grab bag blog

For a performing arts organization, programming a season is tough work.

It usually starts at the beginning of the year, sometimes late in the previous year. Stakeholders in the company gather to petition for this show or that show. There is a lot of conversation about what fits the company mission, what is artistically challenging, what audiences want. But one of the biggest considerations is always: what will bring in the most cash.

And, inevitably, this will lead to some form of compromise where the company programs a number of splashy shows that draw the biggest audiences so that they can take a loss on their more “artistic” programming, those shows not as many people come to see. It’s an artistic compromise.

I get it. I’ve been involved in enough season planning to understand it. But it’s ultimately not a winning strategy in the long-term.

Consider this from an audience development perspective. If your season starts with Pirates of Penzance, then features The Pillowman or a deconstructed version of Troilus and Cressida, and then finishes strong with Nine To Five, who exactly is your audience? The people who see the first show are probably not the ideal audience for your middle show, and possibly not quite in line with the final show either. Three shows, three different audiences. Your ability to get people hooked show after show and become long-term patrons, subscribers, and donors is completely derailed by this strategy.

Your organization needs a clear and consistent artistic product in order to build its audience, and with it, a stable revenue stream. Your season programming cannot be all things to all audiences. Your audience demographic cannot be “all people, 18-85.” (Yes, I have had people tell me this was their target audience before.) Hard as it may seem, part of making art is making tough choices. Choose the genres, the topics, the themes that you most want to present and either stick with.

Or, if your company really, really wants to produce different kinds of products, then you have to split your programming up. Make your mainstage programming all classic American musicals, but then have a separate “sub-season” devoted to edgier, complicated, avante-garde works. Call it your After Dark Shows or your Cutting Edge Program. Split your programming so that you can more effectively market each program to the audience that most wants it. You’ll probably need to be a pretty big organization to pull this off, but it can work.

Otherwise, you have to pick the thing you’re most good it, the stories you most want to tell, and focus on just that. Embrace a strong identity and a fervent audience will come.