From Jane: This is the article that I held up from last week to run the feature about The Swan Theatre - is everyone confused now?!

At the Annual General Meeting of the Granary Theatre, Malcaster, comment was made about the excessive use by members of the theatre’s telephone. Well... while their reaction to this amused me – they all glared accusingly at each other – it is not part of owl philosophy to feel guilty about anything, so I didn’t.

However, I will confess under privilege granted to me as your amdram columnist that I had become fascinated by the American expression “community theatre”. I telephoned a friend of mine, Kathy, who happens to be a very attractive lady strix theatricus – a Theatre Owl, like me - in one of the united States. As a matter of fact I rang her on several occasions before following her advice by consulting the theatre’s computer one night after all the members had left. As a result of this enquiry, I was received into membership of the American Association of Community Theatre and became the recipient of a postal package which contained a thick directory and several issues of their magazine.

I was keen to find out, you see, whether “community theatre” was in any way similar to what we in Britain call “amateur theatre”. Now... that is an expression to which I have no objection, “Amateur Theatre”, which I regard as highly honourable, but I have never heard anyone involved in commercial theatre (a “professional”) say that they are employed in “dramatics” or “theatricals”. Even less do they associate themselves with that appalling epithet “amdram”, about which titIe I will pass no comment whatsoever.

Here is what Kathy told me:

“Let's start with the group that is very loosely organized and decides to put on a play every year or so. There is no governing body, no written rules, no membership, no formal organization. There is a group about 25 miles from us which operates this way. It is real hit and miss, depending on who gets inspired to get the ball rolling. Sometimes years go by with no show being produced.

“Our group is probably at the next level (as are probably most of the community theatre organizations in the US - or at least that is my guess): we are formally affiliated with the local Arts Council which is a duly recognized 501 c 3 organization (that is the Internal Revenue Service recognition and it means that it is a "not for profit" organization... they can make money, but all of the profits go into furthering the mission of the group and not into a CEO's or any investors pockets - the mission has to fit within the prescribed areas of culture, education or religion) . Our group is completely volunteer and run by a governing board. Together we are responsible for everything that happens: fund-raising, play production, maintaining the facility, etc. Most community theatres are non-profit in their own right, rather than part of another organization.

“At the next level, a group might hire an executive director or an artistic director. I really don't see us ever getting to this point, but not because we are not "professional enough". There is a small group of us who's life blood, sweat and tears has gone into the building of this organization and improving the facility and none of us want it to get to the point where we are paying someone to run things.

“Anyway, from that point, a community theatre might have various other employed people: a scene designer, a costume designer, box office personnel, membership director, etc. etc. etc. They might have large educational programs for kids that require some employees to administer and teach. This kind of community theatre would be the type that would be found in a city of maybe 100,000 population.

“There are some "charitable organizations" which fall under the same classification as a non-profit, but are really huge budget operations. These will bring in the expensive professional road companies to do popular Broadway musicals...they have subscribers who pay dearly to see the year's shows...or you pay $50 and sit in the "nosebleed" section (so far up in the house that you can barely see).”

The main difference that I (Jonah) can see between American Community Theatre and British amateur theatre is that they are properly organised, with a national organization that is constantly working in the interests of amateur theatre at all levels.

Some years have passed since the British Drama League changed its name to the British Theatre Association and then vanished. It appears that the Little Theatre Guild of Great Britain provides a central organisation for (at last count) ninety-eight town theatres with auditoria in the 200-seat range and the LTG members rally annually at one of its member’s theatres, a different venue each year. The Drama Association of Wales does a great job for Welsh groups and theatres; in fact it inherited the BTA library.

I am motivated to write this piece by the recent closure of two town theatres: the Swan Theatre in Worcester and the Priestly Centre in Bradford. In each instance, the decision to deprive the community of its theatre attracted considerable local attention. Campaigns were mounted locally and obviously both was unsuccessful.

In reporting the Worcester situation to you, I bemoaned the lack of a national campaign to make so much racket nationwide that the closing authorities would cringe away in embarrassment as we highlighted for the whole country to see their short-sighted and pennypinching tactics.

Could this be the time for us to reinstate the British Theatre Association? Would DAW, LTG and similar organisations support a national Theatre Union? Would the AACT and other national organisations lend a “hands-across-the-sea” type of support? After all, Kathy’s description shows a remarkable similarity with our types of theatre.

Please send me your thoughts on this by email.

You will understand that incoming e-mails do not come directly to our nest, but Penny (my lovely wife) or I slip into the Granary Theatre at least twice every day, via the air-conditioning ducts, to check the mail (we have our own pigeon-hole).

As well as your thoughts on whether or not we should reinstate a national theatre organisation, I would be very interested to hear about any theatres that are in danger of closure. Please let me know and we’ll try to organise a rumpus in support of the local campaign.

Jonah was a very experience director, teacher and writer who sadly passed away in February 2006. He was also the author of the highly successful "Playmaker - The Craft of Directing Plays (The Way I Seen It)".