Sometimes in life, ya just gotta settle

RENT in Pittsburgh at The Benedum

Greetings from Pittsburgh where I’m settling this weekend. No, I’m not relocating to Pittsburgh, I’m settling the Pittsburgh engagement of the First Class National Tour of RENT, featuring Adam Rapp and Adam Pascal.

When an engagement of a show ends its run in a market there must be a settlement, or what you might think of as a “closing of the books.”

THE SETTLEMENT IN BROAD STROKES

The Presenter of any engagement holds the income generated from the ticket sales. This income will be used to cover the following:

• Any taxes and facility fees
• Ticketing commissions
• The payments to the Company
• The Presenter’s fixed expenses
• The engagement’s documented expenses

GROSS BOX OFFICE RECEIPTS (GBOR)

The gross income for an engagement, including any taxes and facility fees, are called the Gross Box Office Receipts (GBOR).

To begin, any taxes and facility fees are deducted from these gross monies. Also all box office commissions come out of the GBOR. The Presenter receives a specific commission percentage for tickets purchased via different points of sale — subscription, groups, internet, box office, etc. (These commissions will cover the ticketing commissions the Presenter must pay to the credit card companies, etc.) All of this information is included on the settlement.

NET ADJUSTED GROSS BOX OFFICE RECEIPTS (NAGBOR)

Once all these deductions have been made, the remaining monies are now the Net Adjust Box Office Receipts (NAGBOR.) 

From this NAGBOR — the net monies — the Presenter hopes there is enough left to completely cover any payments to the Company (ie: the Guarantee), and all documented expenses and fixed expenses. Documented expenses are the expenses directly related to the engagement and require receipts and back-up, all of which must be given to the Company Manager in time for settlement. 

IN A NUTSHELL…

Settlement takes place “behind the scenes” during the final performance. The Presenter and the Company Manager are plugging in all the aforementioned data into their respective documents and work toward coming up with equal numbers.

All sounds pretty simple, right? Just plugging numbers in? It can be, but it can also be a long process if numbers aren’t matching up, and one or both sides can’t figure out where the discrepency is hiding. Also, there can be disagreements about certain charges called direct company charges. Direct company charges are charges the Company pays that are not covered in the Presenter’s fixed package. A Presenter may charge the Company directly for things like internet access, rehearsal space rental, if any damage was done to the theater, etc. Sometimes a Presenter will charge the Company for something that the Company doesn’t feel it should pay, and if this is not resolved to one side’s satisfaction, chances are the disgruntled side will sign the final settlement documents “under protest.”

Settlement is the final step in the long process that has involved many, many players — producers, booking agents, contract managers, presenters, marketing companies, press agents, operations teams, ticketing managers, and ultimately, yes, the weary settler, who’s hoping she gets out tonight at a decent hour so she doesn’t have to go to sleep at midnight again on the Tap Room’s delicious, but bulky cheeseburger.

Burp.