Case Study and SWOC Analysis

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1. Brief context/history of case study site

Lane Youth Theater is a relatively new (and completely made-up) organization for my group’s Cultural Administration project. LYT operates out of an old store within a strip mall located in Springfield, OR. The abandoned storefront was renovated into a 250 seat black-box theater, and LYT is now in its third year of operation.

LYT is primarily an educational organization. The actors, who are also the educators, put on four productions every year. Some show times are during weekday school hours for field trips. The other show times are evenings and weekends. The intended audience is K-12 students and their parents.

Educational programming at LYT includes weekend workshops, summer camps, and in-school workshops. In these programs, the students pay a fee to participate and end up putting on their own production. Family and friends are the primary audience.

The founders of LYT noticed that outside of Eugene, educational theater program was lacking in K-12 schools. They noticed specifically that the elementary school population was lacking the most. Our mission is to serve the greater Eugene area to help spread the art of theater, while being centrally located. Beyond that, LYT strives to provide exceptional quality in our theater education.

2. Environmental scan

Economic Scan

LYT gets most of its revenue ($500,000 per year) from ticket sales for their professional performances. This is LYT’s primary function. The next biggest income source is from private donations ($200,000 per year). We have been very fortunate to have built such a strong donor base after only three years. Many donors were attracted to the our sustainability efforts, by repurposing an abandoned store into a small theater. Donors who gave to the renovation fund became invested in the organization and are now recurring donors. We also receive a small percentage of our income from grants ($80,000 per year).

Though we are a relatively new organization, our building renovation garnered considerable attention from the community. Thus, our first season of programming was very successful. Our numbers dipped quite a bit in our second and third year, but this was projected and budgeted for.

LYT is aware that it is not the only theater in town. We are also not the only Children’s theater in town. Rose Children’s Theater is the most similar to LYT, but Rose only puts on shows with children actors. Their age range is 4th grade through high school. They are missing the demographic with the greatest need: elementary schoolers. While it serves 4th and 5th grade, it misses K-3. Rose also misses out on the ticket revenue from having professional shows put on by adult actors. While there are other professional and community theaters in the area, only LYT has content geared specifically toward youth.

Demographic Scan

Our main audience is made up of K-12 students and their parents. They come to watch our professional shows. The students are also the participants in our educational programs. Our older demographic is one of our lowest age demographics, which is reflected as a challenge in our somewhat limited contributed income/private donations, since older people are more likely to make donations to nonprofit organizations.

LYT’s lowest demographic for our evening and weekend performances as well as outside of school educational programs are those with lower socioeconomic status. We reach all socioeconomic status fairly well with our daytime/field trip performances because we are drawing directly from public school classes, and the schools are paying for cost of admission. This is on par with many children’s theaters.

Our biggest demographic challenge is reaching those outside of the Eugene/Springfield areas. That is why we started out in-school program. We take a small team of actors/educators out to an elementary school in more rural areas once a week for 10 weeks. They work with one grade level on devised theater techniques and the students make up their own play based on relevant curriculum material. At the end of the 10 weeks, the students perform their devised plays at a school assembly. We apply for grants to cover some of the cost of this particular program. That way, it is doable for schools in poorer, more rural districts.

Cultural Scan

LYT currently has a board of 15 members. Many board members have backgrounds with K-12 education or professional theaters, but there is a high degree of cultural diversity on our board and in our staff. We choose popular repertoire for our professional shows (like A Christmas Carol and Romeo and Juliet) because pop culture sells well, especially with youth. Oregon is a fairly green and environmentally conscious state. This has some influence on the participation in our organization, because our building is repurposed.  With the renovation of the building only three years old, our technology is all fairly up to date.

Other Environmental Elements

Political elements are very important when it comes to arts funding. Oregon is a fairly liberal state, and so is Lane county in particular. When this is the case, government funding for the arts is typically more abundant. This is important, since LYT relies on government funding for about $80,000 per year.



3. SWOC analysis

Cultural Product

Strengths	-LYT’s educational programming gets students to participate by letting them be the actors in their own show -Our professional programming generates the revenue to fund educational programs -By watching our professional shows, students are shown a high level of performance, for which they can strive in their own productions -Our In-School programming reaches students who wouldn’t otherwise participate in recreational arts -The Weekend workshops assist aspiring young artist by providing masterclasses with professional actors and guest artists
Weaknesses	-Our educational programs are few (Summer, In-School, Weekend Workshops)
Opportunities	-Our In-School program has the opportunity to raise awareness of our organization within non- Eugene and Springfield communities, encouraging them to make the drive -Since our theater is somewhat small (250 seats), we have more frequent performances, giving the community many opportunities to fit us into their schedule.
Challenges	-We only do four professional productions per year. It will be a challenge to pick shows that can cater to the vast range of K-12 audiences

Pricing

Strengths	-Our shows are priced competitively for professional productions ($15 for most shows, $20 for our holiday season show) -The pricing generates plenty of revenue for our needs
Weaknesses	-For larger families, the ticket prices can add up quickly, making it an expensive outing.
Opportunities	-We have the opportunity to offer discounted tickets for students under 18, and other discounts for students participating in our other educational programs, making the cost within read for larger families.
Challenges	-It will be a challenge to market our productions well enough to make sure that we are meeting our projections for number of seats sold.

Place (Access)

Strengths	-Springfield is centrally located within Lane county -Our lot has ample parking -The recent renovation means our building is up to ADA access standards -Our staff goes to different schools as part of our In-School programming, bringing the theater to them.
Weaknesses	-Springfield and Eugene have less of a need for our program than more rural areas.
Opportunities	-In repurposing an abandoned storefront into a theater, we have the opportunity to bring business to the surrounding stores and revitalize the area.
Challenges	-Because our theater is repurposed from an existing building, we do not have a lot of room to grow from here. We would have to start another theater at another location, which would be a challenge. It is also a challenge to keep interest high without growing out of our space

Promotional Efforts

Strengths	-We received lots of publicity for our sustainable building renovation. This makes us unique. -LYT has a solid website with clearly organized information.
Weaknesses	-Our logo was made by a college student with limited experience with graphic design.
Opportunities	-We have the opportunity to build relationships with the schools we go to as a form of word-of-mouth promotion.
Challenges	-Our logo, using primary colors, can easily create the misconception that our organization is only for children when, in fact, we serve youth all the way through high school. It will be a challenge to combat that with our other promotional content.