Retro Circles

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Lecture 6. Project Management in Performing
Arts Olga A. Burukina, PhD Associate Professor
National Research University Higher
School of Economics Moscow, 2014
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Contents

• Performing Arts
• Theatre industry projects
• PM Priorities in Performing Arts
• PM Methods Tools for Performing Industries
• Theatre PM Software
• Operating Principles
• Feasibility Assessment
• Writing the Theatre Business Plan
• Working with Project Sponsors

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Goals

• To let the learners get acquainted with basic
  performing industries project management
  approaches and methodologies
• To develop learners understanding of PM
  application in performing industries
• To develop learners competences in creative
  industries PM
• To develop a network of professional creative
  project managers
• To establish fundamentals for a network of
  professional performing industries project
  managers

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Performing arts

• Performing arts dance, music, opera, theatre,
  magic, spoken word, circus arts and musical
  theatre.
• Performers actors, comedians, dancers,
  magicians, musicians, and singers. Performing
  arts are also supported by workers in related
  fields, such as songwriting and stagecraft.
• Performers often adapt their appearance, such as
  with costumes and stage makeup, etc.
• There is also a specialized form of fine art in
  which the artists perform their work live to an
  audience. This is called performance art. Most
  performance art also involves some form of
  plastic art, perhaps in the creation of props.
  Dance was often referred to as a plastic art
  during the Modern dance era.

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Theatre Industry Projects

• Play Staging
• Rehearsing
• Touring (guest performances)
• Theatre restoration
• Theatre building
• Events (banquets, skit or parody shows, galas,
  anniversaries)
• Advertising

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PM Priorities in Performing Arts

• Scheduling
• Timing (time management)
• Profit maximization (fundraising and budgeting)
• Human resources (personnel management)

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PM Methods Tools for Performing Industries

• Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT)
• PERT charts
• Critical Path Method (CPM)
• Gantt charts

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Theatre PM Software

• Web-based Project Management Software Easy
  Projects Personal
• Virtual Project Open Source Project Management
  Software
• Software Planner - Web-based bug tracker, project
  management
• TaskMerlin Project Management Software
• Seavus Project Planner
• Rational Plan Multi Project

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Operating Principles

• Client solutions are driven by a brand-engagement
  focus
• Idea generation is created from a channel neutral
  approach
• Multidisciplinary participation is established in
  the initial stages of the creative process
• An innovative approach embraces todays tools to
  improve the way PI companies work
• Global capabilities are delivered with local
  expertise
• Trust and authenticity are at the heart of our
  culture
• Flawless execution is a must

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1. Define your objectives

• Thats simple enough, right? Sell lots of
  tickets. Next
• Are you more concerned with maximizing revenue or
  getting the most people to see the show?
• Do you want people to become season ticket
  holders or just come to this one show?
• Do you want families to come to the show? College
  students? Fans of the avant-garde?
• How many tickets do you want presold versus at
  the door?

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2. Decide how you are measuring success

• Once you know your objectives, its pretty
  straight forward to figure out how you are
  measuring success.
• Are you looking at the number of tickets sold or
  how much money youve taken in.
• Did you get reviewed by all the local arts
  bloggers?

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3. Assign responsibilities from the start

• Common tasks
• taking pictures
• updating Facebook and Twitter
• contacting the local press
• giving interviews
• getting posters printed
• getting in all the local events calendars
• running the website

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4. Measure to see if you are getting results

• Dont wait for the curtain to go up to decide if
  you should have been promoting differently.
• If one of the ways you are measuring success is
  total ticket sales, you can at least see how many
  tickets youve sold in advance.
• Stick to the plan or ramp up your efforts.

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5. Be ready to adapt your plan when things change

• What marketing tactic could you cut if money gets
  tight?
• If someone on your marketing team became
  unavailable, who could you call in a pinch to
  help out?
• What would you do differently if you had a little
  more money?
• What would you do if a major news story bumps the
  coverage of your show off the front page or the
  nightly news?

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6. Examine what didnt work the way you expected

• Youre not done yet.
• Here are some possibilities
• you had an unskilled photographer taking bad
  pictures
• the camera itself was low quality
• no one in the show is active on Facebook to share
  the pictures
• the lighting was bad
• the subject matter of the photos made the show
  look amateur

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FOUR PHASES OF FEASIBILITY ASSESSMENT

• Phase I Research and Preliminary Assessment
•  
• 1.  Demographics Summary
• 2.  Local Activity Data
• 3.  Environmental and Architectural Data
• 4.  Site Options (to establish cost/benefit)
• 5.  Supply Data (inventory of competitive
  facilities)
• 6.  Demographic Analyses of Demand
• 7.  Prospective User Groups
• 8.  Market Study and Needs Assessment
• 9.  Summary and Preliminary Program
• Suggestions

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FOUR PHASES OF FEASIBILITY ASSESSMENT

• Phase II Program Analysis
• 1.  Use Program, Policies, Management, Event
  Calendar
• 2.  Mission review, Design Criteria, Building
  Program
• 3.  Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment
• 4.  Conceptual Drawings
• 5.  Estimates of Probable Cost
•  
• Phase III Resource Analysis
• 1.  Funding Options
• 2.  Ownership/Governance/Management Options
• 3.  Operations Plan
• 4.  Annual Budgets
• 5.  Economic Impact Analysis 

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FOUR PHASES OF FEASIBILITY ASSESSMENT

• Phase IV Synthesis Phase
•  
• 1. Action Plan
• 2. Critical Path
• 3. Preliminary Terms for Property Purchase, Lease
  or License
• 4. Management Organizational Structures
• 5. Market Plan
•  
• The first feasibility study may be followed by an
  architectural feasibility study or master plan
  and a fund raising feasibility, depending upon
  the specific needs of the project.

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Write the Theatres Business Plan

• Drawn from the mission planning process and
  feasibility study, a Business Plan for the
  theatre may be extrapolated, addressing the
  following 
• Mission Statements and Company Profile
• Community Needs/Industry Trends
• Marketing Plan
• Operating Policies
• Human Resources
• Financial Plan
• The mission statements are the basis for the
  Business Plan and ongoing programs.  A succinct
  Business Plan which summarizes project viability
  will be required by many individuals and
  foundations as a prerequisite to making a
  donation.
• (The Project Management Plan is a variation of a
  business plan which is focused on the delivery of
  a project.)

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SUMMARY OF COMPONENTS IN THE PROJECT MANAGEMENT
PLAN

• Mission Statements and Program Goals
• Project Goals and Design Criteria
• Conditions (Deadlines, Budgets, Issues to be
  resolved)
• Marketing Strategies (Derived from Fund Raising
  Report)
• Operating Structure (Organizational Chart)
• Project Team (Job Descriptions)
• Action Plan (and Critical Path)
• Financing Plan (Cashflow Projections)
• Building Program and Architectural Plan (to be
  developed)

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THEATRE DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT
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Working with Project Sponsors
1. Sufficient knowledge of who the sponsors
are and where they belong in the hierarchy of the
organization - the pack order. 2. True
knowledge of what is their stake in the project -
not just what they publicly say - but what their
internal agenda is. 3. Knowledge of their
comfort levels, risk tolerances and when thrown
into a corner - which would they primarily
protect if they can only choose one - scope,
cost, schedule or quality?
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Working with Project Sponsors-2

• 4. Knowledge of their pain and pleasure
  points which may include what information does
  each one want to hear, when and how and what
  motivational triggers can be pulled if the
  project manager wants the sponsors to jump
  through hoops.
• 5. Understanding the defense mechanism of
  each one. When provoked - will Lion A run away
  and will Lion B attack? If the project manager
  knows who will go into the offensive as a
  defensive - he needs to make sure he knows how
  best to defend himself.
• 6. Balancing between sponsor motivation (the
  treats), punishment (the whip) and defense (the
  chair) is a key skill that each project manager
  should develop. It is so much better to know how
  to manage them that to find your head trapped
  between their jaws.

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Conclusion

• Project management is popular in the business
  world because it allows you to get consistent
  results.
• Its definitely more science than art, but the
  structure is rather soothing than stifling.
• Instead of frantically scrambling to promote a
  show on an ad hoc basis, the project management
  approach allows you to focus on other things
  because you know there is a system in place to
  get butts in the seats.

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Concluding Remarks

• No matter how much wisdom may go into
  planning,... the measure of  its success always
  will be in the spirit and mettle of the
  individuals engaged in its execution.
•  
• No matter how much treasure may support a
  project, or how elaborate its organization, or
  how detailed and farsighted its operational
  scheme, the human element is always the central
  one.
•  
• - Dwight D. Eisenhower

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References

• Project Management from the Trenches. URL
  http//pmtrenches.blogspot.com/2010/10/project-man
  agement-circus-act-2-lion.html
• Kittleson H., MacKarthy M. Pert and Plays
  Project Management in the Theatre Arts. URL
  www.jstor.org/stable/3205840
• The Project Manager. Supplement to the Client
  Guide for ACP Projects.
• What 6 project management principles taught me
  about theatre marketing.
• URL http//soldoutrun.com/what-6-project-manageme
  nt-principles-taught-me-about-theatre-marketing/

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Questions?
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Thank you for your kind attention!
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Lecture 5. Project Management in Performing
ArtsOlga A. Burukina, PhDAssociate Professor
National Research University Higher
School of EconomicsMoscow, 2014