Active for 76 years, the Brisbane Arts Theatre is one of the city's most persevering production companies, and it's also one of the art scene's best kept secrets.
“There's a lot of different perceptions about who we are and what we do in the community,” theatre manager Kym Brown explains. “What makes me sad is there are some people out there who have never heard of us, and we've been here for 76 years.
“We've been behind Brisbane for a number of years, now we need Brisbane to get behind us. You never know, you might see somebody onstage that you know because everybody is local.”
In fact, out of the team of 100-plus people working for the Brisbane Arts Theatre, the majority serve as volunteers — offering their assistance purely for the love of the venue. “For a very long time the theatre was purely run by volunteers as most community theatres are, and it's a unique passion with this place that people get really attached to and want to see it continue.
“The one thing that keeps us going even today is the hard work and dedication of all the people that come and give their time for free, whether it [is] onstage or backstage, or even in our costume department.”
From actors to directors, and costume designers to caterers, it seems the Brisbane Arts Theatre is busy harnessing talents far and wide. “Every single cast member is doing it for free [and so do] the directors, stage managers and designers – we also have costume and set departments.
“Outside of about six or seven predominantly part-time staff, everybody that keeps this place going is a volunteer so there are heaps of opportunities – even for people who love the theatre but don't want to be performers, there are [various] ways to volunteer.”
However, Kym acknowledges there are difficulties in keeping the community theatre afloat; especially considering the premises are inner city hot property. But despite its challenges, the Brisbane Arts Theatre remains 100 percent independently funded and is building a reputation for being a training ground for future stars. “The majority of it is our ticket sales and that's tricky because we can't guarantee what our income is going to be; it's not like we have a product that we can sell forever and make back any money we've spent on that product. It's got a finite lifespan and we've only got four weeks to fill up the show and sell as many tickets as possible.
“We do a lot of workshops as well, so we have acting classes and children's workshops,” Kym continues. “We've also just become a registered training organisation and are offering a proper certificate four qualification in the technical aspects of theatre.”
And the theatre seems to be breathing new life into Brisbane's contemporary arts scene — specialising in plays targeted for a younger audience. “One of our big differences is we have a children's theatre that runs all year. A lot of companies might do one or two shows a year that are aimed at a younger audience and families, but we do it all year round.
“There is a large demographic in Brisbane [who] want to take their children to the theatre, but going to the big musicals at QPAC have always been financially difficult for some families. So we offer fun, quality entertainment, and it's an opportunity for children to experience the theatre which is often new for them.”
From the Australian classic Picnic At Hanging Rock to Delicacy — a macabre tale about a German man who advertises for somebody to eat — the Brisbane Arts Theatre is adamant about putting on a show for everyone. But teeing off 2013's bill is an unconventional rendition of Casablanca.
“We're starting the year with Casablanca — a radio play — which is a classic movie but done in such a different way. I think radio plays are starting to have a re-emergence and people are fascinated because generations have passed now where … they used to sit and listen to these stories or plays on the radio. But seeing that live onstage as it would be in a radio station with people standing and reading their lines with sound effects happening is really fascinating.”
It's the theatre's dedicated costume department which paves the way for such dynamic programmes. “We've been collecting, building and making costumes for a long, long time. Unlike your fancy dress costume hire places … we have actual period costumes, and they're made for more for plays.
“And because we have such a small space in our theatre, we can't have huge sets; we have to have basic backdrops and set-pieces on stage … so what we do is up the efforts in our costume department. You can have a stage with just black curtains and have some fantastic costumes, and you feel like you're wherever you're supposed to be.”
