We all need a re-think on selling our arts products

Raisedon Baya

I AM a theatre person and very worried about how we are selling our products. We are creating productions whose lifespan can only be described as stillborn. Our products are dying way before they are born or rather, they get born, seen on stage once and then that’s it. We never see them again. This has to stop. As theatre producers we need to be seeing beyond the premier night. We need to be producing plays with a lifespan of at least a minimum of 12 months. At least that way the play will get to tour and be seen by a variety of audiences.

When I talk or write about this, I always give reference to three plays that I have seen in the past, plays that have proved it’s possible to have a play with a lifespan of more than a year. My first example is always a play called “I am My Own Wife”. I saw this play at Hifa. I think it must have been 2005 or 2006 edition. I loved the play like everyone who saw it. One actor performing about 32 characters on stage. It was an amazing play. Eight years later I came across the same play, same actor, still on the road performing. Now that’s what I call a life. Amakhosi Theatre once created ‘‘Stitsha’’ and the play went all over the place. I remember watching the play when I was in Form Two and watching it again years later. I still was excited as watching it first time. The longest running performance in Europe was by a musical called ‘‘Mousetrap’’ which had over 27 000 performances. This is followed by ‘‘Les Miserables’’ and ‘‘The Phantom of Opera’’ in the region of 13 000 performances.

If our plays start being performed in different venues for over 30 times we will start talking about theatre as sector and thespians can also start dreaming of a theatre career. But for us to live this dream we need to start re-thinking about what we are doing and where we want to go. We need to be thinking about plays making runs at the theatre. At least a minimum of four or so shows. We need to be thinking about creating schools’ circuits. Taking some of the plays/performances around schools. This used to happen a long time ago. We need to be thinking about travelling theatre. Taking our performances to other places, other cities and provinces and even outside the country. This is how we need to be thinking. This may mean we need producers who are constantly thinking the dollar signs and looking for ways to make money from the products we produce.

A friend of mine always says plays are like shoes or other products. Artistes need to make money from their products. They need to find ways of getting people to the theatre or getting the plays to the people. Theatre artistes should be thinking on how to use social media to maximum on their marketing or even stretching the lifespan of plays.

This could be a situation cutting across most arts genres. How are musicians, for example, making a living out of their music? How are they pushing their products? Who is selling their products now that the country literally has no music shops? What other avenues are they exploring that’s not the traditional ones? These are the questions we need to ask as we do our rethink. The same questions can be asked for dance. Besides waiting for corporate functions and weddings, how are dance groups pushing themselves beyond traditional means of survival? And film? How are film makers making their money? Where are they selling their films?

In simple terms artistes need to make their money from the art they produce. Full stop. Most are not as we write. So, a serious re-think is needed.