Little Broadway
Tiffany Jansen
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Bitten by the acting bug after her first live stage performance at age six, Tiffany Jansen later studied Musical Theater and Dance at the American University in Washington, D.C., and spent one semester abroad at the British American Drama Academy in London.
Between acting gigs, Tiffany taught dance lessons and did substitute teaching at local schools and fell in love with teaching and working with children. Moving to the Netherlands in October 2009, after marrying a Dutchman, Tiffany's need to reinvent herself abroad gave her the perfect opportunity to pursue her creative dreams and create Little Broadway, a musical theater program for children in the Netherlands. Its mission, "bringing a little bit of Broadway to the Netherlands", is fulfilled through a series of 6-12 week workshops for children attending international schools. Students learn theater-related games, skills and vocabulary, plus work on an original production written by Tiffany. |
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Expat Women's Interview with Tiffany |
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Expat Women: Tiffany, what motivated you to start your own business instead of continuing your acting and teaching career? |
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| Tiffany: After moving here, I noticed that the Netherlands did not have quite the same number of performance opportunities as back in the United States. So instead, I picked up writing as a way to burn my "creative energy". After I got my residence/work permit, I discovered that finding a job in the Netherlands without some level of fluency in Dutch was not an easy task. |
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While at an interview to teach at an international school in the Netherlands, I was told that although I did not have the appropriate certification to teach, there were many international schools in the Netherlands that would benefit from an after-school musical theater program. That's how Little Broadway was born. It is a too-good-to-be-true combination of the three things that I love: performing; working with children; and writing.
Expat Women: What obstacles did you face when starting Little Broadway and how did you overcome them?
Tiffany: I was actually really fortunate in that everything fell right into place. Registering the business was straightforward and took minimal time. As Little Broadway offers an extremely unique service, finding clients has not been a problem either – all the schools I have approached have shown interest in trying the program out and three-quarters of my classes have been only a few students shy of maximum capacity. |
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Expat Women: Can you tell us about the theater games and skills that you teach as part of the program, and how this might be helpful to your students outside of the theater setting? |
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Tiffany: Games vary widely as I have a large age range that I cater to and all the games that I use are age-appropriate for each age group. In general, theater games are meant to help students lose their inhibitions and think on their feet, strengthen listening skills, stimulate teamwork, build confidence, and, obviously, to teach the various aspects of acting in a fun way.
Children who engage in performance and creative activity such as theater tend to work better with others, empathize better, work better under stress, be more outgoing, and have a higher level of self-confidence and enhanced concentration. |
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| Expat Women: It seems like a wonderful way to introduce children to musical theater. Do you run an adult program as well? |
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| Tiffany: So far, the program is just run for students, but I would love to offer adult classes as well. Unfortunately none of the contacts I have made in that regard seem interested in such a program for adults (yet). Although I did hold a session for members of the International Women's Contact in Utrecht which was very well received. |
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| Expat Women: How do you market your programs and have you found a strategy that works really well for you? |
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Tiffany: As I cater mostly to schools, it is simply a matter of contacting the schools individually and telling them about the program. So far, this method has worked brilliantly, though I will be working on an information packet to send to schools that look a bit more professional and explain the program in detail using photos and video. So far, though, the website and blog have been sufficient. |
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| Expat Women: What five tips would you offer to women starting a business abroad? |
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| Tiffany: |
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Try to find a need or a demand in your current country of residence and start a company that caters to that need. For example, musicals are not terribly popular in the Netherlands, but the country has an extremely large population of expats, especially those from the US and the UK where the art form is very big. So I stepped in to fill a gap in the market. Expats here are now able to give their children the opportunity to explore musical theater through Little Broadway. |
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Find an expat entrepreneur group in your current country for support. In the Netherlands, the Women's Business Initiative fills this role for many. They will be able to give you ideas and advice, and keep you motivated. Why stumble through the process blindly when you can find someone who has been there, done that, has the t-shirt and is more than willing to help you? |
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Learn as much as you can about the legal side of having a business in your country. Know what is expected of you, in terms of taxes, insurances, company registration, liability and so on.
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Have literature about your business available in the language of your current country, if you plan on catering to clients native to the country as well as expats. This makes information on your company more accessible, which will increase your client base, and |
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If the country you are in right now is not going to be a permanent placement, make sure your business is something that can move with you. For those planning to continue to a new country or back to their country of origin, making the company moveable will enable you to continue your business wherever you go. Make sure it is something that people elsewhere will also find useful. Then all you have to do is find a new support group and register your company in your new home. |
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| Expat Women: Tiffany, congratulations on finding a successful way to marry your true passions with an innovative business idea abroad. We wish Little Broadway extraordinary success! |
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Links |
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August 2010 |
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