At the Sarasota Opera “All the World is a Stage” – and all the Productions are Projects Backstage at the Opera - Young performers practice on stage. At the Sarasota Opera in Sarasota, Florida, they don’t “begin with the end in mind”, they begin with the end etched in concrete. The production season is incredibly tight notes Director of Production, Chris Van Alstyne. Sarasota, located on the southwest coast of Florida, is a mecca for older Americans who travel there to escape the cold northeastern winter. Affectionately known as “snowbirds”, the seasonal transplants swell the Sarasota County population from 346,000 to over 500,000 during the November to March season. These seasonal transplants make up the bulk of Sarasota Opera the patrons that will fill the seats where 6 shows will be opened and run in overlapping sequences that at times allow a patron to see 3 different shows over a single 3Copyright © 2017 T. Porterfield day weekend. This rigorous schedule results in numerous performances over a 5-month season which will generate 90% of the organization’s annually ticket revenue. The 2016-17 season includes major productions; Don Pasquale, The Secret Life of Og, Madama Butterfly, The Italian Girls in Algiers, Dialogues of the Carmelites, and The Love of Three Kings. Planning and executing theses shows is the ultimate challenge in project and program management. Each show is treated as an individual project with unique production requirements, design elements, sets, props, musical scores, and opening dates. Together they are the opera’s seasonal program and will share many resources including rehearsal space, stage, dressing rooms, design and production staff, and even performers. When activities of the individual performance projects fall behind, moving the opening date is not an option. The mythical iron triangle of project management is alive and well, bringing to reality the fact that scope, budget, and schedule are always in tension. At Sarasota Opera, the opening date (schedule) cannot be moved out so either the production will need to be scaled back (scope reduction) or additional money will need to be spent in order to complete the activities more quickly (activity crashing or expediting). Figueroa in Miniature – Scale models are prepared for all major productions to ensure that the set design elements properly fit the stage facilities of the Sarasota Opera. The footprint of the production facility with approximately 1,680 square feet of stage space (28’ deep and 60’ wide) and adjacent backstage set storage space of only 2,600 sq. ft. requires that sets be designed across shows ensuring that their storage can be integrated to support a schedule where shows can be alternated daily. Van Alstyne adds that this is no small task as additional constraints of doorway height, rigging space above, track space on the stage floor, and backstage space for off-stage performers must all be integrated. The opera follows a planning model similar to other event-based projects – set the date of the event and plan the project in reverse to arrive at the start date of the activities. The launch of the November to March season will normally require that design activities start in the spring. Marketing, subscription sales, ticket sales, and patron travel plans will all be focused on the published performance schedule. Copyright © 2017 T. Porterfield Lobby of the Sarasota Opera House - This 1925 theater was restored in the early 1980s and placed on the National Register of Historic Places, it is the current home of the Sarasota Opera. But don’t shed too many tears for Van Alstyne and his team, he has spent his career travelling the world managing live entertainment production. As Van Alstyne explains, “It is so exciting, I wouldn’t want it any other way, I am constantly solving problems and fitting the puzzle pieces together – and in a matter of months I see the fruit of our work when our patrons see amazing performances. Discussion Questions 1. How does Sarasota Opera benefit from managing individual productions as projects? 2. What are the scope, time, and cost parameters for an individual production? 3. Identify the benefits of treating the productions of a full season as a program. 4. List the key stakeholders (individuals or groups which perceive that they are affected by a project) of the Sarasota Opera? 5. What risks (events that may prevent a project from meeting its scope, time, and/or cost goals) might a production encounter? 6. How does the portfolio of projects at Sarasota Opera differ from its projects and programs? Copyright © 2017 T. Porterfield
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