GOOD MORNING, THEATERATI for May 9, 2017

GOOD MORNING, THEATERATI! The calendar (not that I have an actual calendar hanging on a wall or anything like that, mind you) tells us that today is May 9, 2017, which prompts us to ask the musical question: Why aren't you all better at marketing your shows? Seriously, it's a query that keeps us awake at night (well, that, and binge-watching Netflix, Amazon Prime and BritBox, which gives us ample time to consider rhetorical questions and the like) and so we will now offer up some suggestions...which will allow you to live life dramatically (and ensure you have an audience for your exploits):

You really should send out a press release, detailing what's going to be happening (the name of the show, the run dates, the cast and crew, how to get tickets) at least six weeks before you open. That gives the media person receiving said information to actually write it in their calendar (well, not actually write with a pen or pencil or some other implement, but rather to use their fingers on a keyboard to note it somewhere handy) and to get it on their radar for potential pre-run coverage of some sort. It's is vital to the success of your production - in a city like Nashville, a state like Tennessee - to include the names, bios and headshots of the principals (at the very least) concerned with bringing the show to life. People want to know who the members of the creative collective are who will breathe life into the production, as well as who the actors are who will become the characters. Names are news, especially in the theater, and people will oftentimes make ticket-buying decisions based upon the track records of those people in positions of power and/or with the ability to recite lines in a logical way.

Do not write the release and accompanying information in a difficult to read font, don't boldface every letter in the body of the story, and write it in such a way as to lend credibility to your production and your organization. It also helps to write your releases in a way that is easy to copy and paste (that's the real secret to getting coverage nowadays), retaining what YOU want any coverage to include along the way. (You will thank me for this!)

When I write a show's preview, I like to give the nuts and bolts of the production, along with a brief synopsis of sorts about what audiences may expect, then to list the names of the cast (along with their headshots and bios) members, followed by the same information for the production crew. Always be sure to mention previous roles that are germain to the upcoming production and unless you are under 21, don't mention the shows you did in high school or, if you're over 24, the ones you did in college (unless, of course, you have nothing else to list). The same holds true for the production crew members, since they have a burgeoning resume of shows that people have probably seen and which can lend some gravitas to the director, producer or designer's theater reputation.

A fortnight after that initial release - that means two weeks - make sure you've sent publicity photos which are clearly marked with the photographer's name (you want to give them credit, for sure, to make certain they will continue to work with you) and the names of the individuals in the pictures. Be clever and imaginative when taking the photographs so they catch the eye of whoever receives them in an email.

Two weeks after that, you should now be about two weeks away from opening night, it's advisable that you contact any potential reviewer, issuing a personal invitation to them to please come see your show in hopes they will write a critique for whatever outlet they write for and give you some added exposure for your show. If he or she can't make it, don't act hurt or pissed off (it won't work, let me assure you, in your behalf), just remind them if they change their mind to let you know ASAP to ensure they get really great the best seats in the house from which to view your masterpiece/piece of shit show. Remember, there are countless shows opening every week in these fair parts and whatever you can do to give yourself a more secure base will likely help move more tickets out the box office window.

Once the coverage is made public, survey the damage and if you spot inaccuracies, outright lies or misspelled names, then quietly and privately contact the media rep and explain, with all due respect, that they are idiots and can't read a program, for the love of God. (You might want to work on your delivery for that one, we're not quite the arbiter of politeness and good behavior we would have you believe). And whatever the outcome of their coverage, thank them for giving you the time of day and the inches (I got your inches right here - see, I can't be trusted among decent, God-fearing people - of copy they gave your show no matter how brief or desultory it might have been. A kind word will always be remembered: don't forget, it's easier to attract bees to honey or some such thing as that...

Trying to decide if you should score tickets to see Studio Tenn's Monty Python's Spamalot this weekend? Here's our review to help you in the decision-making process: /nashville/article/BWW-Review-1600-Words-About-Why-You-Should-Go-See-SPAMALOT-At-Studio-Tenn-20170508 We definitely say you should give it a go! Matt Logan, Jake Speck, Garris Wimmer, Laura Matula, Joe Beuerlein, Mike Baum, Thomas DeMarcus, Matthew Rosenbaurm, Lucas Bennett, Samantha Blake, Kyle Caress, Quintan Craig, Katelynn Fahrer, Delaney Gold, Casey Hebbel, Jake Perotti, Anna Claire Hudgins, Mallory Mundy, Jared Reinfeldt and Michael Spencer will delight you to no end!

Don't forget, Distraction Theatre Company tonight (that's Tuesday, for the calendar-distressed among you) has a performance of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) at the Centennial Blackbox Theatre. Tell them Jef sent you!

Today we are wishing a very happy birthday, in high theatrical fashion, to: Dan Zeigler, last onstage in Pull-Tight's Vanya and Sonya and Masha and Spike; Renee Robinson, the director of Center for the Arts' current Little Shop of Horrors; and former Nashville actress Audrey Johnson (Street Theatre's Dogfight and VWA Theatricals' The Last Five Years). They share the date with J.M. Barrie, the man who created Peter Pan, and the actors Albert Finney, Glenda Jackson and Candice Bergen.

In theater history today: Ain't Misbehavin' opened on Broadway in 1978, going on to win the best musical Tony; Arthur Kopit and Maury Yeston's Nine opened in 1982, to do Tony Awards battle with Michael Bennett's Dreamgirls (who can ever forget the Boiler Room Theatre's terrific production starring Ciaran McCarthy?); and Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Passion, starring Donna Murphy, Jere Shea and Marin Mazzie, opened on the main stem in 1994, winning that year's Tony Award for best musical. By the Way, Meet Vera Stark, by Lynn Nottage, opened off-Broadway in 2011 - why hasn't some local company produced this tale of an African-American maid and her movie star employer, who is white, during Hollywood's golden age?

That's it for today, gentle readers. Be certain to heed our advice: No matter where you are, today is the perfect time to CELEBRATE THE MAGIC OF LIVE THEATER!

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