2. If you do want the performers to bring in all of the equipment every week, are they bringing just keyboards on stands, or are they bringing their grand piano shells? The 2 grand piano shells facing each other look amazing, especially if you want the visual of an authentic dueling piano show. If the performers have to schlep in piano shells for every show, the transport and logistics cost will be high. If you have piano shells made and can store them at the club, this would be to your great advantage if there is a regular show.3. Do you want a dueling show with a drummer or is it just the pianos? Drums promote dancing and can add to the energy of the show, which may or may not be correct for your vision and your space. Some places own a drumset which the piano players themselves take turns playing on. In my experience working on the road with over 150 dueling piano players from all over the country, more than half of these guys can play drums.

4. How long does the show go on every night? The more time an entertainer has to be on stage, the more they will need to conserve their energy, similar to a marathon runner. If you want the highest energy show you can get, either you build in breaks, or have more players work the show. If it’s a smaller room and you are trying to minimize the costs, maybe you can get away with only doing a 3.5 hour show.

5. Along with #4, how many piano players rotate through the show. A normal show is 5 hours or less with 3 players rotating through, so that the music never stops. Some of the best shows have 2 teams of 2, each team does an hour before handing over the stage to the next team. These shows are normally 6 hour shows. Other, smaller shows only use 2 players who can do a 4 hour show with a break in the middle. The advantage of using more players is that it’s a higher energy, better quality show (attracting more guests), more requests will be fielded (keeping the guests happy), and you can have a longer show (adding revenue to your night). You obviously have to weigh that benefit with the additional costs.

6. Do you want local talent or will you have a budget to fly the best national players in and put them up? Some of the most successful dueling piano clubs in the country fly 3 players in every week and put them up in an apartment. They do nightly shows on Thur, Fri and Sat, and then fly home on Sunday morning. Chances are, if you are doing it this way, for it to be worthwhile to the club and to the fly-in players, you are doing at least 3 consecutive nightly shows. Other places are willing to use local talent in order to save money. In places like New York City or Chicago where there is a ton of local talent, this is probably not necessary, but in a place like Topeka, it might be imperative. Even others are willing to move a dueling pianist to their city or town so they can have house player dedicated to their room.

If you would like more information Contact us through our website.