The dreaded email comes in from your producing organization, (your school, business, or Elon Musk) and you shuffle slowly back to your desk wondering, “How the heck am I going to put on a musical with that little amount of money?” I have been fortunate to work for educational and professional theaters all over the world and I have yet to meet one that says, “Spend whatever you want! Budget is not a concern here at Dreamland Theatre Company.”
One of the first struggles we all have as directors is how to make a tight musical budget stretch. Like a pair of jeans you wore when you were 20, it seems impossible to squeeze into those parameters, but with some helpful tips and maybe a good tailor, you can have a fabulous show that you’re proud of and that financially lands you in the green!
An ESTIMATE you can ACTUALLY use
If you left the blog for a moment to download our handy budget form, you thankfully made it back safe and sound. You may notice that there are two important columns on every line item; Estimated and Actual.
Let’s start with the “Actual” column. This is what everything “actually” costs you at the end of the show. Don’t leave this blank till the week after a show closes... unless you enjoy hours of an email deep-dive searching for all your show receipts. I enjoy a good scavenger hunt like the next guy, but I’d like to know before the end of a show if I am about to lose my job because my budget for the musical is blown by $5,000. Whenever final revenue or expenses come in for certain line items, pop the actual number into the correct column.
Estimating your revenue and expenses can be the hardest part. You know how much money you are getting from your producer, but how do you know the correct way to divide up your money? Start with the areas that are non-negotiable and place them in their correct cells in advance. Pop your allotted producer money into the appropriate revenue cell. Place your royalty and script expenses into those cells. If you rent spaces, pop those into the expenses.
Then you should move onto your staff fees. Look at what the area you live in typically pays an independent contractor and get those contracts signed and people locked in. Not only does this show you how much money you have left for supplies, but it helps you to know how many support staff you can afford to hire and how many hats you have to wear yourself.
This is a great way to negotiate a budget with your producing organization.They may say no to more money, but may say yes to a staffing shortage and find a creative way for you to have a set or costume designer. It never hurts to ask!
Many Pockets are as Good as a Single Deep One
Let’s talk Revenue
Now that you have the amount from your producer and all your non-negotiables are placed in the proper “estimate cells”, you should now estimate and factor in the rest of your revenue. Some programs are not asked to track revenue or the school does not want it factored into what you spend, but most are willing to allow you to spend more on expenses if you prove you can support the increase with consistent revenue.
Revenue can be broken into four categories:
Fees - This includes any registration fees and whatever money your producers give you at the start. It can also include any special student matinees or community events.
Ticket Sales - This category is broken into each performance. Look at previous years so your ticket sales are consistent and accurate. Slightly adjust the amount based on the number of students involved. If you have more involvement than the previous year, chances are ticket sales will increase slightly. It doesn’t do you any favors to overestimate and lose a ton of money. Popularity of the show will also affect the bottom line.
Fundraising - This includes your normal car washes and bake sales, but also includes larger donations you can strive to get. A cast member’s parents might own a business and are willing to be a $1000 show sponsor in exchange for an ad on the back of the playbill. Perhaps you want to do an ad campaign consisting of businesses purchasing quarter, half and full page ads. It is a lot of work to put this together, but when I was building a new program I took this route and raised an average of $7500 on ad sales for each musical. If you have a couple volunteers you trust, it is a great idea to have them take this job over and keep it organized for you.
Miscellaneous - This final category includes any special areas like photo sales, concessions and videos.
Let’s Talk Expenses
The amount of expense line items on a theatre budget ranging from staff fees to microphone batteries is extensive. It took me three or four years of doing production budgets before I didn’t forget at least one major expense and had to scramble to move money around. The theatre budgeting tool I use today has close to FORTY line items to keep track of and because I like you, you can access a blank template version of that for free by CLICKING HERE.
Do I use all forty line items for every show? I do not. As we know every show is different in what their production requirements are and what kind of budget you get to start with. I fill in the line items I need and skip the ones I don’t. I suggest you do the same and not recreate the wheel every show.
There are four major areas to consider when dividing up your budget:
Space Rentals - Any programs that have to rent rehearsal spaces or theater spaces to hold their rehearsals and performances get included in these line items. Don’t forget custodial fees.
Contracted Staff - All production team members who you contract in and have to be paid from your specific show budget fall in this category. Volunteers and anyone working on salary for your organization are excluded.
Production Costs - This is a list of items that you need to create your production. This includes Licensing Fees, Costume and Prop Rentals, Microphones and Construction Supplies.
Marketing Costs - All expenses that come from promoting your show fall in this category including Posters, Banners, Playbills, Photographers and Logo Packs.
If you don’t know how much wood costs or a mic rental then ask your team to help you. After a couple years you will have a musical budget you can refer back to and make better educated guesses. When you are starting out, lean on the people who specialize in that area to help you. This is another reason we schedule our first production meeting a couple months in advance.
Knowledge is Power
Why do we divide our revenue and expenses in these ways? Knowledge is power. When you go to your boss and producers the following year don’t just ask for more money. Show them where you fall short. There may be an alumni with a printing company willing to donate playbills or they may be more willing to give you an additional classroom after school so you are not wasting money renting spaces. It also shows you are organized and have a clear view of where you are falling short. If you demonstrate how good you are with money, people tend to be more willing to give it to you.
Everyone loves a director with a huge imagination, but a producer loves one who can also keep a budget. Save your budgets each show, refer back to them and do your best to make smart, average estimates. Your budget should be a working document that will immediately update profit and loss amounts allowing you to throw away your calculator and keep an eye on the budget quickly over a morning coffee. If you have the right tools, keeping your budget for a musical on track can be quick and painless, leaving you more time to shop Craig’s List for the front of a car you need in your production of Grease.
If you haven’t yet, make sure to download our blank budget spreadsheet for theatre productions. It's free to download and will save you the time of trying to think of all the possible line items needed for your next musical budget. THANKS!
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