Sponsored Programs
We strive to help the leaders in our community access resources to build competitive teams, pre-professional groups, working troupes, and more. In place of traditional studio rental models, we sponsor regular rehearsal time and show days in return for having troupes participate through Vaudeville Underground using a bare minimum cost share model.
Why?
Vaudeville Underground is a center of any circus arts, for all circus artists. We want to provide community members with everything they need to be successful in a changing industry.
We believe that studio rentals are an outdated burden on the hard-working members of our industry, and that leaders in the performing arts world (including both the company runners and the troupe members that make it all happen) deserve more easy and stable access to resources. We know firsthand how creatives can implement much more amazing ideas if barriers to access are smoothed over.
Having your troupe as part of our community helps us grow an interconnected community, as it fills our building with more interesting people doing awe-inspiring things. We see what groups like yours have created using just your creativity, drive, and an idea, and we want to see you keep raising that bar by utilizing the space we have.
Cost & Benefits
The cost for program attendees starts as a $15 per month Add-On + a $10 one-time initiation fee at time of sign-up. For Program directors who offer specialized instruction or utilize other expertise that students pay extra to access, the instructor's desired rate gets folded on top of the monthly Add-On cost and is paid out in full to the Instructor.
It is not required to also be a Vaudeville Underground student to access a Program, but for current students the initiation fee will be waived.
Benefits include regular weekly reserved rehearsal time, rent-free event space, access to our students and network, and the cohesive community support inherent in being a part of a dedicated circus studio.
This means we will not charge a monthly rent for the rehearsal space, nor a cut from the show day. This cost is less than it would be through a traditional studio rental model regardless of whether members are also a student or not, and only covers our administrative costs for hosting the troupe.
Example uses:
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A troupe rehearses together every week. They produce a ticketed show in the studio once a year, and book their own outside paid gigs across the valley. Troupe members pay $15 per month to cover the administrative costs for the Program, and the troupe distributes the proceeds from the ticketed studio show among the members to offset costs.
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A professional training Program Director offers a specialized course to help aspiring performers develop stage-ready acts. As part of the program, students meet weekly for dedicated Program rehearsal and perform every 6 months, filming acts for their sizzle reels. Students receive specialized instruction and personalized homework before performing in the Program's showcase to prepare their polished act for professional stages. The Program is $100 per month for the student. $15 per month from that covers studio administrative costs, and then the rest $85 each monthly goes to the Director. The Director uses the showcase income to cover the videographer and photographer costs, and invests the rest in their Program development.
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An Instructor runs a competitive team for kids, taking their students on a national competition circuit. The team meets twice weekly to work on their acts and receives personalized class recommendations to train in the regular Vaudeville Underground technique classes in addition to team practice. The Program Add-On is $150 per month after studio membership dues for the student. $15 per month from that covers studio administrative costs, and the rest $135 goes to the Instructor. They use the showcase to prepare one last run through before the competition, and tickets offset costuming and travel costs for their team.
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Note: these are example cases. Your pricing model and Program organization will be discussed as needed!