Help us bring two shows to Edinburgh this summer.

Fair question. The $10,000 we have in hand is actually in the bank: $6,000 received so far from a silent investor, plus about $4,000 in in-kind donations like flights from people in our orbit. The remaining $47,000 is contingent. About $18,000 is a conservative box office projection at roughly 40% capacity, which is not money in the bank but revenue we earn back over August as tickets sell. $20,000 is the studio's own self-investment, drawn from upcoming consulting revenue we're still booking. $9,000 is the remaining commitment from our silent investor.

Community support is the part that lets us pay artists fully, market the work properly, and arrive in Edinburgh ready instead of scraping by. It is not the marginal dollar of a successful campaign. It's the difference between making the run work and making it work well.

The pie chart above has the breakdown. Roughly a quarter pays the creative team, which works out to about $21,750 across five artists for six weeks of pre-production, rehearsal, and performance. That's about $725 per artist per week — below standard union rates, and the lowest line item we'd be comfortable holding.

About a fifth goes to marketing and PR. Lisa Baker Associates, our London-based publicist, is securing pre-August features and culture press traction, which is what generates the reviews we'll need once the shows are running. Another fifth covers production and tech: lighting, sound, sets, projection, stage management. Travel and housing for the team in Edinburgh, venue fees, per diem, music licensing, insurance, and a small contingency buffer make up the rest.

We value transparency. The category percentages and totals come straight from our production spreadsheet.

Edinburgh has gotten more expensive, and the dollar has gotten weaker. Every transaction in Scotland costs us more this year than it would have two years ago, before inflation hit British venue fees, housing, and freight, and before the pound strengthened against the dollar. The exchange rate alone has added thousands to the budget compared to earlier projections.

We are also intentionally not running this on free labor. A month of work onstage, with another in rehearsal beforehand, deserves to be paid. The budget reflects what it actually takes to produce two world-class works with five working artists at the largest performing arts festival in the world.

Both shows still go on. Bottoming for Jesus at Zoo Venues and Critique Cabaret at C Venues are confirmed and contracted. What changes is how much we have to compromise on the way in. Less marketing budget means smaller audiences. Less per-diem means a more strained team. More reliance on credit means a longer recovery on the other side.

Your gift is what determines whether we arrive in Edinburgh in shape or scraping by.

Not as a direct gift through this page. Family Affairs Studio is a working LLC, not a 501(c)(3). For larger contributions seeking tax-deductible treatment, we work with a fiscal sponsor and can structure the gift accordingly. Email hi@familyaffairs.studio and we'll walk through your options.

Yes. Stripe accepts cards from most countries. For Zelle, wire transfer, check, or larger international gifts, email hi@familyaffairs.studio and we'll arrange the right path. Wire transfers and Zelle keep about 3% out of processing fees and in the production, which matters at higher gift levels.