The Challenge

In the realm of musical theatre, the journey from script-and-score to a fully realized production is often daunting, especially for non-professionals. Licensing agencies provide the starting material, but the gap between script and stage can be overwhelming for creators lacking expertise. The challenge: How do we intuitively guide makers through the process, making it accessible and enjoyable?

The Process

We embarked on a comprehensive UX design process:

PHASE 1: Discovery

We explored the diverse landscape of musical theatre production, understanding the nuances and struggles faced by creators and organized our findings into a streamlined user journey:

1. RECRUIT: Explored challenges in recruitment, considering geographical and resource-related barriers.

2. BUDGET: Analyzed financial constraints and their impact on creative decisions and new works.

3. CONSIDER: Delved into considerations like diversity, gender, race, and community characteristics.

4. CHOOSE: Explored challenges in managing multiple plays, balancing what sells with creative opportunities.

5. LICENSE: Investigated the complexities of obtaining all necessary material, including variable endings.

6. NETWORK: Addressed difficulties in reaching out, availability constraints, and the benefits of co-production.

PHASE 2: Definition
Paired with our analogous research on recommendation platforms (Spotify, Airbnb, LinkedIn), we identified MVP features including basic exploration/search, ability to send invitations, entity profile information, artist validation, curation recommendations, and intelligent constraint inputs.

PHASE 3: Design

Armed with extensive qualitative research, we designed a platform tailored to empower musical theatre makers. Our solution incorporates:

• Basic Explore/Search: Featuring geographic search for Play, Studio, and Artist.

• Invitation Features: Enabling basic invitations and enhanced invitations with shared documentation.

• Artist Profile Information: Enhancements for Play, Studio, and Artist profiles.

• Artist Contribution Experience: Facilitating documentation exchange for invitations.

• Venue Profile Information: Including details about the building and its capabilities.

• Play Curation: Intelligent constraint inputs and recommendations akin to a "OKCupid" for musical theatre, linked to off-platform licensing.

With Playmap, we've not only addressed the challenges but also created an intuitive, user-friendly solution for navigating the complex world of musical theatre production.