Inspired by this thread, I got to thinking about the planning and logistics involved with putting on a show. So let’s say that I’ve decided I want to bring a certain performer to do a show in a venue near me - what would I have to do?
Do I have to have a contract with the venue before I contact the performer (or agent)? Or would a venue require a contract with an act before they’d commit?
Does the venue give me guidance on numbers and costs of seats, or do they handle the ticketing? Would the venue have lights/sound/whatever support might be needed or would I have to arrange for that myself? How about insurance/security/concessions/ushers?
Regarding the talent - is that usually a flat fee, or a percentage? Am I responsible for their travel and lodging, or does that vary with the act? Does a band typically have their own roadies, or would that be up to me also? I’m guessing all of these things can vary according to the performer(s) and they get spelled out in contracts, but would each case necessarily be unique?
Also, how far out are performers typically booked? If I wanted to put on a Woodstock-like event this spring, would I be looking at third-or-fourth string performers because I waited too long to get started? And, for that matter, how are concerts/performances/tours initiated in the first place? Would a singer ever say to the agent: “Yanno, I always wanted to play Kalamazoo - can you hook me up?” Or do they just go where the offers are?
And finally, as a n00b in this field, could I possibly make any money doing this, or would I be lucky just to cover costs?
Just to be clear, I have no intention of doing any of this. I’m retired - I don’t need the aggravations. I don’t need to deal with divas. It’s just something I was thinking about as I lounged about in my idleness. That, and a local museum often has shows featuring acts ranging from mostly current (like Bill Engvall) to rock-n-rollers that I vaguely remember from the 70s and 80s. It seemed kinda sad to hear about a group that used to fill arenas traveling all the way to the Calvert County Marine Museum to perform for a few hundred souls… Anyway, just wondering.
EVERYTHING is negotiable. I produce plays on the time. In the past I owned a movie theater that was sometimes used for concerts. (Chainsaw Kittens, Flaming Lips, Smashing Pumpkins, all in the early-mid 90’s)
If you wanted to book a particular band, you would contact their agent and look at available dates.
Then look at venues in your area and find matching available dates.
Then go back to agent for the band. Say how about May 1st at the Dew Drop Inn?
They may agree or disagree but then it will be “What sound, light, backstage, facilities are available at that venue?” They may have 'minimum requirements" for a venue. They may reconsider those for more money or maybe you’re doing a charitable event.
For the Smashing Pumpkins they wanted (among other things)two packages of white tube socks and a bottle of Absolute Vodka. (It’s hard to do laundry on the road)
Then you go back and forth with the venue and the band(s) until you get it all sorted and then you decide your budget. IIRC One band had it as part of the contract that we couldn’t charge more than $15 for a ticket.
Many upscale parties (Bar Mitzvahs) or birthday parties book top level performers for the party. I’m sure they pay a ton for that but some people have tons of money.
If you wanted to do a festival, well you’d probably want either a year or a huge staff to do that. But when you get some bands, then it gets easier to get others. “oh the Stones and Sir Paul will be there, sure we’ll open for them.”
You might find David Thomas’s notes on touring, etc. here fun to read over.
He performs both as a solo artist and with his group, Pere Ubu and is often perceived as a bit of a curmudgeon!
Would I, as the organizer, be responsible for printing and selling the tickets, or is that something one contracts thru the venue? My husband and I were talking about this and he insists that the venue, by default, takes care of that because they know how many seats they have and how much they can charge by section. I would think that all the venue cares about is being paid a certain amount for the use of their facility, and everything else is up to the organizers. Silly thing to argue about, but now I’d love to know…
What the OP is talking about is being the producer of the show. The act might have a technical rider on their contract, describing their technical needs. Then you’d have to get with the venue to see what they have and can provide (for a fee) and to see what you’ll need to rent. And you’ll have to find out from both of them what sort of roadies and how many you’ll have to hire. The venue probably knows how to handle parking. You probably do NOT want to try this all by your lonesome for the first time out.
You might want to read what The Smoking Gun has on backstage riders on some of the things that artists expect the producer/promoter to provide.
I most definitely wouldn’t want to do this - what little I assumed would have to be done was quite enough to convince me that it’s a pretty huge and complex job. And *promoter *was the word I couldn’t remember - but yeah, that’s the job I was trying to understand.
Does anyone know - is that the sort of thing one works up to? Do you start booking local bands at the Holiday Inn, and gradually figure out how to bring the Rolling Stones to a stadium? Do promoters start out working as flunkies for established promoters? Can one buy a “Promoters for Dummies” book?
Sheesh, this idle curiosity is getting out of hand. I probably need another retirement hobby!
But thanks for all the info so far - I find this to be really interesting.
That would depend on the venue. Larger ones would certainly ‘take care’ of ticketing. (probably part of your rental fee for the space) Smaller venues, who knows? There are lots of venues out there. Look at some of the bigger online DIY ticketing sites. Brown Paper Tickets comes to mind.
