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Contracts, deposits and substitutions

Booking terms, cancellation, illness, and insurance.

Specialist · Entertainment Booking15 minFree

Specialist

Booking terms, cancellation, illness, and insurance.

Narrated lesson · 1-minute video
Read the transcript

Contracts, deposits and substitutions.

Booking terms, cancellation, illness, and insurance.

Contracts protect both sides.

A performer contract is short compared to a venue contract, but it is the only thing that stands between you and a no-show, a late arrival or a surprise invoice.

Most GTA performers have their own standard agreement.

Booking terms to get in writing.

Deposits and payment.

In our experience most GTA performers ask for a deposit of somewhere between a quarter and a half of the fee at signing, with the balance due before the event or on the night.

Higher deposits are normal for peak dates and for acts that turn down other work to hold yours.

Cancellation, illness and substitution.

Ask about the substitution policy before you book. A solo magician with no network has none; an agency or a performer in a group usually has a bench.

Make substitution conditional on your approval. You agree to the substitute after seeing a video and checking they fit the brief.

Insurance.

Ask every performer for a certificate of liability insurance, and check that the dates and named insured match.

Many hotels and venues require the certificate, sometimes naming the venue as additional insured, before an act can perform.

That is the lesson. The worksheet and the quiz are just below this video.

Contracts protect both sides

A performer contract is short compared to a venue contract, but it is the only thing that stands between you and a no-show, a late arrival or a surprise invoice. Most GTA performers have their own standard agreement. Read it carefully, then add what is missing. If you book often, keep your own entertainment addendum and attach it to every booking.

Booking terms to get in writing

Planner and performer signing an agreement and shaking hands at a café table
Term What it should say
Who performs The performer’s name (or each name in a group). An agency booking names the act, not “one of our performers”.
Date, times and location Arrival time, set-up window, performance times, end time, the room name and the load-in route.
What is delivered The act, its length, number of sets, roaming or stage, any add-ons (balloons, a custom routine).
Fee and taxes The fee, whether it is before or after HST, travel and parking, any overtime rate per half-hour.
Deposit and balance Deposit amount and date, balance amount and due date, payment method.
Cancellation by client What is refundable and when.
Cancellation by performer Full refund of all money paid, plus the substitution clause below.
Substitution Whether the performer or agency may send a substitute, how the client approves them, and the right to refuse and get a refund.
Insurance The performer’s liability insurance and certificate, and whether the venue must be named.
Rider Attached, signed, and limited to what is in it.
Photos and recording Whether the client can photograph and film the act and use the footage, and how the performer can use event footage.
Force majeure What happens if the event cannot go ahead for reasons nobody controls.

Deposits and payment

In our experience most GTA performers ask for a deposit of somewhere between a quarter and a half of the fee at signing, with the balance due before the event or on the night. Higher deposits are normal for peak dates and for acts that turn down other work to hold yours. Pay the deposit by a traceable method, get a receipt, and put the balance date in your calendar. Paying the balance on the night in cash is common for smaller acts; for anything larger, pay by transfer a few days before and take the hassle off the day.

Vendors usually quote before HST. Performers who are registered (registration is mandatory once revenue exceeds $30,000 in four consecutive calendar quarters) will add 13%. Ask, and put the HST line in the budget either way.

Cancellation, illness and substitution

Performers get sick. Plan for it.

Planner on an early morning phone call in a kitchen on an event day
  1. Ask about the substitution policy before you book. A solo magician with no network has none; an agency or a performer in a group usually has a bench.
  2. Make substitution conditional on your approval. You agree to the substitute after seeing a video and checking they fit the brief.
  3. Reserve the right to refuse. If you refuse, you get your money back.
  4. Keep a backup list yourself. Two similar acts from the directory with mobile numbers on your vendor contact sheet, so you can make calls at 8 a.m. on the day.
  5. Brief the substitute in full. Send the performer brief (lesson 5) and the run of show the moment they confirm.

On client cancellation, most performers keep the deposit, and many charge the full fee inside a short window before the date. That is fair: they turned down other work. Make sure the client sees those terms before you sign.

Insurance

Ask every performer for a certificate of liability insurance, and check that the dates and named insured match. Many hotels and venues require the certificate, sometimes naming the venue as additional insured, before an act can perform. Aerial riggers must be insured. Fire acts and anything unusual will draw questions from the venue’s risk team; the certificate is the start of the conversation. The client’s own event insurance (one-day liability of $2 to 5 million typically costs $150 to $400) covers the client, not the performer; it is not a substitute.

Worked example: the Harbour Gala contracts

Three acts, two contracts. The mentalist was booked directly with a deposit of 50 percent at signing in July and the balance by transfer one week before the gala. His contract named him, the 25-minute set at about 8:30, arrival at 7:30, the attached rider, HST added to the fee, and a 60-day cancellation window. The planner added a substitution clause: he could only send another performer with the foundation’s written approval, and if the foundation refused, all money was refunded.

Planner and performer shaking hands over a patio table on a summer afternoon

The two strolling magicians came through a small founder-run agency. The planner required both names in the contract, the times 6:00 to 7:25, their insurance certificates, and the agency’s substitution policy. The agency’s founder, also a performer, signed a disclosure that one of the two magicians was himself.

The hotel required certificates of insurance naming the hotel from all three. Two came in within a day; the third needed a reminder. The planner filed all three with the risk register on the risk register template.

Ten days out, one magician fell ill. The agency proposed a substitute, sent a video the same day, and the planner and foundation approved within an hour. The run of show went to the substitute that evening.

Common mistakes

  • A contract with no named performer.
  • Paying the full fee up front.
  • No substitution clause, or one that lets the act send anyone.
  • Forgetting the venue requires an insurance certificate until the day of the event.
  • Assuming the quote includes HST.

Worksheet

Apply this lesson to a real or practice event using the worksheet, then mark the lesson complete to track your progress toward the certificate.

Planner's hands with a clipboard on a commuter train beside a lakeside window

Download the worksheet (PDF)

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