Tour Coordinator Handbook 2026

January / February

• Confirm your community’s 2026 Parks date - MSIP will contact you with a proposed show date for your community.
• Book the outdoor venue.
• Book the indoor (backup) venue. (REQUIRED!)
• Read and sign your community’s “Letter of Agreement (LOA).” (Sent via Docusign. Please check your spam folder!) Please sign LOA.
• Review your community’s invoice (emailed by MSIP).
• Begin your community’s “Local Sponsors Form” (emailed by MSIP) - We do understand that finding all sponsors this early can be challenging. Alternatively, you may also create your own insert to put in the programs on the day of the performance as an alternative.
• Begin fundraising for the performance fee and connecting with groups in your community that could help with promotion.

March

• Continue working on your “Local Sponsors Form.”
• “Marketing Materials Form due!” (emailed by MSIP)
  This form confirms the number of posters and postcards you need for your town and surrounding area.
• Keep fundraising for the performance fee and connecting with groups in your community that could help with promotion. See our fundraising tips below!
• (OPTIONAL) Arrange accommodations for the actors!
  Finding a homestay or donated local accommodations helps MSIP continue to keep our fees as low as possible year after year.
  Plus, towns that find free accommodations that fit the needs of the company will get $200 off their performance fee!
  When arranging accommodations, confirm details with MSIP staff (Liz).
• (OPTIONAL) Begin planning any tie-in events, if desired.
  These could include food trucks/vendors, MSIP pop up celebrations, and Shakespeare-related events around the performance.
  Let MSIP staff know about any tie-in events!
• Begin surveying local talent for pre-show performance (optional).

April

• Make sure ALL forms are completed and returned to MSIP (Due April 17th).

1. Letter of Agreement (LOA).
2. Local Sponsors Form.
3. Marketing Materials Form.
4. Meal Survey.
5. Pre-show performance intake form.

• Keep fundraising towards your performance fee!
• Create a marketing plan — see our marketing tips later in the handbook.

30 Days Before the Show

Marketing

• Hang posters in your community and surrounding communities.
• Distribute postcards at local haunts and surrounding communities.
• Submit your Montana Shakespeare in the Parks event to your community’s online events page.
• Use Facebook? Contact Liz Johnson to be added as a co-host to your community’s Facebook event page.
  • We will make an event for you to confirm on Facebook, and we encourage you to creatively message the performance on other social media platforms as well!
• Share social media graphics created by MSIP to your personal and your community’s accounts. These graphics will be shared in an upcoming marketing-specific email.
• Share MSIP’s “radio spot” to your local radio station. Radio spot will be shared in late May via email.

Confirming the Details

• Confirm there is appropriate power access for both indoor and outdoor sites.
• Confirm all turf maintenance activities (mowing, sprinklers, irrigation, herbicide/pesticide applications) will be paused on the performance date.
• Confirm audience and actors will have access to nearby restrooms before, during, and after the show.
• Confirm any pre-show entertainment and details.
• Double check that there are no other events happening nearby the performance location that will cause a disruption during the performance.

3 Weeks Before the Show

• Heavily poster your community and surrounding areas (within 25 miles) wherever a poster can be placed! We promote the summer tour from Bozeman, but we really rely on YOU to help get the word out in your community!
• Promote your community’s performance on social media — get a BUZZ going!
• Confirm actor accommodations (if applicable).
• Assemble your team! Find the people to help you on the day of the performance.
• (OPTIONAL) Begin planning a lunch or dinner for the cast (optional, but so appreciated!).
  • Please share your meal plans with Liz in advance, including type of food, amount of food, dietary restrictions considered, etc.
  • If you are not providing a meal and know that local restaurants close before 9:30pm, please help the actors get dinners ordered or picked up while the cast is striking the set.

1 Week Before the Show

• You will receive a call from the Tour Manager, Sam Cheeseman, confirming the time they will be arriving and where to meet you to set up.
• Discuss the initial weather forecast and confirm availability of an indoor location should the need arise on the day of the performance.
• Confirm any “tie-in events” (if applicable).

Day of the Show

• Meet the Acting Company at the performance site. Please bring water or sports drinks for the actors. Any snacks or food are a huge bonus and so appreciated by the actors!
• Show the company where to set up the stage if it is a new location, and where the power source and bathrooms are located.
• Remain on-call the morning of performance day for potential changes of performance venue due to inclement weather or poor air quality.
  • Possible causes for change to an indoor location include forecasted storms, high temperatures, sustained winds, and high AQI.
  • Final call on performance location won’t be made until the day of the performance, ideally before noon.
  • We work closely with the National Weather Service to obtain the most accurate forecast information available.
  • Tour Manager Sam Cheeseman will reach out to discuss forecast information on the day of the performance, if necessary.
• (OPTIONAL) Provide a lunch/dinner for the actors (optional, and so appreciated!).
• If you have program inserts listing your local sponsors, arrange to pick up the programs from the company upon arrival, stuff the programs, and return them to the company prior to the show.
• Greet pre-show performers at the stage and help them set up (if applicable).
• If you would like to thank your local sponsors on stage before the show, please arrange this with Sam when you meet the acting company. Sam will thank them on stage before the performance.
• Remain present for the duration of the show.
• Enjoy the show!

Marketing Checklist

Shout it from the rooftops! One of MSIP’s main goals is audience development. How can we increase the number of folks we reach with our free, professional performance model? We want as many people to experience Montana Shakespeare in the Parks as possible, and the most effective way to increase audiences is by getting the word out! To that end, we have included some steps on how to effectively bring a robust audience to your community’s performance.

We’ve broken down marketing tasks into three sections: what you as a Tour Coordinator will do, what we at MSIP do, and what we can do to collaborate our efforts together. And remember—we are here for you! If you ever feel overwhelmed by the tasks below, please reach out to Liz (406-994-3310).

What YOU as a Tour Coordinator Will Do

• Order posters and postcards (March) through MSIP. Order enough posters and postcards to distribute around your town and surrounding areas.
  
• Assemble a postering army! Our surveys show that a large percentage of our audience members travel at least 25 miles to see a performance, so postering outside your town is really important. Making sure you have the support to make this happen is an awesome experience for volunteers and takes some weight off your shoulders.
• Follow Shakespeare in the Parks on Facebook (@Montana Shakespeare in the Parks) and Instagram (@montana_shakespeare).
• Post the event on your community’s online events page.
• Share on social media.
• Get performance information on local reader boards (schools, banks, and churches).
• Consider hanging a banner with performance information in a well-trafficked area of town!

What MSIP Will Do

• Create pre-made social media posts, specific to your community’s
  show! These will be shared with you to post on your social media
  pages.
• Create a Facebook event for your community’s performance! Contact Liz to become a “co-host” for the event.
• Create and boost targeted social media ads for your community’s performance.
  

What WE can do TOGETHER!

• MSIP will share our 2026 Summer Tour press release with Tour Coordinators! Please consider reaching out to local newspapers with MSIP’s press release to spark news coverage. Connect with Liz to arrange interviews with actors and Executive Artistic Director, Kevin Asselin.
• MSIP will share our official 2026 Summer Tour radio spot with Tour Coordinators. Please consider contacting your local radio station and share our radio spot along with your community’s performance information!

Additional Ways to Support MSIP!

Housing is one of the greatest challenges the company faces each summer.

HOUSING the Company (Optional)

Even as costs continue to rise, our team makes every effort to find affordable housing in or near each community we visit. You can make a HUGE difference, both for our hard-working actors and for your town, when you help us secure affordable housing near you. Whether it’s asking local hotels and motels for an in-kind contribution, or finding donated Airbnb or VRBO properties nearby, your assistance can help us take care of our acting company and keep performance fees reasonable.

• Ask a local hotel, motel, or lodge to donate rooms
• Locate a free or reduced-rate Airbnb or VRBO
• Find local hosts for homestays
• Our goal is to keep touring costs low and actor spirits high.

For hotel stays, the company requires 4 double rooms (8 actors, 8 beds) and 3 single rooms (3 actors, 3 beds). For Airbnb, VRBO, and homestays, the company requires 10 beds (1 must be queen size). Some level of privacy and security are necessary for the health and wellbeing of our hard-working actors. Bedrooms with closable/lockable doors and multiple bathrooms sufficient for 11 people are preferred.

If you are able to find donated accommodations for the company, you may receive a $200 discount on your community’s performance fee. Please report any pets or potential allergens to Liz prior to securing the accommodations.

FEEDING the Company (Optional)

Hospitality is one of the most beloved traditions our company enjoys each summer. 

We are so grateful for the generous hospitality extended to our actors when they arrive in town. It takes a lot to drive across the state, set up the stage, perform the show, tear down the set, and pack up for the road every day. When you are able to help provide meals and snacks, it makes the entire process much easier for the actors.

• Ask a local café or bar to donate a post-show meal
• Organize a potluck or catered meal in the park
• Coordinate local hosts to provide snacks or lunch during set-up and tear-down

Whether it’s connecting to your neighbors for a potluck dinner or offering post-show hospitality at a favorite local hangout, our acting company always appreciates meals and snacks in towns where they perform.

If you are able to help coordinate donated meals for the company, please note there may be special dietary requests. We will provide details about any food allergies or dietary restrictions at least one week prior to the company’s arrival in your town. Please reach out to Liz to discuss the details.

Wrapping Up

We’re here for you! Thank you again for all of your support in bringing Montana Shakespeare in the Parks to your community. The effort it takes to bring our performances to your town is deeply appreciated—we could not accomplish this tour without you! Please contact MSIP staff for support if you have any questions or concerns. We look forward to seeing you this summer!

For tour logistics:
Liz Johnson, Director of Community Access & Engagement — elizabeth.johnson25@montana.edu 406.994.3310

For stage and tech questions:
Adam Fedock, Production Manager — adam.fedock@montana.edu 406.994.3111

To contact the company the day of the performance:
Sam Cheeseman, Tour Manager — 770.331.6889

For advice on sponsorship solicitation, or if you meet someone who is curious about support this work in ways beyond local coordination, please contact Marianne Gilman, Director of Grants & Sponsorships – marianne.gilman@montana.edu | 406.599.5816