Academic-style open course · KECB-ART315

Artist Relations and Live Event Operations

Operate an artist–venue relationship from pitch and offer through advance, show day, settlement, repair and rebooking.

Measurable learning

Course outcomes

  1. Prepare professional artist and venue materials without exaggeration.
  2. Negotiate and document offers, agreements, riders and responsibilities.
  3. Advance a show using confirmed information and explicit open questions.
  4. Operate load-in, soundcheck, set, audience and settlement systems.
  5. Respond to conflict and reputation problems proportionately.
  6. Defend decisions from both the artist and venue perspective.

Assessment architecture

How learning is evaluated

AssessmentWeight
Artist or venue one-sheet10%
Pitch and offer exercise15%
Agreement and advance packet20%
Role-switch show simulation20%
Settlement and post-show record15%
Final partnership operating system20%

Academic integrity

Evidence rules

  • Label facts, sourced claims, observations, assumptions and unresolved questions separately.
  • Do not invent venue data, biographies, financial records, safety facts or legal conclusions.
  • Use real organizations only with permission or rely on clearly labeled simulations.
  • Disclose assistance, templates and generative tools according to the instructor’s policy.
  • Protect private guest, worker, artist and student information.

Weekly sequence

Read, apply and submit

Each week connects the free book library to a concrete tool or operating exercise. Instructors may substitute current peer-reviewed readings and local requirements.

Week 1The relationship is the productDefine mutual value, role boundaries and trust indicators.

Submit or demonstrate

Write the same event objective from the artist and venue perspective; identify conflicts and shared interests.

Week 2Professional identity and positioningBuild a truthful, useful identity that helps a buyer make a decision.

Submit or demonstrate

Create a one-sheet or venue buyer profile using only supportable claims.

Week 3Bios, EPKs and evidenceSelect proof, media and links that serve the booking decision.

Submit or demonstrate

Build an evidence inventory and mark every missing or unconfirmed asset.

Week 4Pitching and getting bookedMatch the pitch to the room, date and operational reality.

Submit or demonstrate

Prepare two distinct pitches for two different rooms and explain the differences.

Week 5Middlemen, bills and positioningClarify agency, promoter, support-slot and billing responsibilities.

Submit or demonstrate

Map communications and approval authority for a multi-party event.

Week 6Offers, money and agreementsSeparate deal economics from assumptions and document them.

Submit or demonstrate

Negotiate a simulated offer and produce a clean deal memo.

Week 7The advanceResolve known information, unanswered questions and deadlines before show day.

Submit or demonstrate

Complete an advance packet and label every item confirmed, pending or not applicable.

Week 8Load-in, setup and soundcheckCoordinate access, stage, power, sound and time without informal guesswork.

Submit or demonstrate

Run a tabletop delay scenario and revise the day schedule.

Week 9Hospitality, waiting and human treatmentTreat hospitality as a professional operating obligation rather than luxury.

Submit or demonstrate

Design a proportionate hospitality plan for three budget levels.

Week 10The set, the room and shared audienceBalance performance integrity with timing, room conditions and shared guest responsibility.

Submit or demonstrate

Analyze a show-day case and identify what each side should communicate before acting.

Week 11Settlement and post-show recordsClose the event accurately and preserve the basis for rebooking.

Submit or demonstrate

Complete settlement, discrepancy notes and a post-show record.

Week 12Promotion togetherAssign realistic venue and artist responsibilities and record what was delivered.

Submit or demonstrate

Create a shared promotion plan with minimum, expected and optional commitments.

Week 13Conflict, repair and public reputationHandle mistakes without public escalation as the first reflex.

Submit or demonstrate

Write a private repair sequence and a public response only where public response is justified.

Week 14Capstone role-switch simulationOperate a complete event and defend decisions from both sides.

Submit or demonstrate

Teams operate a simulated event, switch roles halfway through the course, and submit one shared operating agreement.

Common capstone rubric

What strong work must demonstrate

Evidence and accuracy · 30%

Claims are sourced, assumptions are visible, calculations are reproducible and uncertainty is not hidden.

Operational usefulness · 25%

The work assigns owners, deadlines, resources, decisions and realistic next actions.

Stakeholder and ethical judgment · 20%

The plan considers workers, guests, artists, students, neighbors and community consequences.

Integration and reasoning · 15%

Recommendations connect across departments and explain tradeoffs rather than listing disconnected tactics.

Communication and defense · 10%

The final presentation is clear, concise and responsive to questions and contrary evidence.

Core source library

Required reading base

The assigned Keep ’Em Coming Back chapters and tools form the applied source base. Institutional instructors should add peer-reviewed scholarship and current official requirements.

Teach or adapt this course responsibly

Use the instructor resources for lesson planning, assessment blueprints, accessible delivery, bibliography records and capstone review.