Bang for your Buck: What Goes Into Your Quote?
Updated: Aug 15, 2022
If you’re not in the entertainment industry, you might be unsure about how we calculate your quote. So, to give you a peek behind the curtain, we wanted to clarify everything you get when hiring our quality entertainment services.
Start-to-Finish Production
As an entertainment production company, we do a lot of work to create concepts and bring those concepts from the pages... to the stages! For every event, we start with a dialogue with the client. We gather details about you, your guests, your event, and what you’re looking for. It gives us a better understanding of the type of entertainers logistically and operationally possible for you.
Let’s say you’d love stilt walkers at your event. We determine whether or not the venue has suitable conditions to make it safe for stilt walkers, such as ceiling height, type of flooring, and whether the surface is level. These are situations easily overlooked by someone with less experience.
We also take a look at the demographics of your audience to ensure appropriateness (we don’t want cabaret performers at a child’s birthday party!) This administrative and time-consuming work of assessing all details is no small feat.
Casting and Selecting Entertainers
For this, let’s use an example from one of the custom shows we produce. It's a love story, showcased by a male and female dancer along with an MC who pipes in with his “wisdom”.
To put a show like this together, there’s a lot involved when it comes to casting. Among our pool of entertainers, we have to figure out who are the best fit for these roles. The dancers have to be available (these are busy people!), versatile, the right height (can they successfully partner together?), and possess proficiency in a technical dance style with the ability to express the emotions needed for the piece. And that’s just to get the dancers on board!
Then, we need to find an MC ("master of ceremonies" AKA host) hat not only fits the role (a suave/Corny Collins/retro vibe), but who is comfortable following a script with the ability to improvise since, after all, this is LIVE entertainment.
Bringing together even just a three-person cast takes a lot of time in the casting department. We want our entertainment to mesh well and finding exceptional performers is part of what goes into your quote. We compile a list of these "right-fit" entertainers, check if they’re available, and then assemble the rockstar cast. Then, the rehearsal process begins!*
*If you are hiring atmosphere entertainers, a formal rehearsal may not occur. However, your performers will still arrive prepared! PEP provides our atmosphere actors everything they need to bring their character(s) to life, such as backstory, character traits, key phrases, and more! Learn more about our atmosphere actors in this blog article.
Costuming
We’re committed to making the vision for your event come to life. So, when you mention a theme, we’re ready to take it on and deliver a dazzling product that fits the bill.
It starts with costume fittings where our performers come in for measurements, which we record into our database. Then, we either hand-make or gather costume pieces and accessories - think head pieces, gloves, accessories, you name it - to create a complete look. If alterations are needed, our entertainers might come in for a few more fittings and voila! - beautiful costumes that are themed and ready to delight your guests.
So, part of your quote goes to the development and creation of gorgeous, unique costumes.
Transportation
Most of our entertainers are based in Orlando, and sometimes our gigs require travel. Wherever your event is located, we make sure the performers arrive on-time with everything they need. Whether that’s providing transportation or making sure the entertainers are compensated for their travel, this is all factored into a quote.
Miscellaneous
Besides all of these necessities, there may be other factors affecting your quote like the time of year, weekday vs. weekend, distance from central FL, and how far in advance we receive your booking.
We also pride ourselves on taking care of our performers. When you work with PEP, you’re supporting entertainers who often are offered “exposure” and “experience” without a fair wage for their talents. We thank you for being a part of our team to ensure these professionals are paid fairly, and we look forward to working with you!