What the Opera House Taught Me

Hi there,

I recently co-produced and performed in a show 'Ladies Sing the Blues: a Tribute to 100 Years of Billie Holiday' at The Sydney Opera House, and, well, it was a sold out event! Forgive me for being boastful - but it's a big deal to me. And I really want to remember the important things I learnt from being part of this experience, so I'm writing it down:

1. Get the Best out of being in a Theatre: A theatre is a very different beast to your standard rock venue. About 50% of ticket sales are made through a theatre's own channels so their marketing is vital. However, access to their marketing channels isn't automatic. You need to be on their e-marketing mailouts, 'what's on' brochures as well as have printed and digital posters in their foyers and car parks. Asking for these opportunities once will probably not be enough. Keep asking, politely. Don't forget you catch more flies with honey than vinegar.

2. It's a Theatre so be Theatrical: Consider multimedia. We used rare audio bites of interviews with Billie Holiday between each live set, creating atmosphere and visibly moving our audience. 

Co-Producers Amanda Easton & Lady Cool

3. Maximise the Space: Most rock venues (in Australia anyway) offer you a fairly set template for your show eg, two x one hour sets starting at 8:30pm, with a 20 minute interval. As producers in a hired theatrical space, you can make up these guidelines yourself, within reason. Next time I would consider adding a Matinee alongside a night time show to get value out of the venue and crew costs.

4. Understand the Box Office: One of a producer's first jobs is 'building the Box Office'. Know what you can charge for tickets ie how many seats do you need to sell to break even and what kind of ticket prices will the market sustain/expect? Consider all your direct ticketing expenses including taxes, ticket printing charges, 'Inside Charges' (the theatre's cut) credit card costs and third party agency (eg Ticketek) fees. Consider how student and pensioner discounts, media and promotional comps will affect your bottom line. Insist on daily Sales Reports so you can see what marketing is working. We were almost at capacity a week before out event so we knew, for example, that a newspaper ad then would be a waste of money.

5. Have a great professional business team: Ours included co-producers, a patron/executive producer, commercial printer, a photographer and a publicist with great contacts in Metropolitan Media. TV and Radio give vital exposure as well as add legitimacy and prestige to an event. Social media marketing is important but not enough. You need good Marketing Collaterals, including a promo video, cast photo, press release, media backgrounder and eye-catching graphic art and strap lines.

6. Don't forget you're an Artist too: It is very easy to get caught up in the all-consuming business of putting on a show and forgetting that you are part of the show as a performer too. Having a Stage Manager helps separate your responsibilities as producer and performer on the night.

7. Don't be Scared to be Scared: The feeling (akin to dread or perhaps indigestion) I get in the pit of my stomach when I feel like I'm taking on more than I can chew - that's a good sign. They don't call them 'growing pains' for nothing.

xAmanda
www.amandaeaston.com

The Voice will not Give you a Career!

Hi there,

Well it's the topic du jour and I'm loving watching 'The Voice' from the safety of my armchair (see 'Sticking it the Voice' from last week). I love the way all the contestants are coached to say 'everything is on the line for me'. If there is a lot at stake for them, we are more likely to be pulled into the drama. But one singer recently said to the cameras: 'Tonight is my last chance. I have obligations now. If I don't get through, this will be the end for me.' Then his fiance came on saying: 'He's got responsibilities now so if this doesn't work, it will all be over'. 

Oh so it's your last chance because you've got a fatal disease hanging over your head? No. So you're the one with tonnes of kids to provide for? Oh, no kids yet. So you're getting on and feel like time is running out? Hmm, you're in your 20s. Oh I see, you're engaged and 'real life' is calling you. Ah! Well thank goodness you didn't get through to the next round because if you can let it go so easily then frankly, you don't deserve it. Jump in with both feet. 'The Voice' is never going to hand anyone a career on a platter. It's going to enhance what they already have. 

Look at the most successful contestants so far. Darren Percival has taken his TV exposure and run with it to build on a strongly constructed base. Simon Meli had a career before 'The Voice' and its aftermath will hopefully open new doors to bigger live shows and more record sales. It's those like him who have already put in the work and shown their commitment that really win. Whether they 'win' The Voice or not, no fiance or white picket fence is going to stop them singing. They're not going to be working in music because they won a TV singing contest and winning a TV singing contest is not going to guarantee a career for them. They're going to do it because they couldn't live with doing anything else.

No doubt I'll be here next time with another 'Voice' rant. Love to hear what you think...
Cheers,
Amanda

Stickin' it to 'The Voice'!

Hi there,

There seems a lot of that lately - more than usual criticism of the show we love to hate, 'The Voice'. Don't get me wrong, keep reading my posts and you'll hear me having a go too; we're all entitled to our rants. But for the moment I find myself, once again, defending the show that I didn't want to be part of myself. Most of the negative stuff I've been reading is about the poor treatment of artists. I've had friends who have suffered by being part of this show - this industry can be soul and ego crushing at the best of time and I hate to see fellow artists become 'fodder for ratings grabs'. The thing is, isn't it naive to think it would be any other way? 

I do actually think this show is more respectful to its participants than compatriots Idol and X Factor, but 'The Voice' wasn't designed by its producers to be a vehicle for artists' careers or even to showcase the best singers. Just as the Biggest Loser wasn't designed to be a helpful way to lose weight and gain health. Both shows are created by the same production company after all. These shows and all like it were designed to, well, make money! Commercial TV is a cut throat world and ratings make or break a show. Viewers need drama to keep watching and producers use what they've got to create it - in this case artists, often with fragile egos. So it hurts to feel used - couldn't agree more; I couldn't subject myself to that. I often don't agree with the judges' decisions and quite often the best artists aren't the winners. At the same time, some artists gain massive exposure and great contacts by tiptoeing along this TV tightrope. 

We need to understand the business of this business and go in with eyes open. It's a risky one with potentially huge payoffs. Just like the music industry itself and a bit like life really! I don't necessarily like it but I do believe it's a matter of 'live by the sword, die by the sword'.

Till next time,
Amanda

Just learn to sing man!

Hi there,

I think I have the best job in the world but the problem with doing something that looks like so much fun (it is) is that people think it's only fun and that it's easy (it really isn't). 'The Voice' judges on TV gabber on a lot about the importance of singers 'telling a story' and 'making a connection'. As important as that stuff is, they don't seem to talk much about technique and the practical side of learning to actually sing properly. I have heard gigging singers say, 'I've never had a singing lesson' - well don't boast about it! Lack of training, at the minimum, usually means a voice that will blow out after only two gigs in a row...let alone lack of breath control and weak projection. 

If you had a natural flair for a volley and a mean backhand and were aiming for the professional circuit, wouldn't you get a tennis coach pronto? There probably exists the rare warbler whose voice is so good that training can't improve it - but I'm yet to hear them. Now you may tell me about a guy called Bob Dylan - never had a singing lesson. I would say, as a singer, Bob makes a mighty fine storyteller. And you may tell a story better than Hans Christian Anderson, but that does not a singer make! 

I can't help but get personally offended when people get up on the professional stage without a lesson behind them (I am a Cancerian so I do take most things personally!) You think so little of this pursuit that you're not willing to put everything into it? It's an art, sure, but it's also a craft - please respect it and get thyself to a singing teacher!
See you next time!

In Defence of 'The Voice'

Everyone's talking about it. Channel 9 execs must be punching the air. But a lot of people are saying that they don't understand why professional singers, particularly those with family connections, are part of a TV show like The Voice. Surely Mahalia Barnes, daughter of Aus Rock royalty, doesn't need a leg up in her career? My answer is, you are talking about her now and possibly keen to buy her records now. Was that the case before you saw her on the show, even though you had heard of her? In this extraordinarily competitive industry, family connections don't ensure success. I didn't even know Guy Sebastian had a brother till The Voice told me.


Even with the power of the internet and its importance in building music careers, a national TV show watched by almost three million viewers a few times a week is the most potent exposure an artist could get. TV is the king in music promotion. Surely singers that have already done the hard yards, that have got to the point - on their own steam - where they are good enough to be Delta Goodrem's backing singer, deserve and can make best use of an opportunity like The Voice. It's the chance to become known by the masses. We already have Australian Idol, X Factor, Australia's Got Talent and previously, Pop Stars, to unearth brand new talent.


When I ran the singer-songwriter showcase 'PopTarts', I worked with a lot of refugees from shows like Idol, great new artists who became bitter and despondent from their TV experiences. In most cases it was because it was all too much too soon. Their careers hadn't been given the chance to develop naturally before they were thrust into the limelight. That light can get switched off very suddenly, leaving the subject ill-prepared to stand in the shadows. A singer who has done the groundwork over the years and proven their commitment to their art is best placed to sustain a successful career after this kind of intense TV exposure. What percentage of Idols or products of the X Factory are still going strong?


Like many of my pro singer friends, I got an invitation from the producers of The Voice to audition for the show. Hold on to your hats... I said no. 'But you said...!' I know! I get why people like me want to be on a show like this. But it's not for me. I should probably admit to some fear about these kind of shows, after watching Idol and their ilk as they shoot for ratings dominance by often publicly tearing down their acts. As an already established performer, that felt like an awful lot to risk. Of course I now see that The Voice is taking a much kinder, more supportive approach to their artists, which thankfully seems to be striking the right chords with its audience.


The other reason will no doubt see me labelled as a freak, of the control variety. I have done the requisite bleeding, sweating and crying of tears to develop the career I have. It may only be a little one, held together with bandaids in part, but I'm proud of my career and it is all mine. Handing it over to the producers of a TV Show, and all that entails including control of image and output, was a step I was loathe to take. But now - at the risk of sounding like a football commentator - we, the audience, are the winners in all this. How many times can you switch on the TV and see a gathering of such fine talent all in the same place? And more power to them!