S6E12: Thom Britton - The Danger Circus
In this interview,\xa0Thom Britton talks about building and marketing his three-man\xa0theatrical variety-type show, The Danger Circus. He talks marketing, publicity, working with agents, and a great deal of other related topics!
\nThom is quite the showman, eating fire, directing plays, producing circus shows, lecturing on science, and studying the history of side shows and freak shows. He\u2019s been a professional performer for over 26 years with his various shows including: Freakshow & Tell, his now retired one man show, that combined lecture and performance art, and covered his very personal journey into the world of the circus sideshow.
\nHis current show is The Danger Circus, a three-man circus show that features fire eating, glass walking, knife juggling, dangerous escapes, and a unique blend of illusion and sketch comedy. You\u2019ll be able to catch this show on tour very soon. \xa0
\n\xa0\nKris' Recommendation of the Week\nLynda.com:\xa0I don't get any kickback from this, but Lynda.com is a great place to go online if you want to learn how to use professional programs that will help you in your business. We're talking everything from\xa0Photoshop to Wordpress, to video editing apps as well. And if that isn't enough, they even have\xa0other business related courses on marketing, SEO, and even reducing the amount of spam you get in your email box every day.
\nAlso, I discovered that if you have a public library card and you log into your library's online portal (even from home), you might just have access to Lynda.com for free! I don't know if this is available at all libraries, but it's definitely worth a look. \xa0
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\nSuccess\xa0Quotes\nIf it were easy, everyone would do it. \u2014 every juggler ever! \xa0
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\nThe Danger Circus\n\u2022 It\u2019s a three-person circus featuring Thom, Chuck Clark, and Keri Kazz.
\n\u2022 They work small to medium theaters and colleges.
\n\u2022 They were trying it out and tweaking it last year and now it\u2019s ready to put on tour.
\n\u2022 Talks about what he\u2019s doing to generate buzz and get the word out.
\n\u2022 Boots on the ground, plastering flyers and old-school promoting.
\n\u2022 Supplements his guerrilla marketing techniques with social media efforts.
\n\u2022 Making personal connections with people as he\u2019s marketing the show.
\n\u2022 Marketing it like PT Barnum.
\n\u2022 Staying for longer runs allows him to get his audiences to market his show and get their friends to come out.
\n\u2022 Generating word of mouth.
\n\u2022 How he decides where to take his show.
\n\u2022 Using anchor dates and filling out other dates around those.
\n\u2022 Engaging with the press on social media.
\n\u2022 Press releases. \xa0
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\nWorking With Agents\n\u2022 How to find and work with agents
\n\u2022 Cold calling agents.
\n\u2022 Finding agents that fit with your show and your audience.
\n\u2022 Call other artists in their roster to find out more about the agents. You want to find one you can trust. \xa0
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\nCollaborating with the others\xa0to build The Danger Circus\n\u2022 How the three of them got together.
\n\u2022 Working together to create their show.
\n\u2022 Talks about the theme and flow of the show.
\n\u2022 Cutting material that wasn\u2019t working or adding to the show as a whole.
\n\u2022 Dealing with three egos. \xa0
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\nFailure Moment\nWhen he launched Freak Show & Tell, he talks about how for one show, only one person showed up to see his show, but he still played his show like he was playing for a full house. Turns out she was a theater theater producer who he ended up working with on many occasions afterwards. \xa0
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\nFavorite Success\nTaking variety arts into theaters and being one of the very few variety artists invited to perform at the 25th Annual Abbie Hoffman Died for Our Sins Festival, and then being invited back! \xa0
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\nOther Topics Covered\n\u2022 He didn\u2019t mind his day job as a gourmet chef, in fact, he still does it on the side sometimes because he still loves it. It\u2019s still one of his passions.
\n\u2022 When you go on TV, your job is to make them look good.
\n\u2022 If you do a radio appearance, its no longer just audio. They have content going up on Youtube and Facebook, etc. So wear your costume and makeup to radio gigs. \xa0
\n\xa0\nParting Advice\nThe entire purpose of theater is to transform the audience. \xa0
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\nRecommended books and resources:\nNote: Many of the links in this section are affiliate links, meaning we\xa0earn a small portion of any sales. If you're enjoying our\xa0podcast and decide to purchase one of the recommended resources or books, please consider using our\xa0affiliate links to help support the work we're doing here at the Successful Performercast. Thanks! \xa0
\nResources:
\nSound Byte Control - Remote Control App for the Sound Byte Cart Machine Program
iOS App | Android App \xa0
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\nBooks:
\n\nGetting Things Done by David Allen \xa0
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\nWhere can we find Thom Britton?\n