Our committee has a mixed approach to booking. The entire committee
collectively decides who to book in each booking cycle, but the booking
coordinator does the actual tasks of booking.
I think more than one person could do the actual booking tasks if they were in
full agreement re. booking philosophy, there had clear channels of
communication, the tasks were divided in a straightforward & logical way, and
there were seamless ways to have shared access to evolving info re. the booking
process.
We maintain a spreadsheet with details re. callers/musicians - people who have
already called/played for us and those who've not yet been at our series. We
use this for our collective prioritizing. We also have a googledoc of info
that's gathered and updated mostly by the booking coordinator during the
booking process. (Names of caller/musicians, who's doing sound, press kit
info, who's managing the dance, etc.) This googledoc data is used by the
booking coordinator, finance coordinator, publicity/promo coordinator, dance
night managers, and hospitality coordinator.
When thinking about this topic, I went back into the archive for the Puttin' on
the Dance organizers conference in 2011, which was jointly sponsored by CDSS,
DEFFA, NEFFA, Monadnock Folklore Society, & New England Dancing Masters. There
are many juicy things therein, including this:
Working with Callers and Musicians… Booking and Working with the Talent – Lisa
Greenleaf - Session Notes and Lisa’s Presentation Outline. (Also see related
CDSS Starter Kits: Hiring Performers) We
will go over many of the issues related to hiring bands and callers,
from the business side to artistic expectations, and how organizers can
communicate with performers before, during and after the event.
Included will be a chance to hear the performer’s side of the
experience.
Every time I re-read things in the POTD archive, I learn (or re-learn!!)
something vital. Fantastic wisdom from the interlacing web of dance organizers!
Good luck on your booking transition in Montpelier.
Chrissy Fowler
Belfast, ME
"Dance, when you're broken open... dance, when you're perfectly free" ~ Rumi
chrissyfowler.com
belfastflyingshoes.org
westbranchwords.com
