Stage One Celebrates Record Year With Publication of Annual Report

Stage One, the charity committed to developing and supporting producers for the commercial theatre industry, today published its Annual Report 2009-2010 which reveals a buoyant year of growth and development throughout all its activities. The Annual Report is available to download from www.stageone.uk.com

The Chair of Stage One, Luke Johnson of Risk Capital Partners, said: "Stage One can celebrate a highly successful year, once again reaffirming its fundamental position within the commercial theatre industry. However, Stage One is not complacent and recognises that as an organisation with an ongoing commitment to the development of new commercial theatre producers, we must be as ambitious as the entrepreneurial talent we endeavour to develop. We are constantly evaluating and strengthening the scope of activities to ensure that Stage One is wholly synonymous with profitable and quality commercial producing."

An edited summary of achievements, performance and plans for future periods include:

The Bursary and Apprentice Schemes, dedicated to developing new producers at the beginning of their careers, have increased their capacity by 50% since 2008/2009 due to the demand for places;

The Bursaries for New Producers assist new producers with a financial award of up to £15,000, a mentor to guide the new producer and shared office space in central London. During 2009/10, bursaries totalling £69,000 were awarded to nine new producers;

The Apprentice Scheme for New Producers, which allows future producers to learn about the process of commercial theatre from the best in the business, continues to develop and expand with double the number of applicants applying for the Scheme since its inception in 2007. All eight graduates from the Apprentice Scheme are either producing or working within the West End. For the first time in 2009/10, Stage One opened the Apprentice Scheme twice during the year for applications, leading to six new producers on paid internships in established West End producers' offices;

The Start-Up Fund for New Producers is a new investment scheme which was designed to bridge the gap between the existing training programmes and the Investment Scheme. The Start-Up Fund is supported by industry businesses and individuals, with a wealth of suppliers including marketing agencies, lighting and sound companies, graphic designers, literary and talent agents, accountants and insurers, each pledging an annual donation per annum 2010-2012. Launched in May 2010, it aims to kick-start the careers of the brightest Stage One graduates with a £25,000 investment for their first major commercial production. The first recipient of funding was Becky Barber for her first West End production, the world premiere stage adaptation of Sebastian Faulks' Birdsong;

The annual three-day New Producers Workshop for aspiring new producers continues to be enormously popular and received a record number of over 85 applications. The course teaches future producers the basic tools of producing in commercial theatre and offers participants a range of sessions led by industry specialists from PR to investment. Due to applications outnumbering places 3:1, Stage One will hold two Workshops in 2010/11;

Stage One's investment in new productions in the West End and on tour continues to be the core activity, and in 2009/10, investments have been particularly successful - a number of high-profile plays such as Enron, Jerusalem and The Misanthrope grabbed media attention and critical acclaim and several large new musicals have been produced such as Legally Blonde and Love Never Dies. For the first time, due to an additional contribution from the Society of London Theatre, Stage One has been able to increase its maximum investment up to £20,000 in new productions (still capped at 10% of the capitalisation). During the year ended 31 March 2010, Stage One invested in 22 new productions;

Against all the odds in the current economic climate, the fundraising team have achieved outstanding results for Stage One. An innovative approach to raising funds for the Start-Up Fund proved remarkably successful through seeking support from industry suppliers and individuals - in six months, the Stage One Council and fundraising team exceeded the initial £100,000 per annum target with all supporters signing up for three years, displaying an overwhelming commitment to the future of the theatre industry;

In addition to an annual grant from SOLT, a significant contribution to Stage One continues to be made by theatres and producers whereby the value of a number of top price seats is donated to Stage One through a Voluntary Levy, which is an extraordinary example of the industry supporting itself.

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