The show must go on... but amateur dramatic societies across Swansea are finding it increasingly difficult to hold to that.
Rising costs are threatening the financial security of societies which have been running since as far back as the 1800s, meaning theatre lovers are facing unprecedented challenges as they battle to recover from the blow of the pandemic, and fight to keep their much loved societies alive amidst the cost-of-living crisis.
Mary Isaac, 73, first joined Cockett Amateur Operatic Society (CAOS) in 1993. The society is a huge part of her life. Despite the fact she is now the secretary of the society and her husband is the treasurer, she has seen and performed in countless productions. But for the first time in the 30 years Mary has been involved with CAOS, this year their annual show at the Taliesin Arts Centre has not sold out. You can get more Swansea news and other story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.
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On the sales for this year's production of Kipps: The New Half a Sixpence Musical, Mary said: "We're always a sell-out and we have a good reputation. But this year, even though we've had standing ovations every night, we've sold less than 60% of the tickets. People aren't coming out, we've never had such empty houses as this time. Back in January, we were very concerned we'd have to cancel it."
Mary said she was not sure of the exact reason behind the drop in ticket sales, but she said the production had cost the society £38k to put on this year, while their 2020 performance of Sister Act was a sell-out and cost them £32k to stage. "Everything has gone up this year more than ever," said Mary, "from our transport costs for stage scenery, to costumes and even the printing of the programmes. We have to get that back in ticket sales, fundraising, and raffles."
The pandemic also presented huge challenges for the society as for the first time, they struggled to find new talent when previously there had always been a long waiting list of people wanting to join. "There's been a lot of pressure since the pandemic because things weren't coming back to how they used to be. But now we have lots of exciting, new, young performers and fresh energy."
"We will find a way to carry on," said Mary. "We can't lose amateur theatre in Swansea. There is such a history, to lose that would be devastating. For a lot of people it's their outlet, hobby and release, their way of expressing their love for the theatre." The former Glibert and Sullivan society has been running since 1962 and has put on productions ranging from Annie and Jesus Christ Superstar to Pickwick and Fiddler on the Roof.
The society had feared this year would be its last, but Mary said they had been "very lucky" with recent advertisers and sponsors stepping in and boosting their revenue. But there is still a lot to lose and the committee will meet next month to discuss plans for next year's show with hopes of choosing one that will be a great success.
Another amateur dramatics society in Swansea that knows all too well the importance of choosing their annual show carefully is Swansea Amateur Operatic Society (SAOS). "We're only ever one show away from going under which is the general consensus from all the amateur groups in Swansea," said Lizzy Hopkins, 31, who joined the society ten years ago and was a chairperson for six years. "There isn't a safety net anymore like there was years ago," explained Lizzy. "Whichever show we choose, we are banking on it being a success for us to continue operating."
Swansea Amateur Operatic Society has a rich history and is part of the cultural heritage of the city. It was first formed as the St David's Players in 1876 by W.F Hulley, who later became the musical director of The Grand Theatre. It was then, subsequently, named Swansea Amateur Operatic Society in 1901. Affectionately called Swansea Amateurs, the likes of Hollywood starlet Catherine Zeta-Jones and West End star Ria Jones have performed with the society before finding fame.
But the impossible to prepare for events of recent years have caused great uncertainty. A lockdown was announced the day before their opening night in 2020 and the society sadly had nothing to show for their months of hard work and money spent as they were unable to perform to their usual crowds.
In May, 2022, SAOS put on a production of Made in Dagenham in the Taliesin. As the first society to perform after the lockdowns of the pandemic, the show proved challenging. "We suffered because there were many people who weren't prepared to go to a theatre at that point. We broke even with 60% of ticket sales but it wasn't a profitable show," said Lizzy.
Now, the cost-of-living crisis has continued to threaten the future of the society and production costs have risen by £5k. "Bills have gone up for everyone in the current climate and our bills have risen considerably. The theatre hire itself has increased, show rights have gone up and so have orchestra costs. Luckily, we design our own props and costumes just to keep costs down but a lot of societies rely heavily on hiring things in and those prices have all gone up."
The society also has its own rehearsal space in Mount Pleasant, which it acquired in 1990. Not only are production costs rising, overhead costs to run the rehearsal space have soared by 415% and costs to insure it have risen by 24%. Lizzy said the society hoped to secure some funding to turn it into a community hub so other groups could also use the space, but the soaring bills had been devastating, she said.
On what would be lost if societies like SAOS were no longer able to run, Lizzy said: "Our society provides a safe, creative space to share a love for theatre. It's meant to be a budding hub that nourishes new talent and enables people to socialise and share that love for theatre. It also allows us to share that love of theatre with the audience. It brings light to dark times and as we've seen through Covid, when art has been on shutdown it's been missed."
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