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That's right! The R&H Theatre Library has authorized a brand new line of promotional materials available to you through Stage Promotions, Inc. Now you can promote and advertise your musical productions using beautiful and authorized title treatments and logo artwork. Just give Stage Promotions your theatre or school name, performance dates and other pertinent information and they will custom print posters, T-shirts and program covers providing you with an effective and affordable way to attract SRO crowds.This promotional campaign was the brainchild of John Bower, president of Stage Promotions. Bower's interest in theatre began as an undergraduate at Indiana's De Pauw University and he continues to be an active participant in community theatre (he's a member of AACT, ETA and ATHE.) After receiving his graduate degree in media criticism he turned his attention to business. As Manager of Corporate Licensing for Fruit-of-the-Loom, Bower worked with Amblin Entertainment and Lucas Films, Ltd. coordinating product development for licensing including "E.T." and "Star Wars" apparel. He also worked as Vice President of Marketing for Signal Apparel on their "Bat Man" series. With this extensive background in entertainment promotional licensing he realized he was in a unique position to remedy something that had bothered him for years.

Bower told us, I've appeared in musicals for almost 30 years and I've always been disappointed by the disparity between the quality of the shows we produced and the promotional items used to advertise them. I attend many local productions and I'm often surprised by how good the performances are. The promotional campaigns just don't prepare you for the high quality you see on stage. In fact, the message many times is that the production won't be very good.   As he gave this more thought Bower began to understand the reason. It's the "show" in show business that attracts most theatre folks. Performers want to sing and act and dance. Technicians want to build and paint and focus lights. These folks willingly spend hundreds of hours preparing for opening night but often consider promotion a distraction. Who has the time or expertise to develop a fully integrated and timely promotional campaign?

Stage Promotions does! They have developed 3 individual and eye-catching logo/title treatments each for some of the most popular musicals in The R&H catalogue. Two of the designs are available in 1 or 2 colors while the third is available in 4-color process. They are priced accordingly giving you a choice for each musical of 5 different designs in 3 price categories. You'll find something for every taste and every budget. OKLAHOMA!, CAROUSEL, SOUTH PACIFIC, THE KING AND I and THE SOUND OF MUSIC will be the first titles available. CINDERELLA, ONCE UPON A MATTRESS, STATE FAIR, SHOW BOAT and ANNIE GET YOUR GUN will follow shortly.Bower knows the challenge in advertising is to stand out from the crowd. Many theatres tack flyers and posters onto already crowded bulletin boards at the local high school or supermarket. It's hard to be seen amid the competing clutter. "You've got to catch your audience's eye and imagination," says Bower. "Your poster must tell every potential ticket buyer that your show will be as wonderful as the artwork promoting it. And you've got to coordinate your efforts. Don't distribute T-shirts as a closing night souvenir. Every cast, crew and orchestra member can serve as a walking billboard if T-shirts are worn from the first rehearsal. The repeated exposure to a recognizable image is what a good ad campaign is all about."

And the benefits of a good campaign can be far reaching. Increased ticket sales are a given. But you'll also enjoy an elevated reputation facilitating fundraising and assisting in the solicitation of program ads and local corporate grants. Plus, for a limited number of titles Stage Promotions is authorized to make their promotional items available for merchandising --  still another opportunity for fundraising.

We think you'll be just as impressed as we are with the new promotional materials available from Stage Promotions, Inc. For more information call toll free 1-877-92/STAGE or visit their website at: www.stagepromotions.com.