|
|
sb Special user 567 Posts |
I'm not quite sure where to put this...
It looks like I will have a 3 month gig in a small theater, I was trying to bring in my illusion show - but it looks like I may be doing a stand up show (will be hammering out the details with the theater owner on Friday) due to stage size, house size, keeping my production costs down, etc... I have not put on a "stand up" type show in a ticket buying situation before. I am looking for a few opinions on a few different aspects of this... 1. If I was doing and illusion show, ticket prices would be $20 - $25 for advanced tickets. (the show will have some moving lights to add to the "production value" of the show, as well as an appearance of me, a dis-appearance and reappearance in the back of the house, a metamorphosis, and video projected close up - all of this will help the show still feel "big"). How much is an acceptable price point for tickets to a stand up type show? 2. How long should a stand up show run, and should there be an intermission? My illusion show goes about 90 minutes. My normal "stand up" show for paying clients is only about 60 minutes. I have enough solid material for about 80 minutes of "stand up type stuff". Is 80 minutes enough? 35-40 minutes for first half, 10 minutes for intermission, and 35-40 minutes for 2nd half? What do you think? Thanks for any input - I'll post how it goes on Friday with the owners... sb |
chmara Inner circle Tucson, AZ 1911 Posts |
1st and foremost -- did you get BOR sales rights -- that what an intermission is for.
My preference is to front load the first half (35-40 minutes) and leave the second half a VERY PUNCHY 20-25 minutes, unlike a corporate show where you are on for one 30-60 minute time slot, period. (Usually) I hope you are in a market to sustain those ticket prices or have budgeted a good amount for marketing out of that ticket price to get them in the door. Our population base here seems to top out at $20 for magic in a town of just under a million people in the metro area. Copperfield gets more, as do Broadway road shows... but they also budget for media and hype. And a lesson from the late Jay Marshal -- I forget where he said he was performing up in snow country -- on a blizzard night. Walked out into the club he was playing and there was one table of two people and one table of four people in a club that normally sat several hundred. The story goes that he went out and gave his full show with full attention just like it was a full house. He figured those six people deserved his best. He did not know it -- but one guy was the booker for the Ed Sullivan Show who was in town on vacation. The rest -- is history. Or so goes the story. (I can hear Jay uttering a very funny profanity just about now --) The point being is that each customer buying a ticket deserves the best show you can do -- and whether there are a lot of "each" customers in the seats often has more to do with marketing than almost anyting else.
Gregg (C. H. Mara) Chmara
Commercial Operations, LLC Tucson, AZ C. H. Mara Illusion & Psychic Entertainments |
sb Special user 567 Posts |
BOR is EXACTLY why there will be an intermission!
Ironically I am in snow country, and do know the dangers of a blizzard (first hand) on show tickets. Since then I have never relied on door sales. Chmara, thank you for your perspective on the price points. I'll keep the board posted on how I move forward with this, and I'll share info about why I decided to go the way I will go. I think for the stand up show the prices will be a bit lower, I am looking at some of the competing entertainment now. Also, thank you for the story about Jay - I love old stories like that! Please keep any thoughts coming. thanks again, scott |
Blair Marshall Inner circle Montreal, Canada 3660 Posts |
80 minutes is good (great??) for a solo stand-up show.
I like the time split as described above. Definately BOR (program???) Get some sponsors either for the theatre, or for material you are doing in the show. ie. Need a giant screen?- local store supplies one for $$$ consideration etc., posters - use local sponsors for p.r. materials etc. One major sponsor, and one or two smaller ones. Local media (radio, print) will sometimes come on as a sponsor. Blair
Visit My Facebook Fan Page At
www.Facebook.com/BlairMarshallMontrealMagician www.BlairMarshall.ca www.ShaZzamShow.com www.MontrealMagicien.com |
Aftereight Regular user 123 Posts |
Hi,
I am not an English speaking magician, so please tell me what does BOR mean? Thank you Matt |
Blair Marshall Inner circle Montreal, Canada 3660 Posts |
BOR = Back Of Room
T-Shirts, photos, program, magic kit (?) etc. for sale to your audience. There would be lot's more info in the Tricky Business section. Blair
Visit My Facebook Fan Page At
www.Facebook.com/BlairMarshallMontrealMagician www.BlairMarshall.ca www.ShaZzamShow.com www.MontrealMagicien.com |
Kevin Ridgeway V.I.P. Indianapolis, IN & Phoenix, AZ 1832 Posts |
SB...One should have a strong beginning, a strong ending...and put them as close together as possible.
BOR is explained correctly by Blair. But it is also circus, pitchmen, speaker lingo. In the world of concerts, theatres, etc it is called merchandise or merch. Best of luck on your show. Kevin
Living Illusions
Ridgeway & Johnson Entertainment Inc Kevin Ridgeway & Kristen Johnson aka Lady Houdini The World's Premier Female Escape Artist www.LadyHoudini.com www.livingillusions.com |
Bob Sanders Grammar Supervisor Magic Valley Ranch, Clanton, Alabama 20504 Posts |
I vote for the break regardless.
The audience can't enjoy your magic longer than their bladders and fannies can endure being in a theater seat. Just having to stand up to let someone else get by your seat gives some relief to being seated for an hour. (Working a theater is quite different from working a night club with people seated at tables. Theater seats don't move.) Take a lesson from professional advertisers, attention spans need "re-starting" after a time. Also today people who pay for their own tickets to live performances are typically successful overachievers. They carry cell phones because they are busy. They can seldom afford for them to be off for more than an hour at a time. They will indeed walk out of your show if they need to make a timely phone call. (Without the intermission, most will not come back either.) Don't make that necessary. You can't win that one by skipping intermission. (Ask a successful preacher!) Even worse, these people don't recommend shows they didn't see. Yes, this means two really good openings and two really good closings that will need to be in the show. Give the audience what you promised. Give your career a break. Consider the needs of your paying audience and provide a break during the show for them. Bob Sanders Magic By Sander |
The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » Grand illusion » » Show length (0 Likes) |
[ Top of Page ] |
All content & postings Copyright © 2001-2024 Steve Brooks. All Rights Reserved. This page was created in 0.03 seconds requiring 5 database queries. |
The views and comments expressed on The Magic Café are not necessarily those of The Magic Café, Steve Brooks, or Steve Brooks Magic. > Privacy Statement < |