Peer feedback

Legal issues and cultural policies that will affect my business

Intellectual property is relevant to my business, not only because of the name and logo, but because of the original musical productions Beehive Theatre will be creating. It means that the company will be recognised for and gain financial benefit from these shows.

As a type of intellectual property, copyright will certainly have relevance. I will need to ensure that people don't try to:

• Illegally stage any of Beehive's productions without permission
• Sell anything that is relating to these shows or the business' brand (e.g. name or logo)
• Copying any storylines or characters from Beehive shows

Copyright for any literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works generally lasts for the lifetime of the owner and 70 years after that.

Talent releases will likely be needed because I intend to record all the musicals Beehive produces and document the rehearsal process to post on the website and social media platforms. It is pretty much guaranteed that all cast members will give their permission since they are already going to be seen in the show live, but I may still fill them out as a precaution.

Public liability insurance is something my business would probably invest in, in the case that any injuries that may occur during a rehearsal or performance. There is a higher likelihood during rehearsals because of potential accidents that could happen whilst blocking scenes or learning choreography (e.g. tripping, falling, collisions with other team members).

Brexit could impact my company as it will limit the talent that I'm able to work with, including both cast and crew members. Though my company is initially going to be based in the local area, I would like to continue to expand the range of people I'm able to work with, enabling Beehive to explore and stage a larger variety of stories that are yet to be told. It would also pose as a challenge if I ever wanted to tour a show to other countries due to the lack of freedom of movement- I'd have to secure visas and work permits for every member of the team from every country we wanted to visit. Furthermore, it would likely be difficult if I wanted to hire/purchase equipment or products (e.g. props, sets, costumes) from other countries so I will always check first if the things I need are available in the UK.

The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the theatre industry and though many precautions have been lifted, there may be some measures I would need to put in place just to be safe, or in the case that things became worse again. For example, perhaps encouraging audience members to wear masks in case there are some people who'd feel more comfortable that way. I could also make sure to leave some space between seating for those who'd prefer to keep some distance. I could also request that audience members take a COVID test before coming to watch the show to ensure it doesn't spread amongst them. These same precautions could also be put in place during rehearsals and performances to ensure the safety of the cast and crew members.

Basic financial breakdown

The main source of income for Beehive Theatre will be ticket sales for the musical productions. Using the survey I conducted for my market research, I discovered that most people would be willing to pay between £10 to £30 for an amateur theatre production. However, to uphold Beehive’s key value of making theatre accessible, I decided to keep the price range between £10 to £15. It will vary depending on the venue’s capacity and how much money went into producing the show, especially if the company gains more popularity. I want to always keep the tickets at an affordable price though to reduce the barrier of expenses that prevents many people from being able to access theatre shows. Although, I did specify in the survey that the price would be for amateur theatre, so if the company did go professional and become more successful, they may be willing to pay a higher price (e.g. £20 to £30). I will sell these tickets on Beehive’s website so I can keep track of all the purchases made and it makes it easier for customers to know where to find them, whilst also being able to access all information and updates about the show. 

The overall amount of income I’d make from this is difficult to calculate because it is entirely dependent on the capacity of the performance venues and the popularity of the musicals I produce. I did look at a local theatre and calculate how much money I would make from it though if I were to completely sell out every seat: 

St George’s Theatre 

• Capacity: 187 

Minimum ticket price: £10 

Maximum ticket price: £15 

Minimum amount made from ticket sales: £1,870 

Maximum amount made from ticket sales: £2,805 

Pretty much all of the money earnt would likely go back into the company to pay for the next production and pay the cast and crew. The hire for the tech and the venues will use up a lot of this money so paying team members will initially be quite difficult. A way in which I could solve this issue is hire them for a few shows and hope that the company gains enough recognition and earns enough money to pay them a lot more. This means they may join more on a volunteer basis than auditioning for it as a job, but hopefully it would end up being worth it. 

The main costs I will likely have are: 

• Tech equipment hire (£15 - £50 a week for cheaper lights, £25 per headset microphone for 1-2 days) 
• Venue hire (St George’s- £250 for one performance on Sunday to Thursday, The Garage- studio space) 
• Props/sets/costumes (either will be bought or hired- varying prices) 
• Sign language interpreters (£100 for short duration, £130 for half day, £260 for full day) 
• Audio description services (£15 - £30 per minute) 
• Filming (either hire a crew (£40 - £250 an hour) or equipment (£40 - £135 a day for a camera, £8 - £30 a day for a tripod, £8 - £23 a day for a camera mounted microphone) 

The venue hire is what’ll need to be paid for most regularly because a space will always be needed for show rehearsals as well as performances. The other elements will mainly be needed for tech rehearsals, dress rehearsals and performances. 

When there aren’t any shows running, I believe the best methods of earning money would be through selling: 

• Merchandise (e.g. clothing, accessories, badges) 
• Licensing for shows 
• Music from the shows (e.g. through iTunes) 

By looking at other theatre companies, I found that these were the most common ways they earn income all year round. The main issue is I wouldn’t be able to produce any of these without having already established shows, except the music as some songs could be released beforehand to increase the hype for a show. Once the first musical is completed, I will be able to use all these methods, though it is highly reliant on people’s reactions to the musical. They will only want to buy things related to it if they enjoyed it.  

Business plan table

Business model canvas

Who will help you? 

KEY PARTNERS 

Collaboration and working with partners will be key for my business because of how many areas I will need assistance with. Primarily I will need members for the team, which will include both crew and cast members. I will hold auditions for cast members for each show, allowing more people to have an opportunity to work with my company. The crew members will be hired to be in charge of the more technical aspects such as lighting and sound. I will also need to audition musicians to at least record for a backing track. Whether I will have them for live performances depends on the performance venues I am able to book and how much I’d be able to pay them. Another partner I would need is a theatre, where I’d be able to stage the performances and possibly rehearse in if the space was available. If not, I’d have to find and partner with studios that have bookings available. It would be good to have a theatre my business could have a consistent partnership with, meaning I could use it for all future performances. However, I will likely have to start with a smaller, more affordable theatre space and if my business was successful, then I’d likely expand to bigger and better theatres. I will also form multiple partnerships with various rental services for various assets such as microphones, lighting and camera equipment/crew. Depending on what is available at the performance venues, I may need to hire additional lighting and tech equipment to produce the desired product. The cameras will be needed to record the performances as making them accessible to more people online is a key value of my company. Depending on how much money I have available, I may be able to hire a camera crew to film them or will just have to hire the equipment and set it up before the shows. Last of all, I will work with companies that offer services such as sign language translators and audio descriptions so I can fulfill my goal of making theatre accessible to as many people as possible.  

How do you do it?  

KEY ACTIVITIES 

The primary key activity needed to fulfill my value proposition is the creation and development of the musicals. This includes writing the script, writing the music, holding auditions, rehearsals and the final performances. All of these are key to bring the stories to life and I will be considerate of my values throughout the entire process, thinking of how I can make the shows diverse (in terms of both characters and cast) and how I can integrate the accessibility services into them. This is important for all areas of my business because I can use content gained from each stage of the process to advertise the shows and spark people’s interests. For my distribution channels, my key activity will be the creation and maintenance of the website and social media pages for the company. I will update them regularly to keep my audience informed about upcoming productions and the creative process behind them, keeping them engaged with my company when there aren’t any current shows on. A lack of updates may cause them to forget about or lose interest in my company, so having this as a primary activity will allow me to maintain a positive relationship with them. I will also be posting recordings of any performances onto these platforms to make them accessible to a wider range of people who may not be able to access them otherwise because of issues such as money or location, thus upholding my most important values.  

What do you need? 

KEY RESOURCES 

The key resources needed to fulfil my value proposition are: a performance/rehearsal space, cast and crew, technical equipment (e.g. lighting, audio, cameras) and accessibility services. Pretty much all of these resources are necessary for any theatre company to run, but the ones that make my business stand out from the others are the filming equipment and accessibility services. These are both needed to allow me to fulfill my goal of making my productions as accessible as possible to the widest range of audiences I can reach.  

What do you do? 

VALUE PROPOSITION 

The core values Beehive Theatre aims to deliver to its audience are diversity and accessibility. My mission is to create original theatrical productions which are highly accessible, with diverse casting and crew members so everybody feels represented both on and off stage. I want everybody to feel welcome when either auditioning for my company or attending one of the shows. It is a very current issue in the theatre industry with most musical theatre enthusiasts feeling disappointed by the lack of representation and inclusivity. There have been some progressions made in recent years, but it is still a major problem that isn’t very close to being resolved. This is why I want to do my part and satisfy the audience’s need for representation and accessibility. Furthermore, I will be delivering purely original content as many of the major recent productions have been based off of pre-existing media. People have a desire to see something new after being constantly exposed to the same stories over and over again, so I want to guarantee exciting original content to my audiences.  

How do you interact?  

AUDIENCE RELATIONSHIPS 

I have two different audiences that I will need to target through my business: the audience and the performers. I want to establish a positive relationship with both, but I will need to go about this in different ways. For the audience, I will primarily be communicating with them through my distribution channels such as Beehive’s website and social media platforms. I will need to make sure these platforms are accessible and easy to navigate, especially when it comes to contacting my business and booking tickets for the shows to encourage people to interact with, and continue to interact with, the company. For the performers, I will maintain a positive relationship through honest communication, providing them with kind but constructive criticisms, but also necessary praises, throughout the audition and rehearsal processes. Teamwork is one of my company’s key values so I need to make sure all members of the team are able to work well together. By setting an approachable and friendly tone from the beginning, I should be able to maintain a positive relationship with the performers. Furthermore, working with a diverse range of people will mean I need to be aware of the different needs some may have (e.g. disabilities, mental disorders). I will make sure they all feel comfortable and communicate with them regularly so they feel like they can express their needs to me.  

How do you reach them? 

DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS 

I will primarily be targeting my audience online because it makes my business more accessible, with the internet being available in many places all over the world. It reduces location barriers and provides content to those who may not be able to see the productions live. Social media will play a large part in this because of its popularity, especially amongst my target demographic, which is young adults. I will likely be present on most social media platforms so I can reach the largest audience possible, but the primary platforms I’d use are Instagram and TikTok. They are two of the most popular platforms and focus on primarily visual content (i.e. photos and videos), which is likely what I’ll be producing the most. It is also free to make and post on these platforms, though you can further promote yourself by paying for adverts. However, it is possible to gain popularity without ads by paying attention to trends and making sure you target your intended audience through elements such as hashtags. People typically check their social media at least once a day, so it is already something heavily integrated into their routines. I will just need to make sure I post regularly to keep the people interested and make my company more memorable. I will also provide links to my website on all of these platforms as that’s likely where all content and updates will be posted. 

Who do you help? 

AUDIENCE SEGMENTS 

I have identified my main audience as young adults (17-35 years) who are from the UK. Through market research I have also discovered that the people who would be interested in my business are primarily female. They will likely either be in a creative career/studying a creative subject or have creative hobbies (especially linking to theatre). They will be invested in media such as theatre, books, TV shows and social media (especially Instagram and Pinterest) and will be great supporters of amateur theatre, as well as advocates for diversity and accessibility. The primary commonality amongst them though is their love for musical theatre and their desire to see it evolve even more in the future. This kind of audience can be applied to both the physical audience and the performers I may hire because they’d be the kind of people who love to both watch and take part in theatre. 

What will it cost? 

COST STRUCTURE 

The main costs I will be focusing on are: tech equipment hire, venue hire, props/sets/costumes (will either buy or hire them), accessibility services and filming (either hiring a company or hiring the equipment). All of these will be absolutely vital to stage the productions and fulfil my value proposition of providing accessible theatre content. I believe that whilst all of these will cost a lot, the venue and tech hire will likely end up being the most expensive. The venue hire will last the longest out of all the costs because it’s needed for rehearsals and performances, so the costs will add up more and more over time. The tech equipment will also be rather expensive, even if it is just for hire because I will want the equipment to be high quality and will likely want to rehearse with it and not just use it for performances. 

How much will you make? 

REVENUE STREAM 

Most of the money my company earns will come from ticket sales for the productions, which will likely cost between £10 to £15. I decided on this using a survey for my market research in which I asked how much people would be willing to pay to watch an amateur theatre production. This would possibly change slightly if the company became more successful and could move on to bigger venues and productions, but I would still keep the price reasonably low due to the major issue of theatre tickets being far too expensive for most people these days. The tickets would be available to purchase on the company website so I can then easily keep track of sales and it’s easier for potential customers to know where to buy them, whilst also being able to access information about the show. Between productions, I could use other methods of making money such as selling merchandise, providing licensing for the productions and releasing music from them on platforms like iTunes. 

Business analysis

The business I have been most inspired by is Team StarKid, who I've been consistently researching and referencing throughout the course. They were my source of inspiration when I was coming up with an idea for my business as one of my favourite musical theatre companies. They produce incredible content and their original musicals are so impressive, despite them being a smaller company. It amazes me what they can do with such small budgets, casts and crew, thinking outside of the box to achieve what they want onstage with limited resources. I will definitely face similar problems when it comes to my own productions, so I can look at what StarKid has achieved and use a similar mentality to figure out how I can make my visions come to life. Furthermore, StarKid has many values that my business and I share. They recognise the lack of diversity in the theatre industry and, especially in more recent years, have had cast and crew members of all different races, gender identities, sexual orientations, etc. They also are one of the main theatre companies that is making theatre more accessible for those who may not be able to afford typical theatre ticket prices. By uploading recordings of all their shows on YouTube, people from all over the world are able to access and enjoy their shows for free. They also always caption their videos and encourage others who know different languages to create captions so more people can access their work. Even with livestreams, which they are unable to caption, StarKid release the script so people who are deaf/hard of hearing can still enjoy these performances. I plan to record the performance I'm doing for my final project and I will personally caption these videos to ensure they can be accessed by as many people as possible.

Five key things that I've learnt about the creative industries are:

1. There are numerous strategies that can be used to market a creative business. Through my research into route-to-market strategies and competition research, I have been able to understand the best way to target certain audiences and what platforms are best to use.
2. The creative industries is a growing sector with higher contributions to the UK economy every year and in increase in the number of jobs available, meaning this is a good time to begin a career in the industry.
3. There are multiple sources of funding available in the arts sector with a variety of organisations that provide these funds (e.g. Arts Council England), making it financially easier to create new projects and have support for a creative business.
4. It is a difficult industry to be successful in because there are so many creative businesses out there, making it more challenging to create something that will stand out. Through my competition research, I have been able to see what areas in the theatre industry aren't being addressed and used this to find the focus for my business.
5. The creative industries have been impacted by significant events such as Brexit and the COVID-19 pandemic, which has had an impact on things such as travel (e.g. touring productions), transporting goods (e.g. props) and funding. I will therefore need to be conscious of how these would affect my business and projects.

I found the National Theatre's mission and vision statements to be the most powerful (see 'Vision and Mission statements' post) because of their emphasis on making theatre for 'everyone'. They want to ensure that the work they showcase can be accessed by all, which shows how much they value diversity and accessibility in the industry. Furthermore, both of their statements are short and memorable, whilst the other statements I looked at were far too long with multiple bullet points. This suggests the National Theatre has a clear goal in mind regarding what they want to achieve and have made sure to convey this clearly to their customers.

The value statement that I found to be most powerful is The Limelight Theatre's (see 'Examples of a value statement' post) because it's clear and concise with explanations behind each of their selected values. The other value statements I looked at either lacked reasoning behind their selected values or overexplained them to the point where it's more like a paragraph than a statement. The Limelight Theatre clearly has a great understanding of what is most important to them and what they stand for.

As someone who shares similar beliefs and values as these other businesses, I was highly influenced by them and made sure to carry across the same kind of message in my own statements. I made sure that my message is clear to others so they can easily understand what my company is all about.

I find the most effective branding to be StarKid's because of the distinctive font that they've used, which gives their consumers a sense of what kind of work they do. It appeals to their fans, who probably would've discovered the company through their parody musicals, thus making it likely they'd be into pop culture and recognise the Star Wars font. The branding I like the least though is the RSC's because of how plain and simple it is with just their name (both abbreviated and in full) in a red rectangle. The font isn't even that interesting, which doesn't make the logo particularly memorable. Overall, I'm not a fan of logos that are simply text. I don't think they stick in the mind particularly well, unless some sort of unique font and colour scheme is used. I personally prefer logos that have a distinctive image, which I have as the focus of my logo. I feel like this will make my company and branding stand out better.

Competition research

Team StarKid

Team StarKid is an American theatre company who produce primarily comedy and musical theatre productions. They started by making parody musicals of well-known media franchises/products such as Harry Potter, Batman, Star Wars and Disney's Aladdin. However, they have also created original productions, focusing specifically on this within the last few years. A lot of their customers engage with their work online as they upload all of their shows to YouTube. This means people have access to these from all over the world, giving them a global audience.

StarKid also has a website, which they keep very up to date by always advertising their most recent productions on their home page. Their other website pages include:

• About
• Info about all the shows/series they've done
• Music (purchase albums/songs)
• Connect (contact info, social media links)
• Tickets
• Shop (merch, licensing, music, DVDs)

In terms of ticket prices, general tickets are around £25 ($35) and VIP tickets are around £45 ($60). They then also will sell digital tickets for livestreamed shows, which are around £11 ($15), with the option to pay more to help them and support their work.

Social media they use:

• YouTube <= Will likely use
• Instagram <= Will likely use
• Twitter
• Facebook
• Tumblr

On their YouTube channel they:

• Upload trailers/sneak peeks for shows
• Upload full productions (posted sometime after the last live production)
• Upload digital series
• Do livestreams
• Update their banner and logo to match their most recent production

On their Instagram they:

• Post content relating to their most recent show
• Post behind the scenes images/videos
• Post trailers
• Upload cast photos
• Do Instagram Lives
• Upload highlights for shows and projects

StarKid is similar to my company in that create original musicals, and they've been focusing heavily on diversity and inclusivity in their more recent productions. They also post their musicals online to watch for free, making them accessible to people from all over. This is something I'd like to do with my productions if possible. However, their works always focus more on comedy with some occasional dark themes involved. I will try to create a range of musicals that cover different genres to appeal to a wider demographic, especially those with different musical tastes.

Little but Fierce

Little but Fierce is a London-based theatre group that stages feminist theatre works that are written and directed by women with majorly female casts. They produce both new writing and feminist takes on classics, and try to focus on working with and telling the stories of marginalised groups (e.g. women of colour, the LGBTQ+ community, the disabled). 

They were motivated to create this group due to the lack of range in female roles and lack of roles for those in marginalised groups. 

On their website, their webpages consist of:

• Home
• About us
• Productions
• Podcast
• 37:5 Shakespeare Project (a new upcoming project)
• Mental health initiative 

They also have links to their social media profiles on Twitter and Facebook.

On their Twitter they:

• Share events they're going to be involved in
• Post personal updates 
• Share others' works who have the same ideologies

They haven't posted on their Facebook in a few years, but they primarily shared pictures from their productions and links to websites selling tickets to them, which typically cost around £15.

Little but Fierce is similar to my company in that they focus on diversity and equality in their productions, but whilst they have a specific focus on women and feminism, I won't be focusing on one specific group of people. They also stage primarily plays whilst my theatre company exclusively does musical theatre.

Graeae 

Graeae is a theatre company based in London that always place Deaf and disabled artists at the centre of their works. They perform both new and existing plays, making them inclusive for all by integrating audio description and sign language throughout their artistic process and productions. They also explore a variety of theatrical genres from contemporary pieces to musicals, incorporating a variety of different mediums, such as puppetry. 

On their website there are the following pages:

• What's On
• Our Work
• About
• News & Opinion
• Digital Library
• Your Support

In terms of pricing, their tickets usually cost between £10 - £25, depending on the kind of performance it is and where it's being performed.

At the bottom of their website they have important contact information such as their address, phone number and email, as well as links to their social media profiles on:

• Twitter
• Facebook
• YouTube
• Instagram

They primarily post about their newest productions on their social media, providing links with information about them. They post basically the same things across all of their social media platforms and include many images on all of them to showcase productions and cast members. On their YouTube specifically though, they upload primarily trailers and interviews with the cast and creatives involved. 

Graeae is similar to my business in that it is a theatre company and they occasionally stage musical productions. They also focus heavily on making theatre diverse and accessible, which is a key aspect of my company also. I am also interested in their incorporation of different mediums, like puppetry, which could be something that I experiment with within my business.

Values and evidence modelling

 

My vision, mission and value statements

Vision statement: To transform theatre into a welcoming and inclusive industry for all.

Mission statement: To create original theatrical productions which are highly accessible, with diverse casting and crew members so everybody feels represented both on and off stage. 

Important values

• Diversity (definitely non-negotiable)
• Accessibility (definitely non-negotiable)
• Originality (will strive for-more difficult to achieve)
• Impact (more aspirational)
• Inspiration
• Collaboration

• These values must be shared by both the cast and staff involved in every production
• My business will only work with those who agree with importance of these values and incorporate them into their propositions- willing to negotiate and collaborate effectively
• Behaviours: need to be able to negotiate with others, work well in a team, treat everybody appropriately and respectfully, understand the differing needs of others, willing to try new things/put themselves out there, take feedback and apply it to their work
• Work with those who present interesting, original ideas that adhere with the core values and are willing to develop them alongside the team 
• Aspired impact: to inspire people to create whatever they desire, to encourage them to continue working on ideas they may not have faith in, to leave audiences with an important message/something to think about after watching our productions, to make everybody feel represented and understood, allow everybody to enjoy theatre