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General Advice needed, please?

Thu, 11 Nov 2010, 02:46 pm
Stage-sexual13 posts in thread
Hi, I am from a very small outback town with a population (of the entire shire about 200 sq km's in size)of about 4,000. We are a group of like minded individuals who have arrived here from other ports of call and are interested in setting up a theatre group to put on performances and such. We are about 20 (maybe we can push it out to 30 including all the backstage stuff) in number and keen to give it a shot. Since we don't have an actual theatre we would be using a portable stage in the auditorium of our local RSL club and are also 110% confident that we wouldn't actually make a profit, not by the time we factor in everything. We could seat about 200 people and maybe do three or four shows. I guess my questions are manifest but I will start with the simple ones (if I can explain them right). If an Amateur theatre company is seen as one that seats 400+ (someone read this online somewhere)per show then what are we? And if we aren't a company then do we still have to pay the same amounts for copyright and stuff? considering we don't make a profit? The information we can find is kinda confusing and I was just hoping someone might direct us somewhere or have something sage and wise to guide us? Thanks for the replies and patience with those new to running the show. SS.

Sorry

Thu, 11 Nov 2010, 09:11 pm
What I should have said as well is "Go for it!" Talk to the community, find out what they would like to see. It'll be a hell of a learning curve but by god you'll have fun. Use sites like this for all sorts of advice. There are some things you need to look into: Public Liability Insurance Whether you need to set up an incorporated body or not What sort of coverage the RSL hall has. As I am in SA I do not know the laws in NSW you will need to get expert advice in NSW for some of these issues but don't despair its actually not as hard as it sounds. This may sound odd but there is a book called "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Amateur Theatricals." by John Kenrick. This is definitely available through Amazon and may be available through Dymocks in Australia. Despite the fact that I have been doing this as an amateur and a professional for about 45 years I keep my copy close. Is that all there is? Well if that's all there is my friend, then let's keep dancing. www.tonymoore.id.au

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