Performing Arts Business Foundations 2
Touring - Contracts, Finances, Strategy
In two months, you'll learn the essential aspects to producing and booking a successful tour so you can build your next tour with ease and confidence.
Performing Arts Business Foundations 2
Touring - Contracts, Finances, Strategy
In two months, you'll learn the essential aspects to producing and booking a successful tour so you can build your next tour with ease and confidence.
Starts August 1, 2024
You're a performing artist, agent, manager, or producer that wants to build a tour (for yourself or someone else), but it feels like something stands in your way.
- If you:
- Are uncertain where to begin
- Not confident about what you can ask for - be it fees, accommodations, or personnel support
- Want to protect yourself and the artists from unnecessary financial risks
- Feel overwhelmed by contracts and legal language
- Know you need a team to make a tour happen, but don't know who you need
- Desire creating budgets, contracts, and technical riders with greater understanding and clarity
- Have been trying to figure it all out on your own and want to be supported in your journey
Then this program is for you. I created it to share the tools and strategies I've used to produce and book US and Canadian tours for artists for over a decade, be it a duo to 25+ person multidisciplinary show.
Not only am I going to share what's worked (and not worked) for me, I'm also bringing in some of my collaborators and colleagues for you to learn from!
Through this program, you will:
- Gain clarity about your touring style and approach
- Understand terminology and roles, such as anchor date and company manager
- Determine the team you need to deliver the artistic vision
- Develop a robust budget that accounts for things going wrong
- Craft a technical rider that supports the artistic vision and ease of touring
- Feel confident in negotiating fees and terms for a performance
- Gain tools and templates to create your budget, contract, and technical rider with ease
- Expand your understanding of things to consider when putting together a tour
- Build an actionable plan to produce your next tour
My approach is about leaving behind imposter syndrome and stepping away from scarcity,
while being grounded in reality, so you feel confident in creating ways of working
that are sustainable and feel good for you.
I'm Heena Patel, and I help performing artists make their dreams come true.
I have spent my career supporting artists. I started in the field as an environmental engineer who booked shows and tours as a way to support artists that I loved, without knowing what “agent” meant.
Since then, I’ve booked tours for countless dance companies and bands from the US and around world through my company MELA Arts Connect and produced and toured my own multidisciplinary productions such as Bollywood Boulevard and Garba360 to communities across the United States. I’ve had the pleasure of putting hundreds of artists onto stages and into communities that we hadn’t even imagined. This happened through a mix of jugaad, learning through trial and error, and asking a LOT of questions, My desire is to share the learnings, the tips and tricks, so you can realize your dreams with greater ease and confidence.
In small and big moments with audiences of 20 to 50,000, we’ve shared our stories. I’m excited to help you share yours.
Join Performing Arts Business Foundations 2
Where: Live on Zoom
Who: Producers, agents, and artists wanting to create tours with greater ease
Join Performing Arts Business Foundations 2
Starts August 1, 2024
When: Thursdays* at 11:30am ET / 9pm IST for 75 minutes
Where: Live on Zoom
*no session on August 29 & September 19
Who: Producers, agents, and artists wanting to create tours with greater ease
What’s Inside Business Foundations 2
Phase 1
Crafting Your Tour Vision
We begin our work together by dreaming big and getting clear on your why for touring and defining your unique touring style and approach.
- From there, we'll start putting the pieces together:
- Assembling your dream team: Who do you need to fulfill the visio
- Demystifing the technical rider: Ensuring your performance shines on any stage.
Phase 2
Financial Mastery
A well-defined budget provides a compass and guardrails for a tour.
- We will delve into the essential elements of a robust tour budget, including but not limited to:
- Artist fees, travel costs, insurance, and taxes
- Accounting for contingencies, as well as care and fun
- Cash flow management so you can execute a tour with ease
Phase 3
Crafting Expectations - Contracts
Contracts provide not legal protection, but a shared understanding of expectations and terms of engagement. I’ll be joined by entertainment lawyer Manojna Yeluri to walk you through the do’s and don’ts of contracts and things that should be put into writing.
- We will demystify contracts by:
- Navigating the intricacies of a contract: What is essential? What is negotiable?
- Developing a contract and technical rider that works for your needs
- Understanding how to use a contract to support strong partnership and clear communication
Phase 4
Strategic Tour Planning
With a vision as a guide, a budget as a compass, and contracts as support, we dive into how to plan and book a tour to realize an artistic vision.
- We will look at:
- Components of a tour from routing to anchor and filler dates
- Establishing minimums for touring
- Negotiating fees and understanding flexibility
Add-on Modules
Visas and Taxes for International Artists
Producing a US tour for an international artist requires an understanding of visas as well as taxation. I’m bringing in some of the best in the field when it comes to these topics, so the tour producer and artists are protected.
- We will cover:
- Central Withholding Agreements (CWA): how to responsibly handle tax expectations while navigating cash flow
- The appropriate visa category and visa process for international artists, including support team
- Timelines, costs, and processes for taxes and visas
Throughout this program, we'll be sharing specific systems, processes, and strategies that have been most effective for myself and other artists, including software and document templates for you to make your own.
What’s NOT inside Business Foundations 2
Through this process, I am here to help you connect with what makes sense for YOU. Which means there is no one-size fits all model or a single timeline that you are expected to conform to.
The goal is to provide you with information and tools you need to tap into your own wisdom, understanding, and clarity to take the next steps on your journey.
A focus on the marketing and sales aspect of getting performances for your tour
Foundations 2 is all things related to producing and executing a tour, including contracts & tech riders, the finances, and strategies on routing, etc. Clarifying who your work is for, how to identify potential partners, along how to get performances with greater ease is covered in Performing Arts Business Foundations 2, which starts on June 11. Foundations 1 is NOT a prerequisite to Foundations 2.
It is not just theory, there will be opportunities for live coaching.
Throughout the process, there will be time and space for Q&A and live coaching. Be it looking at your technical rider, addressing mental blocks, or leading you through somatic practices, come ready to get your questions answered.
Join Performing Arts Business Foundations 2
Where: Live on Zoom
Who: Producers, agents, and artists wanting to create tours with greater ease
Want to uplevel your sales and marketing skills so you can get performances for your tour with greater ease? Join Performing Arts Business Foundations 1. Bundle pricing available if you sign up for both!
Join Performing Arts Business Foundations 2
Starts August 1, 2024
When: Thursdays* at 11:30am ET / 9pm IST for 75 minutes
Where: Live on Zoom
*no session on August 29 & September 19
Who: Producers, agents, and artists wanting to create tours with greater ease
Want to uplevel your sales and marketing skills so you can get performances for your tour with greater ease? Join Performing Arts Business Foundations 1. Bundle pricing available if you sign up for both!
FAQs
All the calls will be recorded and sent out to the group. If you have a question and can’t attend a call, you will be able to send your questions in advance so they can be answered.
If you’re still working on creating your work, that’s not a problem. I believe it is smart for artists to be thinking about touring as they create work. This series will set you up for success as you develop the work. I booked tours for shows I was developing before the premiere and even got commissioning support to create the show. I’ll be sharing how I did that in this program.
Yes! This program is not just for artists, but also agent-managers, producers, and people desiring to support artists in touring.
Trust your instinct. Only sign up if it feels like a heaven yes. That being said, if you come to the first session and don’t feel like it’s the right fit, we’ll refund your money (minus credit card processing fees), no questions asked.
No. Your results are 100% up to whether or not you show up fully committed and ready to take action.
I guide from lived experience as someone who has done it for herself and for others. It is a no-BS approach. I’m here to demystify, challenge, and support you in making the career you want if you’re ready to do the work and take action.
I offer one work-study spot for this program as well as a limited number of spots on a sliding scale for those for whom the cost of this program represents a financial hardship. If you would like to avail either of these, please email info@melaartsconnect.com. Before you do so, please read the pricing section.
CALIFORNIA ARTISTS: Center for Cultural Innovation offers a monthly grant in the amount of $500 that can be applied towards training and learning. Please consider applying for the grant in order to help defray the costs of this program.
If, after the first session, you decide this program is not for you, you can reach out for a refund before the day of the second session and receive a refund (minus credit card processing fees), no questions asked.
No. While I recommend Performing Arts Business Foundations 1 to build a strong foundation for sales and marketing, Foundations 2 is an independent offering that covers very different topics.
Foundations 2 covers the logistical and strategic details of building a tour, it DOES NOT cover how to get shows for a tour, that is covered in Foundations 1.
Yes! Bundle pricing is available for those interested in taking Performing Arts Business Foundations 1 & 2. Email info@melaartsconnect.com to get the discount code.
The career you want is ready for you to create it.
Over the course of my career I have worn many hats - tabla player, dancer, teaching artist, artistic director, producer, booking agent, artist manager, tour manager, graphic designer, website builder, and more. I gained my skills by doing and found success for my artists and myself through a lot of trial and error.
I wanted to create something that would have helped me when I was starting over 15 years ago. I want to help you succeed by making this info more readily available.
This work is not going to be easy, but if we were afraid of working hard, we wouldn’t be in the arts. I will challenge you AND also be your cheerleader.
I hope you'll let me be a part of your journey.
- Heena
Pricing
I offer tiered pricing for group programs.
It is inspired by the Green Bottle Model by Alexis J. Cunningfolk, a tool which considers more than just financial resources as determining factor in whether or not someone can access services. The intention is to support a more intentional and value-aligned culture of payment.
People come into the performing arts sector with varying levels of resources, I ask that you consider the following criteria to determine which price is right for you. All rates can be paid in full or in 2 or 4 monthly payments*.
Redistribution
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This helps make the program accessible to those with modest means. With this choice, you are "paying it forward".
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If you have access to financial security, own property, or have personal savings
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If you are able to pay for "wants" and spend little time worrying about securing necessities in your life.
Full Cost
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You are working to build savings, but also have access to steady income or financial resources.
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You do NOT spend most of your time thinking about meeting basic needs such as food, shelter, medical care, child care, etc.
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You might have to cut back on some discretionary spending in your life in the short term to invest.
Sustain
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This rate applies if you’re relatively less economically advantaged or full cost is simply out of reach for you financially.
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You may be paying off debt or working to build savings, but also have access to income or financial resources.
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You have access to basic needs such as food, housing, health insurance, and childcare.
If these rates represent a financial hardship or you live in the Global South where the currency exchange makes the rate prohibitive, I offer a limited number of scholarships.
Email info@melaartsconnect.com to apply.
*If you need a longer payment plan, email info@melaartsconnect.com
