Would you like to help support Arizona Onstage Productions?

PLEASE CONSIDER MAKING A DONATION OF ANY AMOUNT TO ARIZONA ONSTAGE PRODUCTIONS.

HOW AND WHY DO WE CREATE THEATER?

The other day, I overheard a conversation in the office that upset me. “I would like to see ELEGIES, but it is just SO EXPENSIVE!” These are people who think nothing of plunking down $25 for a dinner. Or $77 to see MAMMA MIA (of which almost 50 percent is pre-tracked vocals). I think that there are a lot of misconceptions about what it takes to stage a musical–of any scale. Besides the hundreds of donated hours from the talented cast and crew, expenses that many may not know about are legion. People want to buy tickets to what they “know.” They do not want to take a risk on something new. You, as an audience member tonight, are the reason we are here. Your ticket of $18 - $22 covers about 60 percent of expenses for tonight’s show. This is if we sell over 80 percent of all seats. If you look around you tonight and see more than 15 chairs empty – we are in the red. This is after community funding and private gifts from our supporters. ELEGIES--LOOKING UP is our smallest show to date, budget wise. Yet, here are figures that might surprise you:

Theater Rental: $1800
Royalties : $2300
Music Rental: $600
Honorarium for actors/tech/music director: $3400
Insurance: $300K
Sets, props, costumes: $400
Postcard printing, mailing: $900
Piano rental and tuning: $500
Program: $400
Posters and marketing: $200
Rented extra lighting, sound: $800
Operation costs: (dry cleaning, batteries for mics, etc) $200
Stage Hands: $200
Total projected budget: $12,000.

We seat 120. We have seven performances. The thought of breaking even is, at this point, a daydream.
But we still want to continue.

So, as you can see, it is not cheap to produce even a small, intimate musical. It is even a greater risk to produce a show that many outside of New York City, despite rave reviews, have not heard of. Looking at the cost of our production of the well-known Broadway Tony-Award winning smash THE FULL MONTY on the Main Stage of the Temple of Music and Art–the budget was approximately $40,000. With tickets at $25 and $30, supporting a cast of 21, a crew of 9, and 12 musicians was a struggle. Businesses, corporations and individuals, please help us continue to bring Tucson musicals that are new, exciting and daring. If you can, be a friend of Arizona Onstage Productions. Yes, we love the classical musicals, but there are new, vibrant composers who want you to see and hear that they do indeed write amazing NEW musicals.

We encourage any amount; however, we have created categories if you would like to be featured in all promotions and advertising materials:

PRODUCER: $5,000 – will include you/your business name in all media, as well as being mentioned before every performance. You or your business will be presented on the back cover of every program.

CO-DIRECTOR: $2,000 – mention in all media, and a full page ad for the season, as well as being mentioned before every performance.

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR: $1,000 – mention in all printed material, full page ad.

All of these categories include four free tickets for opening weekend of each show.

AD RATES FOR PROGRAMS

Full Page (5x7¾) Inside Front $300.00
Full Page (5x7¾) Outside Back $350.00
Full Page Inside Back $250.00
Full Page $175.00
Half Page (4x5) $125.00
Quarter Page (2.5x5) $75.00
Business Card (2.5x2.5) $35.00

Contact Kevin Johnson at 270-3332 for more info

Checks can be made out to: Arizona Onstage Productions – 405 North Granada Ave., Suite 8, Tucson Arizona 85701