How to start a theatre group

Terrence Mann once said, “Movies will make you famous; Television will make you rich; But theatre will make you good.” If there isn’t a suitable group in your area, why not learn how to start a theatre group yourself?

Amateur theatre societies provide a whole host of benefits to those who attend them. Not only can theatre groups help you improve your performance skills, but they can also boost your physical and mental health and help bring members of the community together.

It’s no small feat to set up a theatre group, but doing so can be extremely rewarding and a lot of fun. Read our blog below to find out how to start a theatre group.

Starting a theatre group

Set up a committee

First things first, you can’t have an amateur theatre group without a designated committee. It’s the committee’s responsibility to help manage and run the group and its finances.

To start things off, you’ll need a Chairman, Treasurer, Marketer, and Administrator. It’s usually the Chairman’s responsibility to run meetings, and the Treasurer is in charge of the finances. The Marketer is then responsible for advertising the group and its shows, and the Administrator or Secretary is in charge of keeping on top of group records and other admin tasks.

Of course, depending on the size of your group, you may have one person acting in multiple roles or find you need to add further roles as the group grows. The best way to ensure that these roles are elected fairly is to hold an annual vote with all members of the society present.

It’s also a good idea for the committee to decide on a set of rules for the group, called a constitution. You can find an example constitution template here. The point of a constitution is to have an agreed set of rules for all group members to abide by, which can be consistently updated to reflect the ongoing aims and needs of the group.

Decide what kind of society you want to run

Once you have your committee together and roles assigned, you can decide on what kind of society you want to run. You may choose to run a more general drama or musical theatre society, or you could run a specialist youth theatre, classical theatre, or pantomime group.

Whichever type of theatre group you decide to run is entirely up to you and what you think will be of the most interest to your community.

It’s worth noting that if you decide to run a youth theatre group or welcome those under 16 into your society, there are some additional measures you need to take. For example, you’ll need to request DBS checks from those running the group and you’ll need to ensure you have enough adults to support the amount of under 16s that attend the group.

For further information on legislation relating to youth theatre groups, please visit the gov.co.uk website. You can also find further guidance on NSPCC Learning. 

Set a budget and find funding

Before you start looking for funding, you need to have an idea of how much you’ll need to get you started. You’ll need to set a budget for things like costumes, props, venue hire, and marketing.

You can secure funding for your theatre group in a number of ways. If your committee is  in a position to, each member could  contribute a sum which they can receive back once the theatre group is up and running.

Another option would be to apply for a grant from Arts Council England (ACE). ACE typically awards between £1,000 to £100,000 depending on what your project needs. You can take a look at its current open funds on the ACE website, where you’ll find further information on how you can apply as well as the application portal.

Running community fundraising events and putting a subscription fee in place to join your group are also viable ways of growing your funds. These methods can also be useful for keeping a consistent stream of funds coming in should you need them.

Look at what skills you need

A successful theatre production of any kind needs more than just actors. You may need people who can work on the set, script, costumes, lighting and sound, choreography, direction, and more.

You may find people within your community who have an interest in these areas already that are willing to volunteer their time to help. Asking around your local community as well as the members of your group is the best place to start.

Start advertising your group

If you want your group to grow, people need to know about it! There are lots of ways to get the word out there, both online and offline. Utilising social media is a great place to start, especially as its free.

For creating the imagery to go alongside your posts, sites like Canva or Pablo are great user-friendly options with lots of templates to get you started and they’re free to access.

Create posts about what your theatre group wants to achieve, what it can offer the community, and how people can join, then share these to local community and interest groups.

You can also create posters and flyers to distribute around your local area. With a community-focused group, one of the best ways you can get more people to audition is by word of mouth, so remind your attendees to ask friends and family to come along too.

Consistency is definitely key in this regard, as you want to make sure you’re always looking for new members after each performance to keep your group running.

Create your first performance

Once you have all of the above organised, you can start thinking about what you’ll do for your first performance. You may have a budding playwright in your midst who wants to test their latest script, or you can ask your group for ideas.

To kick things off, you could even run a variety show where your attendees can show off their talents! Whether it’s a solo or group performance, this is a great way to see what your group is best at.

They could dance, sing, or perform scenes from different plays. It will also show your local community everything your group has to offer, and you may attract some new members along the way.

Specialist community insurance through Ripe

Running a theatre group can be extremely beneficial to your community and a lot of fun at the same time. However, it can also come with its fair share of risks. Sporting club, leisure, and community insurance through Ripe is designed to safeguard against these risks.

There are many cover options to choose from through Ripe, including Public Liability, Products Liability, and Legal Costs cover for pursuing or defending a claim.

Click here to learn more about sporting clubs, leisure and community insurance coming soon to Ripe.