How Much Does It Cost To Put On a Show?

The time, effort and money involved to produce a top-notch performance in the Philadelphia Mummer’s Parade is not something to be laughed at. Let’s break down what goes into making a powerful presentation:

Costumes

Feathers, sequins and an assortment of materials make up your average costume. But there’s more to it than the final product. There’s costs for a costume designer and a costumer to organize a fleet of seamstresses to turn the material into a wearable suit.  And if there’s additional items that go to make the costume work, we’ll have to add them in as well. And with your average band having multiple costumes and a combined 64 suits overall, you can see how this starts to add up quickly! For a top-notch suit expect to pay well upwards of $1,000 each.

Props

Behind the bands and mixed into the presentation you’ll see huge backdrops and assorted large dimensional items. While these additions to the presentation provide that much needed wow-factor, they come with a cost as well. Props require a designer, materials, artists to paint them, and a team of talented builders to make the sketches into working models.

Ordinary Expenses

Once Quaker City and other string bands leave their clubhouse early on New Years morning, they won’t be getting back till well into the evening. There’s plenty of odds and ends to take into account: food, drink, busses, tractor trailer(s) to move props, and sometimes even oxygen!

What does it all add up to?

When you factor in all of these items, as a conservative number to produce a top notch presentation in the Philadelphia Mummer’s Parade, you’re looking at about $100,000 total for a four and-a-half minute show. Or you can look at it this way… that’s $370 per second!