The Charming Little Theatre Company - A Parable

Lessons in creative collaboration

There was once a charming little theatre company with a beautiful playhouse and a somewhat loyal following. Over the years, it had experienced modest success and acclaim, but a good while had passed since it had a "hit". And so, it wanted to up its game. and hired a promising director to go out and get the best talent they could afford. A wonderful group of artists was assembled. Dedicated actors, writers and set designers with a real passion for the theatre and deep respect for their crafts.

Their debut was a smash. Everyone loved it. The reviews, ticket sales -- everything was humming. But, over the weeks that followed the artists began to notice that some of the theatre’s backers were becoming more engaged, meddling to the point of openly whispering in the director’s ear. Soon enough, those whispers began to arrive as directions to the stage.

More and more, the actors, playwrights and set designers would hear things like, “Read the line this way” and “Here, these words are better,” and “Could you add a little more rose on that backdrop.”

Over time, the troupe members began to question why they were giving so much of themselves every night. “Was that performance genuine? Is that line really better? Am I a professional worthy of trust?”

One by one, the artists began to go their separate ways. Ticket sales and reviews slumped, and the producers and board went back to bickering about how the theatre company had lost its edge and needed to up its game. ?

And so, it found itself once again a charming little theatre company with a beautiful playhouse and a somewhat loyal following.

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This is a parable I wrote about four years ago and never published, about the often-misunderstood nature of creative collaboration.

As others have noted, creativity is not so much a skill as a way of doing something based on play and curiosity – the idea of trying different, uncertain, and often unconventional things without fear of whether they will work or not. It’s based on a trust of process and requires a degree of space to work.

So, when teams come together to create something for a commercial end, it naturally involves people with different roles and areas of expertise. For example, one might be responsible for the budget, another for providing subject matter expertise, and then there are the “creatives” – the folks with the ultimate responsibility for coming up with the actual words, images, sounds, etc. ?This group is, by the way, usually the only one required to directly invest themselves emotionally, calling upon empathy, aspiration, wonder and a host of other feelings in order to fuel ideas that will move others. And, perhaps most importantly, they have to take risks in front of their peers and benefactors.

In such groups, occasional unchecked impulses like control, competition and one-upping are to be expected – and managed. A delicate balance must be kept. More dance than transaction, the creative process in a modern commercial setting needs strong direction. One that can manage practical constraints, compartmentalize and consolidate feedback, and keep participants in their respective lanes.

For example, we don’t ask copywriters to engineer products or indulge engineers in copywriting campaigns no matter how well-meaning. It’s just not a good monetary or interpersonal expense.?

At an organizational level, we have much to continue to learn about the little things that make collaborative endeavors tick, stay on track and yield fruit. Take for example the simple act of deferring or asking a question of a designated expert or of the responsible party in a given room (and being available to the answer) as opposed to making a declaration and derailing things. ?

In the coming months, I will try to share and elaborate on this and other organization learnings, how-to's and watch-outs I’ve picked up over the years which can trouble and fuel or doom collaborations. Thanks and more to come.