Knee Deep…

A friend of mine had the audacity to ask me “What do you do all day?”  So, after I unclenched my jaw, I said, well, let me tell you some of the issues I had to deal with in the last day or so relating to our upcoming production of THE LAND OF FORGOTTEN TOYS.

Marketing, Advertising and Promotions – We finalized the design for our campaign.  But one design simply won’t do it.  There are postcards, posters, program covers, web ads, social media covers, and on and on.  Each one a little different, each one requires some information a little differently.  For example, the digital ads for Chicagoreader.com have no information except “LEARN MORE.” And then the reader clicks on the ad to get the other information.  But the ads on the side of bus shelters must have a phone number and website.  All of those had to be created and approved.  Then, last week I delivered 6,000 pieces of mail to be delivered by the post office to local residents – again a separate, very specific design.

Discount codes – Like almost all professional theaters we offer discount codes, some for neighbors, some for fellow theatre goers, some for cast members, etc.   All of these codes had to be created and then advertised.

Creative elements – Since I am the producer and creator of the story and characters, I approve all of the elements of the show.  After the director and the designer makes their choices, I have to review them and then  approve them.  And if the new idea involves something physical, I may have to research the web and then purchase them.  (Amazon is going to make a lot of money on this show!)  I also was given all of the laundry from our workshop in August. I had to wash all of the costumes – separating them BY COLOR.  So, five loads later, the laundry was finished!

Problem solver – I had to help find carpenters to help our technical director build the set, drive to Oak Park with our set designer and check out some “rocks” that my friend Tina Reynolds was willing to lend  us, bring them back to Chicago (in the back of a pickup truck while it was snowing.) [Take a peek at the group from our show from Tina’s program OVATION Academy for the Performing Arts.] Go back to FedEx Office and print another script and score (it will always be Kinko’s to me!), approve script changes, proof read the program – over and over again, etc.

Meanwhile, rehearsals are happening.  Choreographing the dance numbers, staging the scenes with dialogue, costume fittings, and collaboration on updates to the script, lyrics and music.

Knee deep?  Yep……  but boy am I blessed.

Larry Little
Producer