Introduction to the Business of Show Business
Introduction to the Business of Show Business / $145
3 Thursdays / Feb. 25 – Mar. 11 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm PST
3 Weeks / 2 hours plus discussion each week.
aka: Making Money with Magic!
Week One: Overview. What it takes to build a strong business
Week Two: Finding / Serving Your Particular Market / Audience
Week Three: Build Out Your Systems
We all spend our lives improving our performances—but most have no idea of how to turn our good work into a business or career. After 40 years in showbusiness, running shows and theaters on and off-Broadway and managing the careers of some of our top magicians—I think I can help you get a better handle on the “Business” part of “Show-Business.” I’ve produced and managed for both the corporate and casino market, as well as producing and managing many, many touring shows. There must be a hundred different possible business models a magician can use to thrive—but you have to understand basic business principles before you can hope for real success in most of them. This class will give you that understanding.
Special Guests: Paul Draper & Phil Ackerly
You’ll learn:
· New ways of thinking about business.
· What the parts of any great business are, and why you need them ALL.
· How to find and serve a particular market, and why you want to do that.
· The importance of building systems to handle all of the “drudgery” of the business: contracts, PR, handling finances, legal requirements, communications, show set-up…and more.
· Different kinds of business models for performers, and how to work each one most effectively.
That’s just the beginning of what we’ll cover. There will be worksheets to help you clarify your own thinking, reading materials, and resource lists to guide you, and discussions to make sure your basic questions get answered.