of the other option is totally flushed out.

I promised to let you know where I was, so there you have it. I will post more as details come. Who knows! Maybe I will make this really challenging and try and produce two shows! Crazy, I know. Stay tuned . . . .

Ask My Friends - Producing at Fringe

We keep the tradition of “Ask My Friends” and next up is Jamie Gahlon who I worked with at Arena Stage. She is a smart young artist and business person. I am sure we will see the words JAMIE GAHLON PRESENTS very soon. She would love for you all to buy tickets or even look up more info about their show. I asked Jamie to tell us what it is like to produce a show for the Capital Fringe Festival.

“Skywriter: Power-Madness! Subject-Verb Agreement!

From the moment I saw my first Fringe show, I knew it was something I wanted to be a part of; it was just a matter of finding the right people and project. I had produced a couple of shows in college and gained some experience line-producing readings and workshops in my current job at Arena Stage, but the control freak and adventurer in me was missing the fun and chaos endemic to producing, of creating something from scratch and getting to be involved in all aspects of the process from conception to death. So when my friend/colleague/playwright extraordinaire Seamus Sullivan asked if I would consider producing a show he wanted to write for Fringe this summer, I was totally on board. Seamus, a number of other Georgetown grads, and I got together, and The Angry Young Theatre Company was born.

My initial excitement wavered only slightly as I came to terms with what lie ahead; I would be producing for the "real world," we had no budget save my trusty Wells Fargo Visa, and the most exciting/terrifying part was the fact that Skywriter was a new play, an entirely different beast from a script arriving pre-packaged and prepped for distribution.

As soon as we were officially accepted into Fringe in March, we set up auditions and put word out about the show:

"As an English teacher at a troubled DC public school, Frank Fletcher deals with a host of problems; crumbling infrastructure, violence in the halls, controversial reforms, and students who aren't always inclined to sit and learn. Thanks to a traumatic accident, he also believes himself to be a superhero named Skywriter who spends his nights patrolling neighborhood rooftops. When a new student teacher uncovers his secret identity, Fletcher must reflect on whether his heroic alter ego is a dangerous delusion or a much needed force for good in the city."

We were incredibly pleased with the response to auditions and ended up with four fabulous actors, Ricardo Frederick Evans, Christopher Michael Todd, Genevieve James, and Lynn Bandoria.

I spent the next couple of weeks madly crafting contracts, navigating Equity waters to obtain the necessary waivers, searching for rehearsal space, and getting as precise a production calendar as possible given the info that was steadily arriving from Fringe. In many respects, the blessing and curse of Fringe is the pre-ordained structure. Pro: You get a venue, name recognition, and a built-in promotional network. Con: We will have a two-hour tech and must limit the show to an hour. Thankfully, Seamus and our director, Hunter Styles, have both been aware of such constraints and have done an awesome job preserving the magnitude and substance of the show without allowing the scope to careen out of control.

By the time we were cast, Seamus had a rough first draft, but it was clear that in order to do the show justice, we would need to get a development process in place. We partnered with the Artists' Bloc as a part of their Modern Scribes program and set up three readings during April, May and June. We used our cast when they were available, and after each reading, Artists' Bloc staff helped to facilitate a non-critical feedback session based on questions generated by Seamus. It was truly incredible to experience the evolution of the script, sweeping changes and minute adjustments alike.

Seamus set the script in early June as we finalized our press pitches and listings and sent our marketing materials to print, albeit later than we had hoped (isn't that always the way?). We began rehearsals just over three weeks ago, and though it's hard to believe, we head into tech this week, and Fringe is fast upon us. Today, we had a preview performance at Big Monkey Comics on 14th Street, and though the space was unconventional, it was incredible to see a sampling of what's to come, and it was great for our cast to get some practice in front of an audience before the real deal begins THIS Saturday!

As I type, I have just sent the agenda for our last Production meeting, finished finalizing our strange tech week schedule (which includes practicing our 15 minute load in and load outs, God help us), and am trying to understand the minutiae and costs of the wondrous world of ZipCar. Do you know exactly how big the back end of a pick-up truck is or how to secure a rolling chain link fence in said pick-up? Neither do I, but I will by the time this is through.

Outside of the thrill of creation itself and the fun of working with a team of artists I deeply respect, the most rewarding part of the process thus far has been to be a part of something I believe has potential as a tool to affect positive social change in our city, to incite reflection on the state of DC Public schools, and, ideally, to serve as a catalyst for action that moves beyond the theater lobby. Skywriter begs us all to examine who we as a society choose to make superhuman and to seek out and recognize the superheroes who walk among us every day."

Taking a Leap of Faith

Today tickets go on sale for the Capital Fringe Festival. I am going to buy a pass and check it out. I decided I need to produce something. The Fringe Festival is the perfect place for me to test the waters of producing. So I am going to commit to producing a show for the summer of 2010. I don’t know what it will be but I just need to do it. Sometimes you just need to take a leap. Time to put my skills to the test.

Working on Pride and Prejudice has been great and I have learned a lot from our lead producer Lori but I need to do something on my own now. (Check out this video of P&P) So here goes…

I will start the process this week of finding a show or finding writers. If I start today I will have one year to put together a show. I will blog about the process of producing it on here as part of the blog.

So any writers out there have a short and cheap show they want to have produced? Write me at jared@nefftheatricals.com.