PRESIDENT’S REPORT 2008-‘09

The past 12 months has been a very difficult one for Catchment from a financial point of view. The standard of the 3 shows we presented (Thoroughly Modern Millie, Aladdin Jr. and The Full Monty) were of a very high standard. They were very well received by our general audience and the Music Theatre Guild judges with the shows collectively receiving 11 award nominations and 13 commendations. My congratulations to Amy Larsen for her success in receiving the Music Theatre Guild award for best actress for her portrayal of Millie in Thoroughly Modern Millie.

Unfortunately, our audiences for both Millie and Monty fell short of expectations leaving us with additional debt from these 2 shows. Our current debt rests mostly with the Darebin Arts & Entertainment Centre and our audio provider LSS Productions. I would like to thank the Management of DAEC, the Darebin City Council and LSS Productions for their patience in these difficult times

After the financial position from Millie was ascertained the Committee considered the ongoing viability of the company which we determined was dependent upon the success of Aladdin Jr. Thankfully, Aladdin provided us with a profit allowing us to go ahead with The Full Monty. Despite the success of Aladdin Jr. we were faced with a situation where the company could not afford to sustain a loss as we would be unable to fund our next production and would be forced to sell the assets we had to cover our outstanding debt.

The Full Monty was not a financial success despite being presented on a very tight budget. It became apparent a few weeks before the show opened that we would likely make a loss on the show and unless there was a large increase in ticket sales we would not survive to see the end of 2008. A plea was made to the theatre community and friends of Catchment which saw an increase in ticket sales and, together with substantial contributions from 2 new sponsors, Ready Set Go Productions and Massteknik the Committee determined that we were able to go ahead into 2009.

The Committee approved the production of our first show for 2009 “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” but it was decided that we could not afford to present the show at the DAEC and instead, it will be performed at the Banyule Theatre. Presenting Spelling Bee at Banyule means that the budget could be cut down to about one third of our “normal” budget which means that we should hopefully realise a profit from the show based on our historical audience attendances.

Early in 2008 the Executive Committee met with DAEC management and Bruce Dobson from the City Of Darebin regarding our financial situation, payment of debt and the future of Catchment. Since then I have had a number of meetings with both DAEC and Bruce Dobson to discuss Catchment issues and keep them updated on the status of the Company. I believe that we can continue to present our shows at DAEC in the future and we are currently working with the DAEC management and the council regarding our commitment to DAEC in 2010 and beyond.

Show selection has always been a difficult area. I understand that there are people who believe that some of our show selections in recent times have been “wrong” based either on their personal taste or their view of our financial position. The Committee have approved shows which we believed were in the best interests of the company based on our financial situation and what we think people want to see. We try to provide a variety of shows from the old classics, popular contemporary and the newest available but it will always be the case that not everyone will be happy with our choices. We are always open to suggestions regarding future shows and continue to seek the opinion of our membership and audience to help us with our choice of shows.

2009 will be an interesting year for Catchment Players. The Committee have made considerable changes to the way we operate. This is an ongoing project and I believe that we are doing everything we can to ensure the survival of the Company. We continue working on reducing the cost of our shows, increasing our audience and securing additional sponsorship. Spelling Bee is progressing well and we will soon be auditioning for our August junior production of Alice In Wonderland. At the time of writing this report I cannot confirm what our October production will be as it has not been decided, but the current Committee have been discussing our choices via email and telephone almost daily and a decision will be made shortly after the voting in of the new Committee.

I have a very positive view for 2009. I believe that both Spelling Bee and Alice will not only be artistic successes, but will also see positive financial returns. With careful management and successful show selection we should be able to substantially reduce our debt by the end of the year.

Finally, my sincerest thanks again to all of my fellow Committee Members for their hard work throughout this difficult year.

Rohan Luke
President 
22/02/2008