One of the shows Meryl Faiers, Head of Production at the Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG), and also Producer at the Churchill Theatre in Bromley, is currently working on is the forthcoming tour of Richard O? Brien?s ?The Rocky Horror Show?.
Because Meryl is ATG?s producer on the show, as well as running the producing venue on behalf of ATG, she is effectively co-producing the production with herself. As venue producer (or the ?manager?, in contractual parlance) she can structure the deal to include a technical week ? hence it opens on a Friday. As the lead producer who approaches the venue with the concept, she is responsible for appointing the creative team, overseeing the casting and will probably attend rehearsals.
Meryl?s technical staff at the theatre will work on the production in the same way as with any co-production. The production manager liaises with the designer so that not only will the set work within the theatre?s dimensions, but it will also take into account the ball-park requirements of subsequent venues on the tour ? and often Bromley technicians will assist at the first fit-up in another theatre.
As manager on behalf of the theatre, Meryl will work out a budget of production-specific costs relevant to the Churchill. They include such things as salaries, rehearsal costs, fees to the creative team, running costs while playing at the Churchill, and overheads. There is a marketing and PR team at the Churchill and their services will be included in the overheads. For a large show the total figure could be around £400,000 ? and this amounts to the physical cost of the production up until it leaves Bromley.
The financial contribution made by the lead producer hinges on the result of a key calculation made by Meryl as the venue producer ? how much the production will take at the box office while playing at the Churchill. There will usually be a gap between the production cost figure and the projected box office take ? and it is this figure that forms the basis of the contribution from the main and any other producers.
Once the show leaves Bromley, the producing venue?s involvement with the production is largely over. Contractually, however, the Churchill is entitled to billing and royalties. Billing might mean that the Churchill is credited on all subsequent show print and publicity. Royalties are a percentage of the box office taken at all the subsequent box offices.
What can go wrong? Most common pitfalls relate to the baseline costs and what happens when they become higher than anyone in the production team would like. Costs can run over for a variety of reasons and the lead producer would normally be expected to make up the shortfall. If this occurs, there is a mechanism in the contract to ensure that the producer is warned of the situation before any decision is made. Occasionally, however, decisions have to be taken very quickly, which is why ? as the person in charge of the producing venue ? Meryl ensures that she has a contractual right to sanction any overspend.
Richard O? Brien?s ?The Rocky Horror Show? runs at Churchill Theatre in Bromley from October 2-12, before embarking on a tour.