A working guide
Show Runs — one poster, many performances.
Show Runs is a custom system on this site for multi-night productions. Each Show Run holds one poster, one synopsis, one creative-team block, and a list of every performance date with its own Buy Tickets button. Instead of visitors piecing together four separate event pages, they get one clear landing page with everything they need to pick a night.
Menu location Show Runs → Add New
Video walkthrough
Prefer to watch instead of read? This walkthrough covers the whole guide, start to finish.
What Show Runs are
A Show Run is a template you fill out once and embed anywhere.
Every Show Run generates a shortcode. You paste that shortcode into a regular Post, and the Post renders the full show-landing page — hero, synopsis, credits, and a grid of Buy Tickets cards, one per performance.
Show Runs live in their own admin section — separate from Posts and Events — so the team can maintain a small library of active productions without cluttering the Posts list.
The three pieces of a multi-date show
Individual Event posts hold the ticketing details for each performance (date, time, Tixr URL, price). A Show Run holds the show-level content (poster, synopsis, dates grid). A regular Post holds the URL and the Show Run’s shortcode. Together they produce one clean landing page for patrons.
Creating a Show Run
Simple starting point. Everything after this is filling in the show’s content.
In the left admin sidebar, click Show Runs → Add New. A blank Show Run editor opens.
Title
The show’s name, exactly as it should appear on the site — In the Heights, Grease, Sister Act. Title case. This is used for the admin list and, if you leave the containing Post’s title matching, for the H1 on the landing page.
Where to find the shortcode
Once you save the Show Run once (even without content), the right sidebar shows a box labeled Shortcode. Click inside the box to select the shortcode. You’ll paste it into a Post in Section 7.
Hero image & sponsor
The visuals people see first. The hero is the show’s identity.
Where: right sidebar → Featured Image → Set featured image.
This becomes the full-width hero at the top of the show page.
Size specs
Why it matters: the hero is the largest single image visitors see on the page. A low-res or wrong-aspect hero makes an otherwise professional page look thrown together.
The first field in the “Show Run Content” metabox. Optional. Enter the sponsor’s name without any decorative text:
The system renders it as: ⭐ Sponsored by The Friends of Historic Seminole Theatre ⭐ with a gold-bordered strip.
Leave empty to hide the sponsor line entirely.
The Show Dates repeater
The most important section — every performance date with its own Buy Tickets button.
The “Show Dates” repeater lets you add as many performance dates as the run has. Each row generates one card in the show page’s date grid. Rows can be reordered by dragging the ☰ handle on the left.
Per-row fields
The performance date. Use the date picker (YYYY-MM-DD format). Powers three things: the day-of-week label (FRI, SAT, SUN), the “JULY 24” number display, and the auto Event Ended detection.
Curtain time. Use the 24-hour time picker (e.g. 20:00 for 8:00 PM, 15:00 for 3:00 PM). The system converts to 12-hour display automatically. The date + time together determine when the card auto-switches to Event Ended.
Optional short label appended after the time. Examples: Matinee, ASL Interpreted, Sold Out. Renders as 3:00 PM · Matinee. Leave empty for standard evening shows.
The performance’s ticket price. Formats accepted:
- A number:
30— displays as $30 - A range:
25 - 50— displays as $25–$50 - Free: leave empty and no price line renders
Do not include the “$” — the system prepends it.
The exact Tixr URL for this specific performance. Example: https://www.tixr.com/groups/seminoletheatre/events/in-the-heights-181252.
Leave empty for a “coming soon” date without a ticket link — but the card won’t have a working Buy Tickets button until you add one.
Repeater controls
- + Add show date — appends a new empty row at the bottom.
- Drag ☰ handle — reorder rows. Save to persist.
- ✕ Remove (right side of each row) — deletes the row. If it’s the last row, it clears instead of deleting.
Auto “Event Ended”
The system compares each row’s date + time against right now, every time the page loads. When the performance has passed, that row’s Buy Tickets button automatically changes to a greyed-out Event Ended label. No staff cleanup needed as dates pass. Just add all performances up front and let the page manage itself.
Synopsis, Awards, Credits
The narrative content that convinces someone to book a night.
The show’s description. Uses a rich-text editor — bold, italics, links, headings all work. Structure it in two or three paragraphs:
- First paragraph: the show, its story, what makes it iconic.
- Second paragraph: the emotional hook — what the audience will feel.
Keep it focused. This is not a program essay; it’s a sales pitch. 150–250 words is a good target.
Optional single-sentence accolade. Displayed as italicized gold text under the synopsis:
Leave empty for shows without notable awards.
Repeatable rows of role + name. Each row has two fields:
- Role: e.g.
Directed by,Choreographed by,Music Directed by - Name: e.g.
Charles Benitez
Renders as: Directed by Charles Benitez
Add as many as the production has. Drag the ☰ handle to reorder.
Embedding on a page
A Show Run isn’t a URL by itself — it’s a shortcode you paste into a Post.
- Save the Show Run. The Shortcode box in the right sidebar becomes active.
- Copy the shortcode. It looks like
[seminole_show_run id="8895"](the number is unique to this Show Run). - Go to Posts → Add New and create the containing Post. See the Creating Featured Posts guide for the full setup.
- Paste the shortcode into the Post’s body, as the only content in the editor. WordPress renders the full Show Run in that spot.
- Turn on the Featured Show Hub on the Post so it appears on the homepage.
Optional shortcode attributes
You can hide specific sections by adding attributes to the shortcode:
You can combine multiples: [seminole_show_run id="8895" show_synopsis="no" show_creative="no"].
Updating over time
A Show Run isn’t set-and-forget. Common updates during a run.
Adding a new performance
Two steps: create the Event post for the performance (see Editing Events guide) with its own Tixr URL, then add a new row to the Show Run’s Dates repeater pointing at that same Tixr URL. Save. The new card appears in the grid immediately.
Ticket price changes
Update the Price field on that row. Save. The card refreshes.
A performance sold out (before it ends)
Set the row’s Note field to Sold Out — appears as 8:00 PM · Sold Out. Optionally remove the Ticket URL to grey out the button.
A performance was cancelled
Remove that row from the repeater and save. If patrons already have tickets to that specific date, keep the individual Event post published with a note so the Tixr redirect still works.
The show ended
The page manages itself — every row’s Event Ended state auto-activates once the date passes. When the whole run is over, either untick the containing Post’s Featured Show Hub (removes from homepage) or delete the Post entirely (the Show Run stays in the admin as a template for reuse).
Pre-publish checklist
Tick these before the Show Run goes live via a Post.
- Title uses title case, matches the containing Post’s title.
- Hero image uploaded, 1920 × 1080 recommended, under 500 KB, descriptive alt text.
- Sponsor filled or intentionally blank.
- Every performance has its own row in the Dates repeater with Date, Time, Price, and Ticket URL filled.
- Rows ordered chronologically (or grouped as makes sense — drag to reorder).
- Synopsis: 150–250 words, sales-pitch tone.
- Awards line filled if applicable, otherwise empty.
- Creative Team has all directors, choreographer, music director, and any other credits.
- Box Office text includes phone, email, and hours.
- Fine print is the current default.
- Shortcode copied and pasted into the containing Post.
- Previewed the Post URL; all sections render, all Buy Tickets links open the right Tixr page.
