Finance

This past week's big event was a workshop on Finance for the Arts at ITC. The workshops at ITC are always extremely informative and I highly recommend their program to theatre-makers in the UK. The workshop was run by an accountant who both teaches at a local University and does accounting for arts organizations.

The day was spent learning the vocabulary and examining the various spreadsheets and documentation that go along with financial reporting. This is useful information for producers and managers to keep things running smoothly with their project or company. In addition, financial reports are required by the government for quarterly or yearly taxes. Most company boards also require financial reports so they may be assured the company is properly managed.

There are standard procedures and practices enforced by laws that require documents be calculated and presented in certain formats. Both the US and UK have these standards. Managers at arts organizations can see to the daily bookkeeping but it is recommended that a certified accountant is consulted for the major reports and tax submissions. These professionals are up to date on the laws and can make sure all is arranged according to the requirements.

I hope to return next month for more workshops at ITC. They cover a wide range of topics of interest to those in management positions.

Coming up this week, I re-visit Angry Birds. This is a new musical I worked with last winter for the BEAM festival. They are presenting a sample of the production to industry personnel and I have been asked to assist in the logistics of the event. I'll let you know how it goes.

Until next week...
Take care!
-m