I started performing professionally in 1992 and have now reached about 2,000,000 folks. I've entertained shivering high schoolers aboard an 80' schooner on Long Island Sound and sweating Independence Day revelers in downtown Houston. I've done shows for three kids at a northeast Texas library and I've performed for three-thousand at the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival. From the National Zoo to the Floresville Peanut Festival to schools and libraries across the country, I think I've dealt with just about every kind of situation a performer can be expected to deal with (and some they shouldn't).
1) Above all, be sure your audience is comfortable. Sounds silly but I've seen many set-ups that place the audience in full-sunlight on hot, summer days! You simply cannot expect an audience to gather in a space that is unpleasant. Even if you can force them (e.g. in a school assembly) they won't be able to focus and benefit from the program. The flip side is that people WILL gather in pleasant spaces (near the mister on a hot day, in the sunlight on a cool day) so you can use these to your advantage.2) Be sure they can see well. A good performer will have experience with what kind of seating works for their performance so you can ask them for help; it's worth giving this some careful planning and effort. At public events, staggering chairs can help when, inevitably, a 5-year old gets stuck behind a 6'+ man in a 10-gallon hat. Putting down carpet squares or blankets can encourage kids to sit on the floor/ground instead of in chairs. Depending on audience size, you may just want to arrange chairs in a big circle. Stages can resolve many of these issues but they also add distance so check with your performer to see what they prefer.
3) Be sure the audience can hear well Performers, as a rule, are picky about their sound. Many (like me) just carry their own equipment to be sure it's just right. If your performer needs you to provide equipment, make sure you know exactly what they need and have them test everything before show time. If an audience can't hear, they'll start to talk and the extra noise they make starts a negative spiral. It can also be too loud and that's very unpleasant. If you see kids scrunching their faces and holding their ears don't be afraid to ask the performer or sound man to turn it down.
4) Beware overscheduling I've been at plenty of events where I never had more than about 10-15 people because there was just too much happening. Some activities can work symbiotically (there's always a line for face painting so perhaps you could arrange things so the folks waiting in line have a good view of the performance area) but you don't want to have two children's performers going at the same time in different areas. Also, it's probably better to have one or two well-promoted, well-attended performances rather than having the performer play all day long for whomever passes by.
As far as programming for schools, the "less is more" concept also applies. I understand the theory of having a "big day" with 4 or 5 different performances but, in my experience, it can overwhelm students and, by the end of the day, they may lose the ability to focus. One really good, well-chosen performer can provide plenty of excitement for a day. It's also a lot easier on you, the planner!
5) Make sure your performer has access to water and electricity (but keep them separate of course).
6) Be realistic about the performer's ability to draw a crowd Unless a performer has a TV show, they're likely to be unknown to most parents. I have events where I draw 600-700 folks but that's the exception. I know several very successful artists and they tell the same story. It's better to put on a performance when attendance is already high rather than trying to draw people out when things are slow. That is, if your nature center is busy in the summer and slow in the winter, host the performance in the summer. You'll get a much bigger crowd because some will come out for the performance specifically and others will just attend because there was something extra going on.
7) Choose the right performer In general, it's young children ( 6 and younger) who will sit down in front of a performer at a festival or come out to a family concert. Choose a performer who is comfortable and competent with that age.
For elementary schools, be sure that your presenter can keep these agess engaged and focused. Ultimately, the performer is responsible for the audience's behavior--an audience that is truly entertained won't have many behavioral issues.
There are many ways to keep these ages tuned in from edge-of-your-seat storytelling to frenetic acrobatic acts. From the teachers' and pricipal's perspective, there needs to be a good reason to take the kids out of their class time so you'll earn lots of kudos from them if the act was able to use the time to teach the students something relevant and curriculum-related.
8) Choose the right location Beyond what I've mentioned above, make the performance spot a destination, not just something people are passing by on their way to somewhere else. It's very hard to get people to stop when they're focused on getting somewhere else. If there's a line naturally forming somewhere, however, that could be a good place for a performance. Almost without exception, people do not actively listen to a performer while they're eating so it's best not to schedule anything but background music in a dining area.
9) There's no need to reinvent the wheel! Ask your performers, other event planners and festival vendors what things they've seen that make an event more successful. You might be suprised how much you can learn from the face-painter that works 40 weekends a year at festivals all across the nation!
Obviously, I have a little somethin' to say on the subject, too ;-)
