Having a Crack at Theatre in an Empty Space

When Crack Theatre Festival - the national festival of performers working in experimental and fringe theatre - were looking for suitable spaces to house their 2011 program at Newcastle's This is Not Art Festival, they set their sights on a former Chinese restaurant in the Hunter Street Mall. Simone Sheridan spoke to Crack's Jane Grimley to find out how it went.

Finding A Festival Venue

According to Jane Grimley, Crack Theatre Festival's Co Artistic Director, securing a venue for their five-day program of performances required investigative work and patience that eventually lead them to Suite 40, a disused commercial space that provided both challenge and inspiration in shaping their 2011 Festival.

'When I first looked around Suite 40 I knew it was going to be a great option for us. It had heaps of rooms and interesting spaces and it was close to the centre of town,'  Jane Grimley said. 'We were told that it once was a Chinese Restaurant but it had had a few incarnations since then.' 

'It was clear this space had an unusual past and we could be adventurous in it.'

An important consideration for Crack was access and this space was accessible via a lift for people with a disability. 

The building owners and managers were open to Crack using the space as Renew Newcastle had successfully used it for projects in the past. 

'We found the Newcastle community, property managers' The GPT Group and local businesses to be great hosts,' said Jane Grimley.

'We wanted to be great guests too, so we approached the relationship as a creative collaboration from the very beginning. Our innovations as artists were shaped by the constraints of the space - so, in a sense, we were grateful to have some rules to work within and challenge.'

Temporarily renamed 'Crack House', Suite 40 was home to a number of Crack and Electrofringe Festival events during This Is Not Art.  Crack's program also used other Newcastle venues including The Lumber Yard, The Pond, The Hunter Street Mall, The Lockup, The Loft and Blackall House. 

'Being able to find and access the appropriate spaces to present the diverse range of work by experimental theatre makers has a positive impact on their professional development,' said Jane Grimley.

'By drawing upon our expertise as curators and directors, and carefully considering the type of space we use, we are offering artists the best possible opportunity to craft sophisticated, high calibre works that leave a lasting impact on their audience.' 

The Agreement

A two part, commercial (in-kind), ten day license agreement was drawn up between the property owner and Crack Theatre Festival, which set out terms and obligations of the agreement for each party, including clauses on:

• Insurance
• Security
• Access to the venue
• Fire Safety
• Waiver of fees for venue use 

Public Liability was covered by This is Not Art Festival, building compliance was held by the property managers, The GPT Group, and participating artists were covered by personal insurance.

Jane Grimley said, 'We spoke with Newcastle City Council to arrange garbage and other amenities and check if we needed to submit a Development Application.' (They didn't.)

'We also notified the Council about our intention to have a liquor license and inquired about building compliance, fire safety and other OHS requirements through GPT. We also developed a security schedule for the security staff before collecting the keys.'

Challenges Using the Space

The space had multiple rooms, all of which Crack wanted to use, but very few of them had doors to close off the room.

'We considered hanging curtains in each doorway to muffle the sound as an affordable option, but even that was too expensive for our budget,' says Jane Grimley.  'So instead we used recycled blind backing material to create two flaps that covered each doorway in combination with clever programming. We programmed sound-sensitive works in the rooms where the sound could be better contained.'

By blocking doorways the next issue was dealing with the limited air flow, exacerbated by heat from lighting.

'The space had flouro tube lighting in the ceiling but we didn't want to use that because it created the wrong atmosphere,' said Jane Grimley. 'We wanted to install house lights as well as performance lights.

'We didn't have access to three phase power but there were a lot of general power outlets and, potentially, a lot of different circuits hard wired already.

'But my advice is "don't be fooled by a lot of outlets it might be all on one circuit",' warns Jane.

As there were no circuit plans and no access to the distribution board: sound systems, projectors, theatre lights, computers and, of course, beer fridges, had to be plugged in and tested as they went.

'We were very careful not to overload (what we had worked out were) the shared circuits,' says Jane 'And we were successful.'

'The best solution would have been to use LED Par Cans as they don't draw a lot of power. But we couldn't afford to hire LED units so made do through the help of various sponsors who donated some lighting.'

Knowing how hot theatre lighting can get - especially in spaces with low ceilings and no air conditioning - Crack installed fans, also on loan.

'The fans were noisy and used up precious power,' says Jane Grimley. 'So we opened up all windows between shows.'

'It would have been great to have the windows open the whole time but our noise would have spilled out onto the street and disturbed our neighbours. And outside light and noise would have affected the performances - not to mention the rain that would have come in!'

Central Benefits  

Jane Grimley feels that, as well as not having to pay venue hire fees, securing a location in the centre of town made the theatre festival accessible to the greatest number of people.

Crack House also acted as mini hub for the entire festival. The inclusion of a licenced bar meant that audiences could enjoy the performances and relax or socialise pre- and post-performances, creating a real Festival 'buzz'. 

Lessons from Experience 

Crack Theatre Festival offers this advice to others thinking about temporary use of an empty space:

• Understand what you are bringing to the place and how it will benefit the other stakeholders.
• Know exactly what you are going to do and be able to clearly communicate why you make art and how it will fit or work in a given situation. And then be prepared to adapt your ideas in response to an opportunity.
• Be clear, concise and professional.

And to landlords of empty shops, Jane Grimley's advice is, 'Art increases the potential and value of the property because an active, surprising creative space is going to attract the curiosity and interest of people.'

'It changes the commercial landscape of an area, attracts a broader demographic and diversifies the potential market - because if you can use the space for art you can use the space for anything.'

'From a landlord or agent's perspective that's an advantage. It sends a strong message to potential long-term tenants that the space could work for them, no matter what business they are in.'

Contact: Jane Grimley, Crack Theatre Festival

Image Captions

Top: Matty B Performing in the Crack House, 2011. Photo: Luke David Kellet, Headjam

Middle and Bottom: Crack Theatre Festival bump-in, 2011. Photos: Simone Sheridan 

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