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Make It An Encore: How To Get More Mileage Out of Your Annual Show

Preparation for an annual show is daunting, to say the least! However, here is one way to get more "bang" out of all of the time and effort as well as to make more money for your chapter: Contract with an agency or organization in your community to present an encore show performance at a completely new venue. This idea was the brainchild of Diane Chieffo, Song of the Valley's Team Coordinator, and proved to be a special and lucrative experience for everyone involved.

It all began when, with chapter approval, Diane negotiated a contract for Song of the Valley to present an encore performance of our very successful patriotic show, "Something About a Soldier," to support fund-raising efforts of the Regina Coeli School in Hyde Park. While the annual show was the basis for this presentation, the Regina Coeli show was modified from the original to include four groups of school children, ranging in age from pre-kindergarten through the eighth grade. The children learned songs appropriate to the theme such as "Gee, I Wish I Was Back in the Army" and "Boogie, Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B," which they performed with youthful gusto to the delight of both chorus and audience members.

The highlight of the show was the finale, which began with the chorus singing a medley of songs representing each branch of the Armed Services, while boys and girls marched in, carrying, in turn, the flags of the Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marines and Navy. The show concluded with all of the young performers and chorus members singing a duet of two songs, "We Are the Children, the Hope of the World," superimposed on the Sweet Adelines theme song, "Harmonize the World." The audience showed their appreciation with two standing ovations, the first after the Armed Forces medley and the second, after the final duet.

We found no disadvantages to this repeat performance, while the advantages were many. Perhaps, most importantly, it was a very successful fund-raiser for both the school and the chorus. Beyond that, our style of music was introduced to a new and enthusiastic audience of all ages; the return on investment of time and effort, in putting together the initial production of the annual show, was greatly increased; and the chorus was able to experience the thrill of being able to, again, present a show that we had worked on so hard and that was emotionally meaningful to us all.

If your chapter would like to consider contracting for an encore presentation of your annual show, here are a few things to think about:

Communication is key. To reduce the chance of misunderstanding, it is helpful to have one chapter member assigned to serve as the primary liaison with the contracting organization.
It is unlikely that the original show presentation will transfer directly to the new venue. Therefore, there should be a group (either the original show committee or a separate committee) prepared to manage the details.
Division of responsibilities between the chapter and the show sponsor must be negotiated and made clear in the contract. Such things as who will print tickets, sell ads and produce the program, who will be responsible for public relations, what the venue offers in terms of technical staging support, and amount to be paid to the chapter, should be decided early in the planning process.
Even though the show has been done before, to reduce stress on all performers and stage crew, it is ideal if you can set aside time, before the day of the show, for a complete show run-through in the venue, especially if different individuals and groups will be involved in the second presentation.

—June Pierson, Song of the Valley

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