Thread: my turn: another one "what to charge for this????"

hey,

i'm meeting someone this friday who is organising an art fair. they have it every three years, it looks pretty posh, and it's basically an open air art gallery. where a park is filled with statues and jewelry that are for sale. the public are people looking to buy art, and browsers...

they will build a full stage size open air theatre, proper size stage, and they are looking for a dance production, of ca 30min that will play 3-4 times per day. for 5 days (two weekends in a row) (oh, and it's in summer, not right now..). they have usually worked with another dance company (not oriental dance) that for some reason declined now because their last work is not open air friendly (i'm guessing too much props needing to be schlepped around).

i dont have ANY idea what their budget is.

i've emailed them, that we can provide everything from one dancer, or a couple of dancers, or an entire troupe. and that maybe we should meet to discuss the options.

what do i charge??? i want to charge them a day-price, not a per set price. i'd need to know how long the days would be, and i dont know yet...

i'm going to be put on the spot when we meet and will have to name a figure...

if you were a dancer being hired for this (like with your troupe), what would you expect to be paid per day?

it comes back to the same problem: what to charge for a troupe, rather than an individual, or two-three dancers....

thanks!!
Artemisia

I would charge between $600 (just you) to $1200 (multiple dancers) per day. You're giving up the whole day, not to mention the behind the scenes rehearsal time needed to pull together a show with multiple dancers. I would also just ask before you meet what their budget is or "what were you hoping to spend?" I always ask event producers to tell me their entertainment budget before I quote a rate. Then I typically quote 15-20% higher, knowing that they probably rounded down & that we will negotiate to a rate somewhere in the middle.

i've asked what their budget is, what are you hoping to spend, and all i get is a 'we want to discuss that with you'. ugh. so i have NO idea if they think this will cost a 100 or a 1000!

i was also thinking 500 for me, and 1000 for group (in E). but not sure we'll get that.

anyone with a troupe out here? what do you charge for a gig with your troupe?

Our troupe typically gets between 500-1000 USD for a 2-hour concert. That's essentially what you're being asked to provide, its just been broken up into 30 minute sets over a longer duration.
I would also make sure that you will be provided with a secure, private, indoor dressing area/green room to relax & recharge in between sets. Bottled water & light refreshments should also be provided. These are long days in hot sun. You should not be expected to wait in the grass next to the stage in full professional costumes between sets. Nor should you sweat your raqs off in a plastic tent outside.
If she won't give you a figure, quote her your top price & work down from there. Know your bottom line before you go in--i.e. your top price/ideal rate might be $1200/day for multiple dancers but you'd still feel good about the gig & wouldn't do it for less than $900.
If her budget is smaller, negotiate for fewer, shorter sets with less down-time in between. Be prepared with a few options in different price points for her. maybe even have a written proposal to bring to the table.
For $1200 you can have 8 dancers from 10am-4pm,performing a total four 30-minute sets with 1 hour breaks in between
For $900 you can have 4 dancers from 10am-4pm,performing a total four 30-minute sets with 1 hour breaks in between
For $600 you can have 1 dancer...

For $1000 you can have 8 dancers from 12-3pm performing 3 20-minute sets with 30 minute breaks

you get the idea. If you preplan your rates & options and provide them in writing, you'll have a nice solid ground to stand on when meeting with her. You'll provide multiple options at varying price points & she simply has to choose the option that best suits her needs.

Nayastrance is a very smart woman . . .

Deborah

Originally Posted by casbahdance

Nayastrance is a very smart woman . . .
Deborah

,r:; Aw shucks, thanks.

thank you, very helpfull

well, the meeting got postponed a week, so i have one more week to ponder...

Did you decide on strategy yet/price yet?

Did you have the meeting yet? How did it go?

hey,

we're doing two half days at 350E per day... we're dancing three times 15 minutes or so, somewhere between lunchtime and 4 o clock... me and and a few advanced students, not the entire troupe.

their entertainment budget was very limited, and it is for a charity. so i decided to do it at that price on the condition that they book us for multiple days. so we're getting two or three days.. i did tell them what my "normal corporate" price would be (500 for myself for a full day, 1000E for me and the troupe)..., and that was obviously way above budget.

i'm not sure how i feel about it, i think the other acts are getting paid even less (other dance schools), and that this is really what they are capable to fork over max... so it's how it is and we're willing to do it for that amount. the money will help grately in getting some new troupe costumes.

in the evenings they have a couple of nocturnes, night openings of the exhibition, and i might perform solo at a couple of those, at a slightly reduced rate (150€ for a short set, one dancer).

That sounds like you were able to make a good deal for yourself & for the charity! Sometimes these work out to be an annual booking, so in the long run its less than your corporate rate but you may wind up with an annual gig. Hope it goes well for you!

yes, and i know its a cliche but it is also good exposure. a booklet is being published that will go to all the visitors of the exhibition (100nds), with my picture/details etc...

Originally Posted by nayastrance

That sounds like you were able to make a good deal for yourself & for the charity! Sometimes these work out to be an annual booking, so in the long run its less than your corporate rate but you may wind up with an annual gig. Hope it goes well for you!

good exposure is good exposure!

aaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh


just been undercut by some local jazz dance school

so we lost the gig.


aaaaaaaaaarrrrrrghhhhhhhhhhhh

ha, they are still hiring me solo for a few evening corporate events though (150 for a bellygram) in the evenings though

but we lost the stage spot in the afternoon:..

guess why... i'm pretty sure this jazz dance school NEVER pays her students.

Sorry to hear this Artemisia, Hugz

That's too bad. Next time make sure they sign a contract and/or pay a deposit! I hate when that happens. At least they're bringing you in in some capacity.

yeah, they were supposed to contact me with which days they would need us (it's a three week fair, and they were looking for entertainment for 7 different days, and they were supposed to let me know which days they would have us. so we couldnt have had a contract yet at that point. they were still talking to several schools to fill the complete shedule. so i'm guessing one of the other shools they talked to offered them a cheaper show and/or they might have decided against oriental dance.

It's bad enough worrying about belly dancers who undercut, now we have to fight the other genres too?

Sorry to hear it!

It's bad enough worrying about belly dancers who undercut, now we have to fight the other genres too?

Sorry to hear it!

Artemisia - good for you. I'd hate for a dancer of your caliber have to undercut herself to keep a gig. This year they will work with the jazz crew - and have you be the soloist headliner at their prestigious event. They will see the difference in quality - next year - they wont even dare ask you to do the out in the day stuff because they find you too refined and good to be out and be weathered... sooo... they hire you and your TROUPE for the refined indoor gig.

Good way to work it - you set yourself in respect by actually charging for your services. Dont despair - I dont know how many gigs dancers I know have "lost" because they wouldnt compromise their price range or quality.

Sometimes I just feel like saying "My rate is XX for a top quality show, but since you ask me so nicely to work with you on the price I'd be happy to provide you with an averagely ok quality performance for 1/2 of that. Does that work better for you?".....

Originally Posted by david

Sometimes I just feel like saying "My rate is XX for a top quality show, but since you ask me so nicely to work with you on the price I'd be happy to provide you with an averagely ok quality performance for 1/2 of that. Does that work better for you?".....