NOW ACCEPTING PROPOSALS – 2024/25 Season

Thank you for your interest in directing a show with the Stone Soup Theatre Company! We are currently accepting proposals for our 2023/24 and later Seasons.

Stone Soup is looking to increase its season by at least one production annually until we reach a total of 5 productions per year. We are considering proposals for the following:

A well-known/beloved musical with a sizable cast.
A lesser known musical with a small cast.
A modern drama or classical piece with a small cast.
A production featuring a majority teen/youth cast – attached to an education intensive.

We are a young theatre company working to build a solid foundation for the future. This means that our productions need to make enough money to both cover expenses and increase our ability to invest in long-term resources and equipment. Please consider:

Appeal to local audiences – Does the show have good name recognition or does it appeal to our local audience in any special sort of way? Who will want to see it? Is there any way we can increase attendance through appealing to or partnering with the community?
Low production costs – We are looking for plays/musicals that stand on their own merit and do not need to hide behind a lot of set dressing, costumes or special effects.
Portability of the set and props – We do not have a permanent home. The set needs to be small enough to transport in the back of a pick-up truck and be light enough that we can fully put it up and strike it for each performance.
Rehearsal space needs – A big cast will need a larger rehearsal space which needs to be considered in the overall budget. A small cast can meet at someone’s home. If the show requires a large space, please budget $75 a day unless you have access to a rehearsal space you can use.

Honoraria:

We provide a modest honorarium to directors, music directors, technical directors, designers, stage management, choreographers, and live orchestra scaled to the scope of the show.

Proposal Guidelines:

The following questions should serve as prompts for your proposal. Please submit a pdf document with your answers and any supplemental material you wish to include.

Your proposal should consider the following:

Name of the play, short description, who owns the rights/cost per show..
Who is attached to the project? Which role will you fill? Do you have anyone else lined up as part of your team? Short bios are appreciated if your team includes people who have not previously worked with Stone Soup or Durham Savoyards.
What is your general vision/approach to this piece?
Why should we produce this piece at this point in time? Who is our audience? Is there enough appeal to ensure decent ticket sales? How many people do you expect we might have for each performance?
Are there any opportunities to partner with other people or organizations?
Do you have any ideas about marketing/publicity?
General proposed budget needs to include the following costs:

Securing the rights and rental of materials (as required)
Rehearsal space
Performance space
Costuming/dry cleaning/shipping
Properties and set construction
Special effects/lighting/sound as needed.
Printing costs for posters and programs (use $600 to cover both if you don’t have an alternative plan to traditional printing)
Rental costs for anything rented.

Do you need any professional specialists (fight choreographers, vocal coaches, intimacy coaches, follow spot operators, etc.)?
Do you have any limitations on when the show is scheduled?
Your resume and any samples of your previous work as a director.

Final Note:

Your proposal doesn’t need to be long for its own sake. If you include no supplemental materials, we expect you can answer the major concerns in a page or two. We’re not looking at a high level of detail at this point in the process. We may request more information if a decision between productions is close.

Decision Timeline:

Our Board of Directors intends to determine next year’s season by April, 2023.

PLEASE EMAIL YOUR PROPOSAL TO STONESOUPTHEATRECO@GMAIL.COM