THE ART OF EVANGELISM

I am reading REALITY CHECK by Guy Kawasaki. He also wrote the terrific business book THE ART OF THE START. In REALITY CHECK, Kawasaki writes about the importance of creating customer evangelists. How do you get people to evangelize your product? How do you attract believers who will help you spread the “good news” about The Contemporary American Theater Festival?

“The key to great evangelism is great innovation. It is easy-almost unavoidable- to catalyze evangelism for a great product…Evangelism, after all, comes from the Greek word for ‘bringing the good news.’

I believe that we produce bold, daring, innovative new works. We are the Contemporary American Theater Festival. We are the theater of today…the theater of the NOW. We are producing FIVE new American plays in rotating repertory that are present, and in the NOW! This is who we are and how we will be remembered by future generations. We are responsible for helping to create the destiny of the American theater. We are paying attention to our world. We are listening to contemporary writers who are attuned to our world and whose stories help to define these tumultuous times.

So…I am posting this blog…hoping that some of you will help me “spread the good news.”  If you have experienced our Theater Festival and you liked the experience…then will you get on your social network and be an evangelist for CATF?

We have an innovative product: A Repertory of FIVE new American Plays:

FARRAGUT NORTH
YANKEE TAVERN
THE HISTORY OF LIGHT
FIFTY WORDS
DEAR SARA JANE

If you believe in our mission…will you help me?

We have a burning need to express dramatic truths. We love ideas. We love language. We love provocative stories. And we love our geography: Shepherdstown, West Virginia. The oldest town in West Virginia doing the newest plays in America.

Please invite your friends to join me at the 2009 Theater Festival.

—Ed Herendeen