Analysis of Productions
-Marissa, Michelle and Rachael
Pittsburgh Ballet Theater’s
mission is “to perpetuate excellence in the art of ballet through performances,
superior training of student dancers and community engagement initiatives.” This
mission is quite broad – PBT is mostly describing what their activities are.
And the general expected outcome of “perpetuating excellence” is mostly
determined in the eye of the beholder (and the critics).
Moulin Rouge was a ballet
that appealed to many people – everybody knows about the Moulin Rouge, and many
have seen the 2001 film starring Nicole Kidman – and it was programmed during
Valentine’s Day weekend. It is not particularly well-known in and of itself,
nor is it very critically acclaimed. Since it is a “boxed show”, and PBT had to
rent everything – from the sets to the costumes to the music – from the
original producers, there wasn’t much room for creativity or interpretation.
This show was programmed as
a money-maker and perhaps an audience builder, but it doesn’t seem like their
overall goal was to “perpetuate excellence in the art of ballet”. Through their
audience engagement program with the Carnegie Library, film screenings, and the
presentation of the ballet itself, it is evident that artistic quality was not
the primary concern.
According to multiple
reviews of both Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s and other companies’ versions of Moulin
Rouge – The Ballet, the production fell somewhat short of evoking the bawdy
and glamorous spirit of the famous cabaret.
Choreographer Jorden Morris
applied his characteristically traditional point of view to his interpretation
of late 19th-century Paris. Although this classical ballet-oriented style
undoubtedly showcased the virtuosic talent of the company, many critics and
bloggers believed that this disciplined, even tame, artistic presentation did
not do justice to the provocative subject matter it dealt with.
One critic, writing for the
Atlanta area arts website ArtsATL, felt that the show suffered from the overuse
of clichés of Moulin Rouge mythology and Parisian culture. So, while the
ballet may not have been the ideal language in which to communicate the essence
of Moulin Rouge, the work succeeded in its role as a vehicle for the dancers’
individual and collaborative artistic excellence.
The financial success of
the show cannot really be determined yet, given that the financials have not
been released for this year. However, the forecasted cash flow sheets provided
by Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre provide some insights.
Moulin Rouge was one of
the most costly shows of the season, with estimated direct production expenses
at $360,000. This is second only to the Nutcracker, and nearly the same cost as
their upcoming production of Cinderella. Yet the risk of that investment was
projected to be covered in ticket revenue and sponsorships for the show. Moulin
Rouge again had some of the highest project ticket sales revenue, again second
to Nutcracker and practically equal to Cinderella. The $200,000 sponsorship for
Moulin Rouge, the largest appearing on the balance sheet, puts the show in the
black however, making it one of the highest projected profits of Pittsburgh
Ballet Theatre’s season at $103,000.
The addition of an extra
weekend of performances suggests the show exceeded expected ticket sales. It’s
safe to assume that Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre had a decision making process in
place for choosing to schedule these extra performances; they probably examined
the number of single and subscription tickets tickets purchased before the run
began and found that they had reached a high enough threshold to justify these
shows.
Even if actual ticket sales
did not meet expected ticket revenue, it is safe to assume that Moulin Rouge
met or exceeded its original financial goals. The large sponsorships from UPMC
and PPG attached to the production and the fact that these performances were
added suggest a healthy, financially successful production.
Analysis of Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre - The Organization
-Eric, Jessica, Jessie
Mission Analysis and Programming
success from a non-financial perspective[1]
Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre mission is:
“Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre is a community
based and internationally recognized professional ballet company that performs
traditional and contemporary ballets and develops innovative works. It seeks to
perpetuate excellence in the art of ballet through performances, superior
training of student dancers and community engagement initiatives.”
PBT has
traditional season programming and additional education and engagement
programming in order to achieve their mission. When looking at the 2011-2012
season, there is a production that covers traditional, contemporary, and
innovative ballets. For example, the Nutcracker is arguably THE quintessential
traditional ballet piece. This was notably a success for PBT because single
ticket sales surpassed the goal by 9%. In regards to contemporary work, PBT
performed “Streetcar Named Desire”, originally produced in 1993. The first
production of 2011 was a production of Peter Pan, which was an innovative
production because it mixed traditional storytelling with brand new choreography
created for this production.
Their education
program, PBT Theatre School “perpetuates superior training of student dancers”.
In the 2011-2012 season, education programs grew by 13%. The PBT Ballet Theatre
school’s success is measured by their student’s post school prospects to
advance their careers and to dance professionally. In the past year, two
students (JoAnna Schmidt, Corey Bourbonniere) went on to join the PBT Company
after graduating from PBT Theatre School. Additionally, education enrollment
grew in the past season (according to their annual report). Additionally, PBT
had their students collaborate with Viktor Plotinikov in the 2011-2012 to
create a new work, which has the dual effect of providing superior training and
fostering the love and art of ballet. This perpetuates education and engagement
in a younger generation of dancers.
From the annual
report and when hearing Harris Ferris speak, it seems that PBT is fulfilling
their goals set forth in their mission through effective program planning both
in the community and on stage. However, whether or not the quality of a
production meets the term “excellence” is purely subjective, does that mean it
is excellent by Terrence Orr and Harris Ferris’ standards, the critics who work
for publications, or the community? The use of excellence is murky and should
be further extrapolated. The organization is providing excellent education and
training, but in terms of their actual performances, there is no correct
opinion on the matter. It could mean that excellence is defined strictly
monetarily. For Ferris, it may be ticket sales, but is it the same for Orr?
Programming success from a
financial perspective.[2]
The Program
Service Ratio for PBT in Fiscal Year 2011/2012 is 84.3%. We found this by
dividing the Total Functional Program Expense of 6,851,699, and dividing
it by the Total Expenses for the organization of 8,125,617. The result,
84.3%, is wonderful. The benchmark for this is 60-65% minimum. As a
result, we can see that 84.3% of Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s expenses go
towards their programming. Because programming is how a non-profit organization
achieves its mission, we can understand that PBT is efficiently using a high
amount of their overall expenses to fulfill its mission.
We also see that
Program Service Revenue is 47.5 % of total Revenue for the organization. We
arrive at this ratio by dividing Program Service Ratio by Total Revenue for the
organization. Program service revenue includes Performance Ticket, School
Tuition, Costumes + Set Income, Ballet Company Touring, and Program
Advertising. The total amount of Program Service Revenue for PBT in the fiscal
year 2011/2012 was $ 3,550,650. Total Revenue was $ 7,476,216. This is a good
sign of a healthy organizational financial position because it demonstrates
that PBT is not depending solely on “soft” revenues or contributed revenues,
but rather is able to earn “hard” revenues through its programs. It is important
for an organization to have a portfolio of income-generating sources, with both
soft and hard revenue streams, so that the organization is not depending
heavily on any one source of income that may fluctuate such as grants and
individual donations.
Organizational structure or
systems of operation[3]
Pittsburgh
Ballet Theatre organizational structure is split between their professional
ballet corps and school. On the ballet side, they employ some 41 administrative
and production staff, led by Board Chair Shelley M. Taylor, Artistic Director
Terrence S. Orr, and Executive Director Harris Ferris. In our session
with Harris, we learned that he and Terrence serve a check and balance system,
balancing artistic and institutional goals, as well as developing a balanced
season. As discussed later, PBT’s programming maintains a balance between
artistically innovative works and crowd pleasers. PBT’s performance arm
is split again between administration and production. In addition to executive
staff, marketing, development and education, they employ an artistic/ballet
staff and an extensive production crew and costume team. Similarly to the
fixed costs of an orchestra or theatre, PBT’s dancers and productions require
an extensive team to make performances possible.
On the school
side of the organization, PBT employs a separate 10 person administrative and
operations staff, with 17 teachers and 9 musicians, including PBT’s Ballet
Master and Mistress, and a consulting psychiatrist. With PBT school
dancers participating in large PBT productions like The Nutcracker and
moving on to dance professionally with the company, it makes sense to provide
continuity between the two organizational arms, as well as create more work for
positions that might be limited in scope by a five main stage production
season. The income generated by this arm of the organization contributes to
PBT’s high Program Service Revenue percentage.
Theory of Change
The purpose of
the programming at PBT is to spark the love of ballet arts in both youth and
adults alike. This love or appreciation is the impact that PBT hopes to
achieve. In order to understand this better, one has to go through the steps of
how to achieve the impact, so one needs to understand what the inputs,
activities, and outcomes are in order to achieve the impacts. The inputs are
the resources that go into creating these programs, ie the human capital of the
staff and employees, the infrastructure of the organization, and the financial
resources necessary to create the programs. The activities are both traditional
programming (the ballets: traditional, contemporary, and innovative in their
season) the activities that are educational (community engagement and
enrichment), as well as teaching a new generation of ballerinas. For example,
ballet talkbacks post production, school programs, bussing activities, and the
PBT Theatre School are examples of the activities that they have in place to
affect the outcome of increasing participation numbers in their programs. All
of these steps lead to the impact of fostering an appreciation and love of
ballet in returning and new audiences.
[1] Source: Pittsburgh Ballet’s Annual
Report: http://pbt.org/sites/default/files/page_uploads/pbt%20annual%20report.pdf
[2] Source: Pittsburgh Ballet’s 990: http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2012/237/101/2012-237101094-08c32eba-9.pdf
[3] Source: www.pbt.org
Conclusions about the program planning process and measures of success
-Rebecca Fink, Audrey Kwong, Kelsey Small
Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s programming addresses its mission through three components, its season of ballets, its education and community engagement programming and its school, the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School. Based on the 2007-2010 strategic business plan’s executive summary, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre defines artistic excellence in the three following ways: developing and presenting ballets of high artistic quality, attracting and educating talented students in the art of ballet, and enriching the community through engagement with the art of ballet, dance and movement. Each component is evaluated through its own individual measures of success. By meeting these measures of success, PBT demonstrates its commitment to the mission of perpetuating excellence in the art of ballet.Production Company
Planning Process In planning the annual season, PBT’s goal is to produce a season of shows with balanced artistic value and revenue potential. PBT uses a mission matrix to determine what ballets to produce within these parameters. There are three strategies the organization uses to select a diversified season incorporating the benefits offered from each strategic combination of artistic value and revenue.
The aspirational goal is to produce shows within Strategy 1, shows with high artistic value and high net revenue potential. Strategy 2 are shows with high net revenue potential but low artistic value, often considered their blockbuster productions. Lastly, Strategy 3 produces ballets that they believe will have high artistic value but low net revenue potential. To meet its goal of producing shows within Strategy 1, the organization aims to improve the artistic quality of Strategy 2 shows, and reduce costs while attracting more donors and audiences from Strategy 3 shows.
To achieve a balance of the three available strategies, PBT selects the ballets to produce from four grouped categories. The first category is full-length ballets - including Swan Lake, Giselle or Cinderella to name a few. The second category is contemporary full length works, examples are works from Twyla Tharp or Mark Morris. The third category includes pieces from 20th and 21st century choreographers, for example Desmond Richardson. The last category is one act ballets and new commissions. PBT selects a mixed repertory season to match the goals of each strategy from the mission matrix.
Measure of Success The most important measures of success PBT utilizes to monitor its programming plans is setting a revenue goal to annually meet 76% of their budgeted expenses with revenue from performances. The organization uses this target to assess the strength of ticket sale revenue to cover direct production and advertising expenses for the entire season. A second measure of success is measuring the number of tickets sold annually, categorized by subscribers, single ticket buyers, groups, students and the total amount. The organization forecasts a projected number of tickets sold for each production and then compares this to the actual number sold. PBT benchmarks this figure across past seasons, and also evaluates Nutcracker performances separate from all other performances.
Another measure of success is the number of new works the organization is able to commission or acquire the rights to produce. For example, in the 2011 season, PBT defined various success metrics as being the first American company to perform Streetcar Named Desire, the company achieved a goal by performing its first Mark Morris piece, and produced a world premiere piece. The organization measures success in its seasons by evaluating its ability to produce renowned classics and introduce new works into their company’s repertory.
A final measure of success is the use of live music in the company’s performances. PBT values the use of live music to strengthen and advance the artistic quality of their work. The organization aims to produce two performances with live music a season. If the organization meets this goal of producing at least two shows with live accompaniment, they consider this an artistic and programming success.
Arts Education and Community Engagement
Planning Process PBT’s goals are to develop community and engagement programs that increase the role of dance in Pre-K and K-12 education and to develop programs that engage and enrich Pittsburgh communities. They accomplish this by deploying artistic resources from the company and the school within the community, as well as leveraging partnerships and collaborations.
For example, for Moulin Rouge - The Ballet, they produced a program called “After Hours @ the Library” within their partnership with the Carnegie Library, “Know Before You Go”. The event featured live music, alcoholic beverages, tours, a furniture auction, and French activities which helped PBT celebrate the origin of ballet in France and build audience excitement for the show. In addition, as part of their In Motion Film Series (a partnership with Point Park University and the John P. Harris Film Society), they showed the film Moulin Rouge which was a major influence for the ballet’s creation. This community event was meant to increase comprehension of the story line in preparation for the live performance.
PBT also engages in extensive pre- and post-performance activities. For Moulin Rouge - The Ballet, they hosted “Afterthoughts”, a post-show discussion about the performance led by Artistic Director Terrence Orr. They also presented “Insights”, a pre-show program by a visiting scholar who provides context and commentary for the performance. Finally, they hosted “Talks with Terry”, allowing the audience to watch the Company in their warm-up class on stage and talk to the Artistic Director. PBT also offered a production guide with background material, information on choreography, music, and costumes, the synopsis of Moulin Rouge, and extra activities, patrons could access online. This type of community engagement programming is representative of what Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre offers to compliment each production of its season.
Additionally, throughout the season, the Pittsburgh Ballet Theater holds two student matinees and Family Pointe, a pre-show discussion and demonstration of the ballet performance for children. Neither of these programs were incorporated for the Moulin Rouge Show.
Measure of Success Success for PBT’s education and community engagement programs is measured by attendance at their various events. Total attendance for PBT’s various programs is tracked from year to year allowing PBT to understand the trends in attendance. Additionally, they measure engagement through the use of surveys, which are used to fund future education programing. Surveys also help to inform PBT about which programs are making the largest impact, and help focus their programing to make sure they capture the widest breadth of engagement. At the end of this year, Ms. Alyssa Herzog Melby plans to reassess all of the education programming evaluation strategies.
In conclusion, PBT’s executive director Harris Ferris summarized the organization’s planning process as follows: start by articulating a specific vision, formulate a business plan and then evaluate how the idea translates to the market. The organization starts all their program planning process with a clear vision of why each of their programs are important and relevant to both the organization’s success and to the community it serves.
Very interesting analysis -- some excellent alignments between mission to analysis. I think the organization is well run and has established measures of success around earned income. You have correctly identified one of two areas of excellence that offer opportunity for further intrinsic evaluation: (well you identified one: excellence in art, I would add excellence in their education program with respect to their education = school.)
ReplyDeleteI could not find any links to your personal reviews as required by the assignment?
More comments will be submitted with grades Monday.