Lesson Plan

• Describe the three main promotional techniques used by theatres (advertising, sales promotions, public relations).
• Explain the purpose, typical tools and evaluation criteria for each technique.
• Analyse how combining techniques creates an effective promotional mix.
• Apply the concepts by designing a brief promotional plan for a given production.

• Projector and screen
• Printed handout with the promotional‑mix comparison table
• Sample theatre posters, flyers and digital ad screenshots
• Discount‑voucher examples and printable templates
• Press‑release template worksheet
• Whiteboard, markers and sticky notes for group work

Begin with a quick show of recent theatre advertisements on the screen to capture interest. Ask students what they remember about those ads to link to prior knowledge of media. Explain that today they will explore how advertising, sales promotions and public relations work together, and that they will be able to identify each technique and design a simple promotional plan by the end of the lesson.

1. Do‑now (5'): Students list any recent theatre ads they have seen and share one example.
2. Mini‑lecture (10'): Overview of advertising – purpose, media channels, key features and evaluation.
3. Group analysis (12'): Examine a sample poster; identify visuals, copy, call‑to‑action and discuss its reach.
4. Sales promotions (8'): Explain types; each group creates a discount voucher for an off‑peak performance.
5. Public relations (8'): Discuss PR activities; students draft a short press release for a new production.
6. Comparative discussion (7'): Using the handout table, compare the three techniques and decide which combination best fits a given scenario.
7. Exit ticket (5'): Write one sentence stating which technique they consider most effective for launching a new show and why.

Recap the main purposes and tools of advertising, sales promotions and public relations, highlighting how they complement each other. Collect exit tickets to gauge understanding, and assign homework: each student designs a full promotional mix (ad, promotion and PR element) for a theatre production of their choice.