So, I've spent the last week contacting or, should I say, trying to contact young theatre companies in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The first hurdle to cross was the discovery that large swathes of these companies, probably nearly 75%, that appear in various theatre directories are no longer in business. While these now defunct theatre companies have folded within four years, the truth is that most of them probably only lasted lasted about 12-18 months. With the exception of tech start ups, where failure is built into the overall business model, I know of no other business sector with a churn rate of nearly 75%.

Okay, so I then get into contacting the companies that are still standing. The second hurdles comes in the time spent chasing down faulty website connections, correcting a number of incorrect email addresses and trying to find actual contact names for pretty much most of these companies. Now, to be fair, trying to find contact details for theatre companies or venues is not just limited to new inexperienced companies. For some reason, contact is shrouded in mystery akin to a secret theatre world order. In nearly thirty years experience in the sector I've never been able to work out the reasons for this

Anyway, I send out individual e mails outlining what we are about and explaining that our mission is to work with them to help them maximise their potential and to increase their ability to survive and grow.  The overall response is underwhelming to say the least. I would guess that at this stage, about ten percent have responded. Now the inbox is filling up with mail delivery failure notifications. When it comes to young theatre companies, it is evident there is near total failure to communicate.

I understand only too well what it is like to set up and run a new theatre enterprise. I also empathize with the cock-ups that can come at you out of left field on a daily basis in this business. It's tough and mistakes are made all the time, I've made them countless times myself. However the failure to provide a functioning communication channel is unforgivable. It's the very artery that provides the oxygen to  allow an enterprise survive and grow. This is not an error one can attribute to the system, to a lack of funding or mentoring. This is fundamental to business practice. If I am not being communicated with, given I am offering a free service, I can only assume other people, who also might have an interest in their business, are not being communicated with either. It's not okay to quote something anodyne like 'well that's just the way theatre operates'. It doesn't. Theatre companies and producers seriously involved in their business communicate relentlessly, across all channels. Maybe the inability to comprehend or accept that a strong business plan and comprehensive communication strategy is crucial to a theatre enterprise, is the reason for such significant churn.