Hire Peforming Artists

Cutting costs.

There are many reasons to hire actors, dancers, playwrights, directors and technicians in your business. They understand working efficiently, saving money, and are deadline driven. They're also quite good at public speaking and finding creative ways to solve problems.

You might be worried about flakiness but that's an easily busted myth. Performers and production personnel have been trained since day one to be on time -- even early -- to every meeting, which brings us to our first reason to hire a performer.

1. Time Management

Performing artists have understood work/life/show balance since before it was popular. They work full time, are in a show, and writing a play -- and none of it on company time. How's that for balance? Performers who keep the drama on the stage want nothing to do with it in the office. They want to get their work done and get on with the rest of their very full lives. Remember, if you want something done, ask a busy person.

2. Presentation

Sets, lights, costumes, makeup, angles, finding your light. These are second nature to people who've been in a show or a hundred. They are presentable, they enjoy playing the part at work, and they can put their polish on things that need it. Your decor, your website, your social media, thee way you engage clients might benefit from a "note" or two from a person who cares. Speaking of notes...

3. Taking Notes

In "the business," taking a note means changing your performance, without complaining, and doing it immediately. Talk about taking direction, that's all people in the performing arts do.

4. Insight

Looking for an outsider's opinion? How about the opinion of someone you don't understand? Do you know who can think like other people? People who get paid to think like other people.

5. Sales

And if a performer can get into character (understand how other people think) they can surely communicate, engage, and sell your clients. It's a performance for one but, instead of applause, they get paid. For doing something they love doing and are very, very good at.

7. Copywriting

Good writing draws you in and performers are great at using words to draw people in. They also know what works, and what doesn't. Here's a secret: every actor wants to write, not because they are so much better but because a lot of what they get handed is not good and they're not allowed to change it. So much energy on getting words right and a lot of great, unused ideas are in the minds of most performers. Could you use a creative person looking at, rewriting, or creating engaging copy?

6. What are you waiting for?

How do you recruit performers and technicians? It's not that hard. Look at your talent pool, go to social media and look for the folks who are in a show, working on costumes, volunteering at a theater, etc. They exist in the workforce because performing doesn't pay as well as you do. If you can trade a little flexibility (yes, they may need to leave right at five to get to rehearsal but remember how they always show up 30 minutes early?), you could reap the rewards of hiring a performer. And there are usually free tickets to be had, too.

Upper Right

When moving from warm California to...wet...Washington, it's important to remember that theatre can be found everywhere. Yes, it's in your heart but it's also down the street, around the corner and in the next town over.

Touring House: Mount Baker Theatre
Built in 1927, Mount Baker Theatre was one of the last grand vaudeville movie palaces to be built in the Pacific Northwest. From silent films to live performing arts, MBT has preserved history while also serving the demands of modern, continuously changing economy, technology, and society.
  
Biggest: Bellingham Theatre Guild
The Bellingham Theatre Guild is a nonprofit volunteer organization that has been producing theatre in Whatcom County, Washington, since 1929, including more than 700 productions with over 7,000 performances. It is quite possible that a well-known playwright has acted there...

Coolest: iDiOM Theater
On the funky side and featuring two theaters -- both experimental -- the iDiOM is good, fun and cool.

Most quaint: Lynden Performing Arts Guild at the Claire
The quaint Dutch town of Lynden features the Western Whatcom Fair grounds, several windmills and a great little theatre.

Upper Right: Blaine Community Theater
Possibly featuring classes and a performance by a renowned playwright and recent PNW actor, this theater is the farthest North and East in the continental US.

Kevin's excited about "my book"

Here's some great news for Monologue-lovers, actors and the people who buy them presents...

 

OK, not entirely my book.  I’m sharing it with Mark Twain!  Yes, you read that right; I am in a book with the man who said, “I do not want to belong to any club that would have someone like me as a member”!  I don’t care what Sam says (I can call him Sam, you can’t) I’m in.

Sam and I wrote monologues that appear in Audition Monologues for Young Women #2 and, while looking for mine, I found a few other gigantic names in literature and theatre. People like new friend and colleague Lisa Soland, Eve Ensler who’s name is synonymous with ‘monologue,’ Moises Kaufman, Paula Vogel, Christopher Durang, Sarah Ruhl and about ninety other worthy writers.  So be the first to write a review on the Barnes and Noble site: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/audition-monologues-for-young-women-2-gerald-lee-ratliff/1116460801?ean=9781566081931

Thanks to editor Gerald Lee Ratliff for choosing my monologue, my friend Miriam, who never did perform the thing, and to all the people who will read and perform my words.

Sandy Hotchkiss Bio

Sandy Hotchkiss is the co-founder of the Talent To aMuse Theatre Company.  She was also the co-founder and co-director of the Wisconsin Theatre for Children, Inc. where she wrote, produced, and performed throughout the states of Wisconsin and Minnesota for years.  A small sampling of her acting work in the San Diego area includes Bessie in Marvin’s Room, Joy Gresham in Shadowlands, Mama in I Remember Mama, Jeanette in Last of the Red Hot Lovers, Toinette in The Imaginary Invalid, Rebecca the Fairy in William S Gilbert’s Foggerty’s Fairy, and most recently in Talent to aMuse’s first production at 10th Avenue as Fonsia in David L. Coburn’s The Gin Game.   

Most people though will recognize Sandy from her extensive commercial work (most recently in commercials for Sycuan, Grossmont Center and the Ford Accord as well as billboards and menus for Cocos.  She can also be seen as one of the Dancing Grannies in the Travis Pastrana video promoting the X Games in LA.

O. P. Hadlock Bio

With over 400 production credits in almost every aspect of theatre, O.P. Hadlock brings a unique array of experience to any theatrical endeavor.  He earned a B.A. in Acting/ Directing and a M.A. in Scenic/Lighting Design from California State University, Long Beach.

O.P., or Patrick to those who know him, lists over 40 acting performances in a vast array of roles as well as a background in dance both on stage and television.  Most recently, he has portrayed Weller Martin in The Gin Game at The 10th Avenue Theatre, Dr. Frederick Treaves in The Elephant Man at OnStage and Col. Nathan Jessup in A Few Good Men at the Lyceum.  He has directed 19 productions and written six plays, 15 screenplays, three novels and two short stories.  Well over 60 productions had their graphics and publicity designed by O.P.  He also held the position of Business and Promotions Manager for three theatres and an arts festival at C.S.U.F.

O.P. has worked as a Technical Director at a California University (C.S.U.S.B.) and a road house (East County Performing Arts Center).  He designed lighting for 50 shows, scenic design for 35 shows, costumed six shows, designed sound for over 30 shows, and crewed over 250 shows.  He studied make-up with Richard Corson.   O.P. co-founded and was technical consultant to The Rainbow Theatricans (a professional children’s theatre company that toured into shopping malls).
Since 1990, O.P. has resided in San Diego with his lovely wife, Christine, and their menagerie of pets.  When he relaxes, O.P. spends his time at his computer, reading, attending concerts and plays, live gaming, and enjoying fine food and wine.

Post Number Two

We're still testing Twitterfeed and Social RSS in the wake of news, from RSS Graffiti that they're folding.  Sad news indeed. In this post, we're placing the photo in a different place.  Having fun!

Twitterfeed vs. Social RSS

We're doing an experiment at the agency today.  We set up clients' blogs and feed them to their Twitter accounts and Facebook pages. We used to use RSS Graffiti to send posts from the blog to Facebook, but they're going out of business April 1 (hope it's a joke but we think not)

So we've set up our blog's RSS (Real Simple Syndication) feed to post to Facebook via both Social RSS and Twitterfeed.  There are positives and negatives to both (one is more free than the other, one id ad-supported, etc.). What we really are interested in, though, is what the posts look like.

This means that our Facebook Page and Twitter account are about to get a lot of posts (or not) with a lot of looks (or not) and we're going to do it all from the blog. We'll post a lot in different configurations to test the look of both products and let you know what we think. On the Blog.

And it will be sent to the... well, you get it.