This is the final article in a five-part series about how to create an opera company—and if you’ve made it this far, congratulations! You’re just one final step away from taking your career in hand and really managing your own opportunities to sing!
Perhaps the most important part of an opera company is its board. The reason is simple—boards not only guide the direction of a company, they also are essential to its fundraising success. The best boards not only work hard to get the companies they support free resources and great connections, they also directly contribute anywhere from $1,000–$15,000 a year in a “give-get” way. “Give-get” means that they commit to either giving the money to the company themselves or getting the money from various wealthy individuals that they know.
So, who is the perfect person to woo onto your board? Well, when you are just beginning, it might be hard to find high-net-worth individuals that have the time to spend with a nascent company. So it’s wise to either search your network for people who can commit to a give-get and are enamored of your new company or, in the case that you can’t find that, find highly respected experts to join your initial board that have high-level contacts. These could be famous singers, company CEOs, high-level marketers, or even wealthy patrons of larger opera companies. If they have contacts that can get you somewhere, talk to them. It never hurts.
The main thing, if you start with a highly connected board, is to begin from the very beginning with a give-get component. It can be small, like $1,000 per member, but it needs to be something, so that the expectation is set that the board is both a think tank and a fundraising vehicle. The board can, and should, vote to raise the give-get every year.
Some nonprofit CEOs decide that it’s OK for chief staff persons, like the CFO, to be on the board. This decision needs some thought. While it’s great to have that person in the loop all the time, it can also sometimes lead to that person ruling board meetings and not getting the feedback that’s really needed to run the company correctly. Executives should gauge carefully if they are good listeners and objective members before joining their own board. For a startup, the founder is a natural addition to the board, but any other executive choices should just be made carefully.
Board sizes can range widely, but I have seen them be anywhere from 5 to 50 members. Be aware that the larger the board, the more management you will have to do. Often, company boards grow with the company—if each board member has a give-get of $10,000 for example, and the budget calls for an extra $50,000 in your coming year, you’ll be seeking five more board members, or several new board members alongside some grants. I’ve also been asked quite a bit about tenure. Typical board members in the tech world stick around for anywhere from three to five years. In the nonprofit world, two to three years is more typical.
Boards do need to be highly efficient because, as a part of your company, they exist to represent your business structure and public model to the outside world. The best boards are highly professional, have an annual schedule of meetings set well in advance (either once a month or four times a year), keep meeting minutes that are accurate and complete, circulate materials a few days in advance of each meeting, and have various committees to tackle the organization’s chief challenges—the most prominent among which is usually fundraising. It’s a good idea to have a lawyer examine your opening board documents, make sure that those are in order, and give you the documents you need for minutes and committees. You can also find these documents online at legalzoom.com or similar websites, but a lawyer can guide you to the best language to use.
Committees can also include a governance committee, to oversee the heads of the company and make sure their decisions are copasetic with the company’s mission and standards; an audit, to review company finances; a marketing committee, to guide the company’s marketing efforts; and an outreach committee, to gather volunteers. Ultimately your company’s needs will govern whom you ask to be on each committee.
Once your board is set, there are alternative methods for fundraising that you want to set in place. All nonprofit opera companies are very familiar with grant writing, and for good reason. Grants are the major life source for many performance companies, even despite the recent financial climate. To discover grants available in your area, and large donors as well, I suggest visiting foundationsource.com and sites like donorsforum.org. These sites can tell you who the major donors are in your area and how to reach them—and they also offer seminars on how to get grants and cocktail events where you can often meet grant writers and donors in person.
Also, check out the donors for similar opera companies near you and approach those donors through the process listed on their websites. Grants vary in their size and scope and can be exhausting to put together—but once you have done 5 to 10, you will develop a list of stock answers to questions and support materials for your company that will make the process easier. Hiring a grant writer can help, but be aware that it’s not possible to hire one for a percentage of grants made, due to law, so you have to grow to a size where you can offer a salary for the writing of grants. For this reason, I suggest when you start out that you write your initial grants yourself.
Fundraisers are a major tool for all performance companies. The trick with fundraisers is that you need to make sure you take in a lot more than you spend. For this reason, many performance companies appoint a gala committee that runs their fundraiser per year, and this team is responsible for bringing in other team members that can sell anywhere from 1 to 10 tables each. Often, donated items and performer time can defray costs, and venues will give you a cheap cost if you prove you are a 501c3. But costs can still add up.
For companies just starting out, I suggest that you keep things simple. Hold a house concert, have family and friends bring cookies and wine, and ask for donations as a ticket. Get performers to donate their time. You can always get fancier later as you grow, and people will appreciate the fact that you are being conscious of costs. I have seen fundraisers happen at the movies, at coffee shops, and in offices. Anything goes, as long as costs stay contained.
There are also smaller, quicker things that you can do at a show to make money. I have seen many smaller tactics bear great fruit. For example, have every performer send out five letters to donors with an SASE asking for donations pre-show. Send the singers from your show into the audience post-show to mingle and gather donations. Place a donation envelope inside every program that directly asks for funding and states what it’s for. Hold a “sing-a-thon” at intermission where audience members donate a financial amount equal to the number of seconds a singer can hold a note. Have the audience take pictures with major characters from the show at intermission and buy the photos for a donation. Frame and sell the character sketches you make for each character. The list of creative ways to make money just at a show alone goes on and on. The best way to find new ideas is to go to shows by other companies in your area and see what they do.
As always, you can write me with questions or requests for financial models or PowerPoints at gthiers@operamoda.com. I am always happy to answer questions, and thank you for all the fascinating ones you’ve already sent my way. The best of luck to you in your new venture!
