Touring theatre - we need to act

Our theatre industry is facing a crucial moment. Rising costs, careful programming and the lack of touring opportunities are making it difficult for productions to reach regional audiences. Demand for live performance remains high, so what can the industry do to keep theatre thriving outside the big cities?

In April this year, ‘The State of Touring across the Performing Arts Ecology’ report, commissioned by The Arts Council took a deep dive into the known challenges of touring having consulted with hundreds within the industry.

The review describes touring as "in crisis, but not entirely broken". It concludes that rising costs, finances and increasing pressure on venues are putting the future of theatre touring at risk.

Results shows that drama has been hit hardest, with the number of touring plays falling by 70% since 2019. 

In May, theatres, producers, policymakers and funders joined forces to create The Local Theatre Touring Alliance to take action and combat the growing crisis.

The Alliance carried out the Venue Managers’ Report, which investigated the changing landscape of touring to gain insight into how programming, audience behaviour and more have evolved in the last twelve years.

Over fifty venues, who stage regular mid-scale touring, responded and the results painted a similar picture. Regional theatres want to show new productions, but many are being cautious around programming. Due to financial pressures and uncertainty around ticket sales it is too much of a risk to put on unknown shows. Producing touring work that audience’s favour is the easiest and safest option. 

The Local Theatre Touring Alliance has organised ‘Midscale’ – ‘a ‘marketplace’ to strengthen mid-scale theatre touring across the UK’. This pilot will open conversations that need to be had between venues, bookers and more to see how they can work together to get the best out of touring. This initiative is vital, and one I’m very grateful for. 

We have experienced touring first-hand when we took our original production of new writing ‘Hidden Stories’ to ten theatres around the country in 2023 and then the  well known ‘Talking Heads’ to eight venues in 2025.

The venues ranged from 80 seats to 200+ seats. The response from audiences was encouraging. Some performances sold out, audiences were engaged with the work, showing there was a real appetite for original, thought-provoking and witty theatre. It was of course harder to market new writing.

The experience, however, for both tours highlighted just how dependent touring companies are on strong partnerships with venues. Some theatres became genuine collaborators. They embraced the production, shared our marketing materials, reached out to their loyal audiences etc, which helped greatly with ticket sales.

Other venues had limited capacity or resources to market effectively. We of course were very proactive our end contacting many media outlets, but without local knowledge or established relationships, making reaching new audiences quite a challenge. Getting reviewers also proved difficult in some areas. One night in a venue doesn’t give much leeway.

Touring isn't only about transporting a production. It's about building excitement within each community you’re visiting, and that requires genuine collaboration between company and venue.

If the industry is to grow and thrive, touring must become a shared responsibility. When companies and theatres work together, by sharing expertise and building long term relationships audiences discover new productions on their doorstep, regional venues become vibrant hubs, and touring keeps theatre exciting and accessible.

I’m excited about the work being carried out by Local Theatre Touring Alliance and its Midscale event in October. I’ll be very interested to learn the outcomes and find new ways to keep touring theatre alive.