Home Sweet Home

You’re home, and it’s time to crack open the champagne. Indeed, a successful tour is worth celebrating, but first there are things to do, lessons to contemplate, information to capture to ensure that the next tour is even more successful.

Feedback

After the tour, collect information from both the presenters and the touring artists. You may do this in a variety of ways:

• Before heading out on the tour, develop a questionnaire – something like this School Performance Evaluation Form [PDF] – and leave it with the presenter at each stop.  Include a stamped, self-addressed envelope.
  
• Call each presenter and talk through the questionnaire.
  
• Hold a post-tour meeting with the technical director, the company manager, the agent and the touring artists.
  
• Ask the Tour Manager to complete a simple Production Report [PDF] for your records.
  
• Ask each company member to submit a report on his or her experience of the tour.
  
• Formulate an in-house questionnaire including some questions asked of presenters and others relating to travel, rehearsals, accommodation and general logistics.
  
• Ask both presenters and artists what improvements could be made.
  
• Review the scheduling of events. Was there sufficient set-up time?  Was there sufficient travel time? Etc.

Review the comments made variously by the presenter and members of your company. If they differ, try to determine why. The better your understanding of this tour from all points of view, the easier to plan and the more successful your next tour will be.

Financial Report

They say numbers do not lie. Of course, there are intangible benefits to touring – the awareness, the artistic maturing, the creation of new relationships. But how did the tour fare in terms of dollars and cents?  Reviewing revenues and expenses will assist in planning future tours.  Perhaps the exclusion of one remote location would have decreased your revenues by 15%. That being said, the bulk of the travel cost was associated with that one date. Was it worth it? Whatever you do, do not manipulate numbers to create a favourable picture. If an expense item was associated with the tour, do not place it in pre-production.

Thank-You Letters

Last but not least, write letters of appreciation to those whose efforts support the presentation of the arts in Canada. Organizations and their volunteers need to overcome great challenges relating to ticket sales and finance in order to continue presenting the arts in their communities. This is a daunting task. If someone was exceedingly helpful, send them a souvenir, perhaps a t-shirt with the company logo. Be thankful for their commitment! With their help, you will be able to continue offering the wonderful experience of live performance to Canadian audiences.