Charge for school shows

[Busteroo]

Hello everybody! I've been away all summer and now I am settling back in Valparaiso, IN. I need your assisstance. I am looking to do some clowning and magic shows for schools. I am at a loss on charges, fees, etc. Can anybody out there give me some direction. I'm still new at this! Thanks.

[Dan The One Man Band]

My motto is "Whatever the market will bare". What do you think your worth? What would you be happy with? Find out what other performers in your area charge. As with any gig, you give them a price and see what they say. If they say yes right away, maybe the price is too low. As with all negotiation, it's easier to come down on your price then go up.

Dandy

[mini mansell]

two useful mottos

work half the time, for twice the fee

and


if one in 5 dont tell you your too expensive. then your too cheap.

[Rick Martin]

For any school within an hours drive, I charge $250 for one show and an additional $100 for the second. Most of the school administrators and PTA Moms seem to indicate that this is a relatively low price and that's OK with me, as school shows are our fave and we wanna do em all.

[Busteroo]

Thanks for the feedback. Rick, is that a one-hour show? Also, is it best to do a themed show such as "Don't Do Drugs", "Reading Is Fun", etc.?

[Rick Martin]

Most assemblies are an hour, so if you allow for getting the kids in and then out of the room, the show ends up being about 45 minutes. Our theme is safety. We have bits about fire safety, bicycle/skating helmets and crossing the street.

[Stephon]

You can make the theme of your show whatever you want it to be, as long as you can claim that it has some educational value.

I was part of two shows that played in elementary schools around Maryland for 7 years. Both were comedy stage combat shows, one focusing on reading and and the other on teamwork.

Find a topic that interests you and build something around it.

[Dom]

Here in Oz, the various agencies that organise bulk show tours for performers usually base their fee's on a charge per child system.
Part of the fee is subsidized by the school and the parents are
asked to give their child the other part.

Shows tend to be around 30 minutes and followed with a quick workshop
or Q&A session to be finished on 45-50 minutes all up.

Unless it's a one-off assembly gig or a personally invited session,
the show/act has to go through the various State Education boards rigamoroles so as to be deemed worthy of educational merit.

And the liability insurances for working with kids here are huge.

[clapchap]

How about if someone just wants you to teach a (math) class to juggle?

[Greedybogle]

I have never done a juggling workshop for a school, but I do historical workshops in classrooms dressed up like Wilbur Wright. I charge a travel fee of $.37 per mile and a fee for the workshop between $60 and $120, depending on the gig, the state of my finances, and how I feel. This fee includes a number of things - I bring in a small collection of artifacts and visual aids, and have the kids make paper helicopters (the younger groups, anyway) out of paper I have already cut. The sessions last 30-40 minutes. I don't know the specifics of your gig, but if you're supplying the props and spending a good deal of time with the students, don't be afraid to name your price. You are doing them a favor by coming into their classroom.

[Airborne Dan]

What does Wilber Wright have to do with helicopters? I thought he and his Brother, Orville, pretty much built and flew the first working airplane, end of story. Did they work on helicopters also? Just cuious, that's all.

[Greedybogle]

No, they didn't. Helicopters weren't invented until a Russian named Igor Sikorsky came up with them a couple decades later.

The helicopter thing serves three purposes. The brothers played with a helicopter toy when they were children, so it helps the kids connect with the history. More peripherally, a helicopter's rotor is basically a big, vertical propeller, and the wrights really were on the cutting edge of propeller design and manufacture (they made their own). Also, I have the students trouble-shoot their paper helicopters the same way the Wrights worked on their designs - it helps teach scientific method and problem-solving techniques, at least in theory.

What can I say? It pays.