Planning the year-end recital: a reverse schedule from 9 months out to the day after

A reverse schedule starts from the show date and works backward. Every step has a deadline, and every deadline has an owner. The point is simple: when the costume order slips by three weeks, you see it in November, not in May.

The milestones below assume a show in early June. Shift them to fit your date, and add slack if it is your first recital or a new venue.

• 9 months before (September): book the venue and date, set the budget.
• 6 months before (December): settle the theme, the list of numbers and each group’s music.
• 4 months before (February): take measurements and order costumes.
• 3 months before (March): publish the rehearsal schedule and recruit volunteers.
• 2 months before (April): open ticket sales and share the rules with families.
• 1 month before (May): receive and hand out costumes, finalize the program.
• 2 weeks before: stage rehearsal or dress rehearsal, final backstage schedule.
• 1 week before: reminder to families, lists of children per dressing room, first aid kit.
• The day before: set-up, sound and lighting check, last briefing with the team.
• Show day: welcome, ticket check, sign-outs one child at a time.
• 1 week after: thank-yous, family survey, financial wrap-up.

The venue is the scarcest resource. June weekends are in demand, because every dance studio in the area is aiming for the same dates. In September, confirm the date, set-up access hours, seat count, available dressing rooms and what is included: technician, sound, lighting, cleaning.

Also ask for the actual seating plan, with row numbering and wheelchair spaces. You will need it for ticketing, and it is better to learn in September that a balcony will be closed.

The theme comes next. It gives the show coherence, but it should not override teaching: each group needs a choreography suited to its level. In December, list the numbers per group, their approximate length and the chosen music. Add up the running time early: if the total is more than young children can sit through, plan two performances rather than one endless evening.

Think about the running order now. A student enrolled in three classes cannot dance two numbers back to back with a full costume change in between.

Dance costume suppliers see their lead times grow as spring approaches, and sizes are often ordered all at once. Work out your order date from the delivery date you need, keeping a few weeks for alterations and sizing mistakes.

Take measurements at the studio, with the same tape and the same method for everyone, rather than asking parents. A seven-year-old grows between February and June: for the youngest dancers, ordering slightly large is often wiser.

• Set an order deadline and announce it to families at least a month ahead.
• Ask for a deposit or full payment before ordering: the studio should not front the money for fifty costumes.
• Record for each student the costume, size ordered, status (to order, ordered, received) and accessories.
• Keep a few spare costumes in common sizes for late registrations.
• Label each costume with the child’s name as soon as it arrives.

Publish the extra rehearsal schedule in March, with exact dates and the groups called. Families plan their weekends well ahead; a Saturday announced three weeks before will mean absences, especially for the family with two kids in two different groups.

The stage or dress rehearsal is for checking entrances, exits, costume changes and transitions, not for learning the choreography. Time it: it is your last chance to fix the show’s real running time.

Backstage, children’s safety comes first. Each group has a clearly identified adult in charge, with the list of children and parents’ contact details. Volunteers deserve a short briefing: where the exits are, whom to call, what to do if a child gets hurt or cannot find their parent.

• Signed arrivals and departures: a child is released only to their parent or a person authorized in advance.
• Never one adult alone with a child in a dressing room or hallway: work in pairs, doors open.
• Dressing rooms separated by age, and supervised costume changes to protect everyone’s privacy.
• Phones and cameras put away, never out in the dressing rooms.
• First aid kit, health forms (allergies, medication) and a designated person to handle them.

First choose between reserved seating and general admission. Reserved seats avoid the rush at the doors and chairs saved with a coat, but they require an accurate seating plan. General admission is simpler to set up, but it creates lines long before the doors open.

Announce the date and time sales open well in advance, and to everyone at once. A family that learns the best seats are gone before they even got the email will remember it for a long time.

• A per-family ticket limit for the first few days, lifted later if seats remain.
• Accessible seats set aside for wheelchair users and their companions, with a simple way to request them.
• A clear rule for toddlers on laps and for students who are dancing: do they need a ticket?
• An exchange and refund policy written before sales open.
• Tickets with a code or a named list to speed up entry on show day.

Music is easy to leave out of the budget. SOCAN states that, under Canada’s Copyright Act, any public performance or reproduction of copyright-protected musical works requires a licence. A show presented to the public to recorded music therefore deserves a closer look. When you book, ask the venue whether it already holds a licence and what it covers, then check directly with SOCAN which one applies to your show. SOCAN also mentions an exemption in the Act for performances in furtherance of a religious, educational or charitable object: do not assume it covers your studio without confirming.

Photos and videos are images of children: asking parents for written consent is good practice. More broadly, Quebec’s Commission d’accès à l’information states that for a child under 14, consent to the use or disclosure of their personal information must be given by the parent or the person having parental authority, and that valid consent must, among other things, be free, informed and requested for each specific purpose.

In practice, separate the uses on your form: photos shared with families only, posting on your website, posting on social media. A parent can accept one and decline another. If you hire a photographer or videographer, tell families what will be done with the images and how long they will be kept. Finally, decide whether the audience may film: some studios forbid it during numbers and offer an official video instead.

The show is not over when the curtain falls. Within the week, send a thank-you note to families, volunteers, teachers and the venue’s technical crew. Name your volunteers: that is often what brings them back the next year.

Then send a short survey: three or four questions on length, ticketing, welcome and costumes are enough. Write down your own observations while they are fresh: the number that ran too long, the hallway that was too narrow, the missing volunteer at the door.

On the financial side, reconcile revenue (tickets, costumes, program ads, video sales) against expenses (venue, technical crew, costumes, licences, printing). Settle unpaid costume balances before summer, not in September. Finally, keep the seating plan, the list of numbers and this wrap-up in one folder: it is the starting point for next year’s reverse schedule.

Cadanse helps you keep recital preparation in one place: numbers and their casting, then costumes, with measurements and a status per student (to prepare, ordered, received).

For ticketing, families can choose their seats on an interactive seating plan and receive PDF tickets with a QR code by email; at the door, a phone is enough to validate them. Emails to a class or the whole studio also make the last weeks’ reminders easier. Backstage supervision, consents and music licences remain your responsibility.