Owning a dance studio is hard work – from scheduling classes to managing finances, coming up with inventive choreography, and simply keeping the doors open for your students. Perhaps one of the largest undertakings a studio owner has on their shoulders is planning the recital. 

While it may seem like a logistical nightmare or not worth the effort, don’t underestimate the power a recital can wield – for your studio, dancers, and the community. After all, a great recital can:

  • Raise morale for your entire team
  • Allow your dancers (and instructors, admin, creative teams, etc.) to showcase their hard work
  • Strengthen your brand identity in the community 
  • Entice new dancers to your studio
  • Pad your bottom line with ticket sales 
  • Give you the opportunity to dive into video streaming options
  • Open up more revenue streams with additional sales of merchandise, DVDs, flowers, and the like

This all sounds great, right? Right! But you may be at a loss for how to get started. Luckily, On The Stage (OTS) has created a comprehensive dance recital planning checklist to get you on track.

Dance Recital Planning Checklist

8-12 Months Out

While you may assume this is far too early to start planning a dance recital, think again. The major components of your event should be confirmed as early as a year in advance. A few checklist items to get done during this period include:

  • Secure your venue and sign your rental agreement – If you aren’t having your recital at your studio space, you should secure a secondary location long in advance. After all, you (probably) aren’t the only dance studio in town, and many other creatives are likely looking to rent a venue, too. 
  • Secure dates for recitals and rehearsals – You will likely need to secure the venue for more than just one day. After all, there are many moving parts to a dance recital. Make sure to include time for dress rehearsals and allow your dancers to get used to performing in a new space. 
  • Order costumes – As we all know, shipping and deliveries take forever. You shouldn’t be taking any risks regarding the visuals in your show, including costumes. Order them well in advance, especially since there may be issues when they arrive that require extra time and TLC. 

6-8 Months Out

The date is inching closer! Now that you’ve gotten your venue all squared away and gotten costumes ordered, here are some items to check off the list between 6-8 months out: 

  • Choose a theme – While each dance performed one after the other may not make a cohesive story, think about an overarching theme you can utilize for your recital. If it’s in the winter, perhaps it’s holiday-themed. If it’s in the summer, consider ‘at the beach.’ No matter the theme, a cohesive idea can tie together the event and elevate the experience for everyone. 
  • Start costume fittings – You ordered your costumes well in advance, right? Right! This means it’s time to have your dancers try them on. If fittings/tailoring needs to happen, now is the time to set up those appointments. 
  • Secure a videographer/photographer – The majority of talented videographers and photographers are booked and busy these days. For both sentimentality and financial gain, you should secure these professionals early. 
  • Start developing your marketing materials – Once your theme has been established, it’s time to start brainstorming the best ways to market your recital to your community. Come up with social media strategies, tap potential business sponsors, and begin networking to make this recital the best it can be. 
  • Get to work on merchandise and other tangible extras – If you’re hoping to sell more than just tickets to your recital, it’s time to start getting your ducks in a row. Whether that means contacting concession providers, creating and finalizing designs for the recital merchandise, or ordering participation trophies for your dancers: it’s go time. 

3-5 Months Out

Time may be moving fast, but there’s still much to do. Here are some things to check off your list between 3-5 months before recital.

  • Secure show insurance – Ideally, this is written into your venue contract; if not, it’s time to finalize your show insurance. 
  • Finalize show lineups – At this rate, the majority of your numbers should at least be in the workshopping stage, which means you can work on your performance schedule. Make sure to consult with other instructors to confirm you are giving dancers ample time to change costumes/recenter and not giving them back-to-back numbers. 
  • Start selling tickets and deploying marketing strategies – It’s time to open that box office and deploy the marketing strategies you’ve been working on! By starting this early, you’ll be able to see what marketing efforts are working, which aren’t, and whether or not you’re on track to hit your ticket sales goal by the recital. 
  • Make a call for recital volunteers – If you haven’t figured it out just yet, a million things need to be done the days leading up to and the day of a recital. Now is the time to confirm that parents and other community volunteers can help backstage.
  • Secure your backstage crew – Confirm that members of your staff, as well as volunteers, can act as stage managers, emcees, door holders, change room supervisors, box office workers, and ticket scanners. 
  • Design your show program – One of the most memorable keepsakes from a recital, the show program is vital to the dance experience. Programs are also an excellent avenue for additional revenue if you want to sell advertisements within them – either for congratulatory messages for dancers or display ads for local businesses. 

1-2 Months Out

Getting excited yet? It’s 1-2 months out, and it’s time to hunker down! Here are the items we suggest tackling at this stage:

  • Collect final music cuts and formulate playlists – At this point, the majority of your recital numbers should be done, or close to done. This means all instructors should give you their music with proper cuts so you can finalize your playlist for the venue.
  • Finalize lighting request sheets – If you’re utilizing unique lighting cues for different dances, your lighting request sheet should be finalized during this time. This way, the lighting technician can be prepared and practice those cues well in advance. 
  • Release the show lineup to parents and dancers – If your show lineup is finalized, it’s time to release it to parents and dancers. This will prepare dancers for quick changes if necessary, and let parents plan for scheduling purposes.
  • Organize call times/arrival and departures of dancers – Ensuring your dancers are at the recital space on time for both rehearsals and the recital itself is paramount. Make sure you’ve communicated the call times for your dancers to both those in the recital and those transporting them to the venue. Additionally, most venues need people out of their space at a certain time; ensure your team knows when they need to be out. 
  • Assign changing rooms – If you have a larger studio and have more than one area to prep/do hair and make-up, ensure you’ve communicated which dancers should be in which rooms. 

The Week of Your Recital

While the adrenaline might already be flowing, there are still a few things to accomplish before you can prop your feet up and enjoy a job well done. Here are items to check off the week of your recital:

  • Confirm pick-up and drop-off times with parents – While you may think you’ve reiterated this a hundred times, there will always be dancers (or parents) who need that final reminder.
  • Re-share any directions to the recital venue – The last thing you want is someone getting lost on the day of the recital or missing a critical rehearsal. Re-share the directions to the venue and ensure everyone knows where they’re going.
  • Send out final reminders for ticket sales – Did you know many ticket sales happen the week of an event? Capitalize on that momentum by doing a final marketing push to sell your last few tickets.
  • Print the show order – And ensure everyone has one, and it’s posted up in the venue just about everywhere. You want your dancers to be as prepared and informed as possible.
  • Make a go bag – As your studio leader, you should be wielding a dancer’s toolbelt for the entire recital week. Ensure you’ve got essentials like pens, scissors, bobby pins, hairspray – whatever you think someone may need in a bind.  
  • Pick up programs – And make sure they look great!
  • Enact one final social media push – The week of your recital, your social media pages should be popping with information and content about the event. Consider incorporating your dancers into some of the posts, too!

OTS for Dance Studios

Whether you’re planning for a recital or want a little extra help in the day-to-day operations of your dance studio, partnering with On The Stage can help. With OTS, you can discover the all-in-one ticketing software built for performing arts, dance studio management, and more. 

OTS empowers thousands of creative organizations with ticketing, box office, marketing, fundraising, and reporting tools in one robust platform – for free. Just a few of the perks you get when partnering your studio with OTS include:

  • Outstanding Customer Satisfaction – With dedicated account managers and accessible customer and patron support available in real-time, coupled with pro-active communications and resources, it’s no wonder our average customer satisfaction score is a 9.2, and customers regularly refer their network to use OTS.
  • Proven Industry Expertise – Founded by Tony and Olivier-award winning producer Hunter Arnold, OTS makes its high-value tools accessible to all performing arts organizations and dance studios, regardless of budget or size.
  • Investment in Innovation – Our team of experts continuously innovates, always keeping our customers top of mind. We regularly release features and software updates to help our customers stay ahead of industry shifts, drive revenue, and create professional experiences.
  • No Cost to Your Studio – We only charge a small per-ticket fee that most customers pass on to their ticket buyers. With this approach, you can access our entire platform at no additional cost.
  • Hands-On Support – Consultative Account Managers are assigned to every account to help maximize the return on time investment. In addition, our Customer Support team offers pre-recital resources, with evening and weekend support, to ensure your box office success.
  • A Robust Yet User-Friendly Interface – Everything we build has our customers’ needs at the forefront of our minds. It’s our mission to democratize our high-caliber technology. We aim to provide a comprehensive, world-class platform and ensure our tools and technology are intuitive and easy to use.

So, what are you waiting for? Book a personalized demo today to get started.

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