Every Producer Is Waiting for You to Answer This One Question
Written by Producer & TMS Mentor, Jonathan Hogue
It’s a daunting thing to pitch a show - especially when it’s your own.
I know the feeling. You have a rare window of someone’s attention. You believe your show has enormous potential, and you know the person sitting across from you could be the one who changes everything.
So you word-vomit. You tell them everything: every plot point, every character, every song, every detail you can think of, just in case you never get another chance to see them again.
And chances are, because it happens to all of us, you eventually realize your pitch just isn’t landing.
Here’s the reality: most producers are incredibly difficult to get to "yes." Not because they’re cynical, but because they have to be. Every project represents years of work, countless relationships, and significant financial risk. Most producers are juggling dozens of projects at once, so "no" is often the safest answer.
That doesn’t mean they aren’t listening.
They absolutely are.
In fact, they’re constantly hoping to find that rare project they can say yes to. But after hearing hundreds of pitches, they become very good at filtering quickly. They're listening for something that tells them this show is worth the investment.
So where does that leave you? How do you know what to say? What do producers actually want to hear?
Here’s a producer’s secret.
There’s one question I want answered in every pitch.
It’s surprisingly simple.
And it has nothing to do with the budget.
Why?
Why this show?
More importantly, why do you care about this show?
I’m sure your answer is somewhere in your pitch already. Maybe it comes halfway through, when you mention the show's themes. Maybe you say something like, "Audiences just need to laugh right now."
But as a producer, I want to go deeper than that.
There are plenty of funny shows. There are plenty of shows with meaningful themes. There are plenty of beautifully written scripts.
So why this one? Why is this the story that deserves a place onstage?
Here’s something that might sound controversial, but I believe it’s true: the world doesn't need more shows. There are thousands of musicals and plays sitting in drawers, waiting to be produced. Every day, producers hear pitches for remarkable projects that may never find a stage.
If your show isn't produced, the world will keep turning. So why should anyone spend years of their life bringing your show to life? That’s the question you have to answer.
There are two ways to think about your "why."
The first is as a market question. What gap does your show fill? What makes it genuinely different? Why will audiences choose this show over everything else competing for their attention?
The second is as an emotional question. How will people feel when they leave the theater? What experience are you giving them that they can't get somewhere else? Why is this story worth sharing now?
Ultimately, producers don’t commit to a show because it's inexpensive to produce. They commit because they fall in love with it.
And producing requires an extraordinary amount of love.
A producer may spend five or ten years developing a show before ever seeing a paycheck. They’ll weather setbacks, rewrites, fundraising, casting changes, and endless uncertainty.
Logic might get them interested. But love is what keeps them going.
So when you get that rare opportunity to pitch your show, don't start with the details. Don't lead with the budget. Don't begin with how many songs you've written or how far along the script is.
Lead with your "why."
If someone believes in your passion, they'll ask for the details. If they don't believe in your passion, the details won't matter anyway.
The beautiful thing is that your "why" is also the easiest part of the pitch. It isn't memorized. It isn't rehearsed. It isn't manufactured.
It comes directly from you.
So be authentic. Be passionate. Be yourself.
Because when people believe why you have to tell this story, they'll finally be ready to hear the story itself.
