Article IV: PRODUCTIONS AND EVENTS
Contents:
I. Show Proposals
II. Proposal Schedule
III. General Event Proposals
IV. Production and Event Guidelines and Deadlines
I. SHOW PROPOSALS
Any Project: Theatre member may propose a production by filling out a Show Proposal form. This form is
all-encompassing, and should be used for any production proposal regardless of its anticipated size or scope.
Project: Theatre will put on up to four shows per semester, with budgets on a sliding scale from $0-$1000.
In order to propose a production, a member must:
a. Attend a preliminary “How to Put on a P:T Show” guidelines workshop at our general meeting, to be
held at least one week before proposals are due. Any members interested in proposing a show are required
to attend this guidelines meeting. In addition, the attendance of at least three members of the “Big Four” of
each potential production team is required .
b. Complete and submit a show proposal form by the given deadline. The form will include a section to
select preferences for desired dates and locations for the show, based on a number of dates preselected by the
PT board.. The Board will work with these requests and choose the most appropriate assignments for each
potential production. Each production team must also provide a detailed preliminary budget breakdown on
this form, as well as the names of any crew members signed on to the production. The “Big Four” positions
must be filled at this point, and must commit to working on the show in that capacity if it is voted into
production.
c. Attend a private interview with the Project: Theatre board. Attendance of three out of the “Big Four”
is required. During this time, each production team will pitch their show proposal to the P:T board in order
to provide a better idea of its visions, level of preparation, and general expectations for its production.
Following the interview process, the Project: Theatre board members will meet to discuss each presentation
seen and to determine the feasibility of its production. The Board will then decide whether or not to approve
the show for voting. This decision is based on a three-level scale known as the “Stoplight System.” A
proposal will either be green-lighted (approved for voting), yellow-lighted (asked for resubmission
following greater development/reworking), or red-lighted (denied voting status, but encouraged for
resubmission for the following semester). If yellow-lighted, the production team must rework their pitch,
completing any additional alterations with regard to the show proposal, prior to the predetermined date for
resubmission. During this period of time, the team is encouraged to seek assistance and suggestions from the
Project: Theatre board with regard to potential changes to their show proposal.
There is no limit to the number of proposals that the Board can green-light per semester. Proposals approved
for voting will be chosen based on their levels of readiness, including factors such as budget breakdown
and coherent vision for production. Location and date will not be used as criteria to determine whether a
show should move forward to voting. Approvals are granted objectively and will not be based on favoritism,
partiality, class year, or any other outside factor.
d. Voting occurs. Following the show proposal process, all of the green-lighted proposals will be submitted
to a vote by the general membership of Project: Theatre. The ballot is anonymous and will include detailed
descriptions of each proposed show. To complete the ballot, each member will be asked to select her top
three choices in order of preference. The scoring of the ranking system will be as follows: first choice receives
3 points, second choice receives 2 points, and third choice receives 1 point. Once the voting period has
closed, the four productions with the highest total point values will be selected for production the following
semester.
Results are tallied by the PT Secretary and monitored by the PT Ombudsperson to ensure impartiality and
fairness.
d. Following the voting, locations and dates will be negotiated. The PT board will use productions’
preferences, in conjunction with their descriptions of their artistic vision and perceived interest in the project
by the membership, to assign productions dates and locations. For this reason, it is extremely important that
when proposing, shows are as accurate as possible in listing their preferred dates and locations.
e. Once approved, production teams are free to proceed with any next steps for their shows!
II. PROPOSAL SCHEDULE
An approximation of the following schedule will take place each semester. The proposal process will include:
1. “How to Put on a P:T Show” guidelines meeting, which at least three out of four members of the
“Big Four” must attend.
2. Show proposals due on a rolling basis, with a final deadline one to two weeks after the general
meeting.
3. Interviews conducted at PT board meetings following the submission of proposal forms. Applicants
will find out their stoplight system status within three days.
4. Resubmissions and re-interviews for for yellow-lighted productions will take place. Applicants will be
notified of their stoplight system status within three days.
5. Voting is open to the general membership for at least three days.
6. Shows are notified within three days, and results are then released to the general public.
III. GENERAL EVENT PROPOSALS
Any Project: Theatre member may propose a general event to be hosted by the organization by filling out
a General Event Proposal form. General events cover everything but show productions, and require only a
single “responsible party” in order to be proposed. Examples include staged readings or workshops of plays,
acting or technical workshops, invited guest lecturers, and group trips to see productions off-campus. Any
member wishing to propose a general event will also be expected to provide an estimated budget of between
$0-$500 on the proposal form. There is no deadline for general event proposals; proposals are accepted on a
rolling basis and will be called for interviews accordingly. The Project: Theatre board will make its decisions
about individual general event proposals based on the state of the organization’s budget as evaluated by the
treasurer as well as the level of readiness or feasibility of the proposal as descibed above. All decisions are
objective. The Board also reserves the right to “roll” a proposed event over to the following semester, with
the consent of the proposer.
IV. PRODUCTION AND EVENT GUIDELINES AND DEADLINES
a. Production and Event Guidelines
The following expectations apply to all Project: Theatre productions and general events:
1. P:T Board Responsibilities include: being available for reasonable help,
answering any questions that may arise, providing financial support, liaising for
campus contacts, and any other responsibilities determined on a case by case
basis by the Board.
2. Production Responsibilities to the P:T Board include: participating in production
check-ins during board meetings, following college policy, staying within budget,
using budget appropriately and transparently, keeping set deadlines, putting PT’s
name and logo on all publicity, collecting PT donations, remaining within copyright
law, and following all PT policies as stipulated on production contracts.
Consequences of breaking contract are detailed in Article V.
3. The Strike System WILL be applied to preliminary (show proposal) contracts.
b. Production and Event Deadlines
1. Show proposal deadlines are defined within the constitution (see Article IV, Section
II). Actual dates and times for these deadlines will vary based on the calendar year,
but the basic structure outlined therein will be followed.
2. Show-specific deadlines such as PR review and college forms (space request and
ERF) will be discussed and agreed upon in P:T board meetings.
3. There is no deadline for general events proposals.
4. Any other deadlines that may arise will be made available to the membership at least
one month in advance.
b. Election Procedure: Board elections will take place in April, and the new board will take
office in June. Voting will be done by anonymous survey over a period of at least one day
(24 hours). The membership will receive the ballot via email. As it is impossible to count our
membership accurately, given whatever number of people who have voted by the end of the
voting period, the election will be valid (i.e., if the membership constitutes 200 people, and
only 50 vote, the election is still valid). In the event of a tie, the board will vote by simple
majority to break the tie. Voting will be run by the current secretary and the votes will be
tallied by the current secretary and ombudsperson to ensure impartiality and fairness.
c. Transition: The newly elected board will take office after the school year has ended, and
hold office until the end of the next school year. Prior to that, the new board and the old
board should meet and discuss responsibilities, sign contracts, and review the constitution.
TIEBREAKERS for voting
1. Proposals: Any PT member may propose a production by filling out a Project Proposal form or
a Production Proposal form for either an independent or a mainstage production, respectively. In
order to propose a mainstage production, the member must also attend a mandatory “How to Put
On a PT Show” workshop, held each semester, and there must be at least five production positions
filled on the proposal form, three of which must be stage manager, technical director and director,
and all of which must be filled by five separate individuals. These proposal requirements do not
apply to independent projects.
2. Mainstage Productions and Voting: A mainstage production will have a budget of up to $1000
to be used for rights, props, costume, sets, advertising, etc. The musical designated in the budget,
which will count as a mainstage show, may receive up to $3000. Mainstage proposals will have a
deadline set by the PT Board in the semester preceding their production date. Following mainstage
proposals, the membership will vote for the season’s mainstage productions by anonymous ballot,
which will include the contents of the artistic questions on the proposal forms. On the ballot, each
member will be asked to select their top three choices in order, the first choice receiving three
points, second place two points and third place one point. The three productions with the highest
total points from all ballots are selected for production each semester. All components of the
voting system must be made transparent to the PT membership, including how the votes will be
counted. Voting will be run by the current secretary and votes will be tallied by the secretary and the
ombudsperson to ensure impartiality and fairness.
a. PT board responsibilities to productions include being available for reasonable help,
answering any questions that may arise over the course of rehearsal and performance,
providing financial support, liaising for campus contacts, and any other responsibilities
determined necessary on a case by case basis by the board.
b. Production responsibilities to the PT board include sending the director or some other
qualified and knowledgeable production crew member to board meetings each week to
give a weekly check-in report, following college policy, staying within budget, using budget
appropriately and transparently, keeping set deadlines, putting PT’s name and logo on all
publicity, collecting donations for PT at performances, remaining within copyright law, and
following all PT policies as stipulated on production contracts. Consequences of breaking
contract are detailed in Article V.
3. Independent projects have a maximum budget of $500. The number of independent projects
selected for production is based on the state of the budget as evaluated by the treasurer.
Independent projects are selected for production based on the board’s evaluation of their proposals
under the policy of unanimous consent. The PT board reserves the right to roll independent projects
over to the next semester, with the consent of the proposer. Independent project proposals are
accepted on a rolling basis.
a. PT board responsibilities to productions (see Article IV, section 2a)
b. Production responsibilities to the PT board (see Article IV, section 2b)
4. Guidelines and Deadlines: Proposal, voting and workshop deadlines vary each year but will always
be available to the membership at least a month in advance. Show specific deadlines such as PR
review and college forms (space request and ERF) will be discussed and agreed upon in PT board
meetings.
Events are anything sponsored by PT that are not shows. They can be proposed by the PT board or
the membership via the Event Proposal Form on a rolling deadline, budget to be determined by the
treasurer at the time of the proposal. Events include but are not limited to trips, lectures, fundraisers,
and workshops.
1. Umbrella groups can be formed through any proposal with the intention of continuing to exist.
They must continually apply for funding from PT. While these groups may have their own names
and exist for more than a single semester or year, for PT’s purposes, they function in the same way
as productions. These potential groups will have to meet with the PT board to discuss why they
should become umbrella groups. Umbrella groups shall have a trial period before they become
regularly entered into PT’s yearly budget, at which time they must become organized and make
significant progress as a group before they are eligible to be under the umbrella, as determined
by the board on a case-by-case basis. The trial period should end before the next year’s budget is
created, but may continue or be extended for as long as the PT board and the umbrella group deems
necessary and appropriate.
2. Every year, PT will sponsor at least one fundraiser in the form of a theatrical production. This
fundraiser show will charge admission, but none of the funds raised from that admission will be
kept by PT, so as not to violate our mission. Any money raised at this fundraiser must be donated
to a cause deemed appropriate and relevant by the current PT board. The show performed for this
fundraiser is not voted on by the membership, but instead is appointed by the PT board each year,
and will not be counted as a mainstage production. Accordingly, the director for this fundraiser
must either volunteer or be appointed by the PT board each year. The director will then choose
their production team according to the guidelines for an Independent Project, and proceed with all
production guidelines as laid out in Article IV, including the signing of contracts and attendance
at check-ins during PT board meetings. Traditionally, this fundraiser show has been The Vagina
Monologues by Eve Ensler, performed in February in accordance with the V-Day Campaign, and
the funds raised are donated to the V-Day Campaign. This tradition, while encouraged, is not a
requirement for the PT board to continue. Should they feel that another show and related cause
have become more relevant, that there is a significant lack of public interest in The Vagina Monologues,
or that there is another appropriate reason to change, the board may choose another production to
put on and cause to raise funds for.