A Donor, a Restricted School Edition, and a Four-Show Season

At 130 tickets per performance and 10 performances, projected paid attendance is 1,300. At $18 average, gross ticket revenue is $23,400. The royalty at $95 per performance is $950 for the run, about 4 percent of projected ticket revenue. The donor's $5,000 would cover the royalty more than five times over. Those numbers are useful because they show the license fee is not the financial problem; the production costs are.

What the numbers do not tell the board is whether the 65 percent projection is reliable, what the 14 microphones and 12-piece orchestra cost, and whether the restricted edition's no-cut rule forces a running time or cast size the theatre cannot support. A 12-piece orchestra in an 8-person pit is a direct conflict that may require a reduced orchestration, a keyboard substitute, or a different title; those options must be checked against the license, not assumed. The board should see a full production budget-music materials, mic rental, orchestra stipends, extra rehearsal weeks-before treating the $5,000 as a solution. Contingency should not be used to cover a known structural gap.

The board should separate sponsorship from editorial control. A logo on season materials is a normal recognition benefit; a donor's right to approve a script is not, because it transfers artistic judgment to a private party and creates a precedent that other donors may demand. The fiduciary issue is not only whether the $5,000 is useful, but whether accepting it exposes the theatre to mission drift, conflict among donors, or a public perception that programming is for sale. I would recommend a written sponsorship policy: gifts are accepted without script approval, naming rights are time-limited, and the board retains final programming authority. If the donor insists on approval, decline the gift and thank the donor.

The school-edition restriction is a separate contractual issue. 'No cuts' protects the publisher's text but may conflict with the theatre's actual capabilities; the board must verify the required cast size, orchestration, and running time before licensing. A restricted edition is not a moral problem, but it is a production risk. The board should authorize the managing director to obtain a perusal script and a license quote, then vote on a conditional basis: approve only if a reduced orchestration is permitted and the budget closes without contingency.

My recommendation is a conditional yes: program the musical only if three conditions are met within two weeks. First, the license must permit a reduced orchestration or a keyboard-conductor reduction that fits eight players; if it does not, the title is not viable in this venue. Second, the sound plan must show how 14 body mics will be purchased, rented, or substituted with a combination of 10 wireless channels and area mics, with a named operator and a rehearsal schedule for the mic changes. Third, the donor gift must be accepted under the sponsorship policy without script approval.

The contingency plan should identify a substitute title before the season is announced, so the board is not negotiating from panic. It should also reserve $1,500 of the $3,000 contingency for sound rental and an extra technical rehearsal, and it should schedule a pit test with the actual eight players before the license is signed. If the orchestra reduction is denied or the mic plan cannot be staffed, the board switches to the alternate title and returns the restricted gift if the donor will not accept the policy. This protects the season, the donors, and the volunteers who would otherwise absorb the risk.