Little Theatre In a Large Community
“Our mission is to educate and to provide our community with quality live theatrical experiences at affordable prices, while developing and showcasing local talent” (About Us, n.d.). The mission statement speaks loudly about how this theatre strives to bring entertainment and education to the community in which it thrives. Located in a residential neighborhood of the popular oceanfront area of Virginia Beach, VA, this local theatre relies on its volunteers to keep the show running (About Us, n.d.). The over 450,000 residents of the city could utilize skills or learn the craft of showbiz by helping out in various areas of the theatrical production (United States Census Bureau, 2015). Funding, grants, and donations have kept this small gem of a not-for-profit organization in production since its establishment in 1948 (About Us, n.d.). Considering the numerous live theatres within the city and surrounding area, how has this theatre continued to amuse audiences and attract attention to its small stage (ODU, 2006)? I decided to dance my way into discovering what exactly keeps this theater moving strong, what threats may be waiting in the wings, and where this theatre could benefit from growth or opportunity.
“At its most functional level a SWOT analysis will help you obtain information and assess a situation” (Williams, 1996). A search into the theatre’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats was necessary in order to find the answer to the above question. Strengths and weaknesses should focus on internal factors, while opportunities and threats should focus on external factors. Strengths determine the favorable elements of an organization, weaknesses hinder performance, opportunities pinpoint areas of positive growth, and threats are assessments of risk or endangerments (Contributor, 2015). The grid below displays the information discovered concerning these topics.
After reviewing the analysis of the SWOT, I propose an event that would reflect benefits for both the theatre and the community in which it resides. This theatre offers the opportunity of allowing artists or emerging talent to engage in different aspects of the theatre experience. There would be an invitation to local artists in the Hampton Roads area to collaborate in an effort to create an award-worthy show to be presented for qualification and performed during a weekend event hosted by the theatre at the nearby ODU theatre. The competition would go out through several mediums, including radio, television, print, and social media. Tickets would be sold in order to raise funds for a scholarship awarded to a university applicant or student and to aid in the Little Theatre of Virginia Beach’s continued success. Locally recognized public figures would be invited to judge the qualified entries in order to gain public attention and entice the media. The winning team would have the opportunity to have their production exclusively staged at the Little Theatre of Virginia Beach for a matter of time to be determined. The benefits to the theatre would be attraction, stronger media and community relationships, and funding for the organization. Local artists would benefit from the collaboration and opportunity, the local business area around the university and Little Theatre would benefit from the weekend event and running of the winning production, and community members would benefit from the award of a scholarship and knowledge of volunteer opportunities at a treasured gem found in Virginia Beach.
References
About Us. (n.d.). Little theatre of Virginia Beach. Retrieved from http://www.ltvb.com/index.html
Contributor. (2015). How to do a swot analysis perfectly. Pestle analysis. Retrieved from
http://pestleanalysis.com/how-to-do-a-swot-analysis
Home. (n.d). Little theatre of Virginia Beach. Retrieved from http://www.ltvb.com/index.html
Infoplease. (2016). Virginia Beach, VA. Profiles of the 50 largest cities of the United States. Retrieved from
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0108617.html
ODU. (2006). Theatre and performing arts companies. State of the region reports. Retrieved from
https://www.odu.edu/content/dam/odu/offices/economic-forecasting-
project/docs/sor2006_ch5.pdf
Passes (n.d.) Little theatre of Virginia Beach. Retrieved from https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?
ticketing=ltvb
Raj, R., Walters, P., & Tahir, R. (2013). Events management: Principles & practice (2nd ed.). Los Angeles,
CA: Sage.
United States Census Bureau. (2015). QuickFacts Virginia Beach city, Virginia. Retrieved from
http://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/PST045215/51810
Volunteer (n.d.) Little theatre of Virginia Beach. Retrieved from http://www.ltvb.com/volunteer.html
Williams, J. (1996). On becoming a strategic partner with management. Communication World, 13(3), p. 31. Retrieved from http://ple1.odu.edu/courses/201610/comm323/uuid/33406679a2ebf0b8c
77560a15d1db09cb8cc9b9476e4e6a0298790a38bda9188e72628ba/_assets_/williams_
becoming_a_strategic_partner_with_management_1996.pdf
