Eyes Wide Open

Intervals are very important to the majority of rural touring venues. This is often their only time to raise any money for the venue (think bar sales and raffles) plus audiences expect a ”full night out”. If there isn’t an appropriate place for an interval within your show, consider what else you could offer to fill the evening. An entertaining Q and A with the artists? A related quiz? Whatever it is- make sure you think it out and prepare it fully (does it work in context?). If you don’t have an interval or an after/pre show offer you many find it harder to be programmed by promoters.

This links to having an interval. Rural Touring venues and audiences want a full night out. Shows that are only an hour-long are a lot harder to sell to rural touring venues. Again think about how you can offer a full night out. Can you add a structured Q&A with the artists, or create a themed aftershow quiz? Whatever it is, make sure that any add on is as high quality as your show. If you are selling it to venues as part of the package of the show, it shouldn’t be an after thought.

Most Rural Touring venues are village halls or community spaces. They do not have a lighting rig, sound equipment or a technician. Everything your show needs technically will need to come with you – including the technician! In our venues even plug sockets can be in short supply!

When you’re rural touring cast size is important. A large cast can signify to a rural venue a large show and that might prevent them from booking your show for a number of reasons. Does it make the show expensive? Will they need to find accommodation for everyone? Some of our schemes and venues offer homestays, others might offer a budget for you to book your own accommodation. Will the cast fit in their venue? Some venues can only fit 30 – 50 audience members in and they probably don’t have dedicated changing rooms! If you’re hitting the road with a large show that can be a really great thing for rural touring venues and audiences, but just be aware it makes the number of venues who can take the show smaller.

When we say rural, we mean rural. Lots of our venues are in places where there is no public transport. If you are going on a rural tour you will be responsible for getting yourself, and any equipment you need to and from rural venues.

A lot of rural touring venues are in high demand. Whether that’s for an afternoon Zumba Class or a Blood Drive. This means the timetabling can be tricky! Not only that but most of our promoters are volunteers, so the longer the get in the bigger ask on the volunteers time. Other venues are hired by the hour by the Promoters – long get ins can be costly. Anything over 4 hours can be difficult for rural venues – not impossible (nothing is impossible) but tricky!

We want you to be realistic, paid fairly and correctly, however, rural touring shows do not charge high ticket prices (rarely over £10), and they aren’t in large venues so the promoter and schemes cannot afford high price shows. If the production is subsidised then this can help a higher costing show be programmed. Speak with the individual schemes directly about levels of subsidy and realistic fees.

That’s great, but it’s worth checking with any venues you might be programmed into, whether or not there are any other obstacles that, might get in the way of sightlines or alter the capacity of your show.

As we’ve already mentioned Rural touring venues come in all shapes and sizes, but the majority of them seat less than a 100 people. Promoters need to take into consideration how well your show fits in their venue and how many tickets they need to sell to cover their costs. Bigger casts often mean more expensive shows, but that also means more people to feed and accommodate on the day – Rural Touring Promoters often cook meals for artists, and some even offer overnight stays. If your show is on the larger size just be aware that it narrows down perspective venues.

We never underestimate what our rural audiences want to watch, they love a variety and the NRTF support broadening horizons and exposure to new work and genres. When deciding if you want to rurally tour consider the process of booking and the likelihood of audiences connecting with the piece. You may find the sector slightly more risk-averse than city dwellers. Productions are selected by schemes and then shared in a menu to promoters/programmers of rural spaces, some of these promoters will need to go through a committee to get shows selected. They programme productions for their local community, neighbours and friends so want to be sure that it will be received well. Something to bear in mind when thinking of rural touring and for your marketing materials.