Most of our performances and screenings are programmed and promoted by volunteers in community spaces across the North East of Scotland. 

They are committed to the arts and care deeply about their community. They volunteer so that others can enjoy live and screened events within their community without travelling great distances to large towns and cities. 

We curate a Volunteer Promoter Selection Menu of around 30 productions from the submissions we receive. The Volunteer Promoters select the productions they wish to promote; this can vary from 2 to 8 performances per venue per year. The number of consecutive performances per season a single company/artist tends to receive is between 1 and 5. If a production has been selected for inclusion in our menu, it does not guarantee a booking.     

NEAT coordinates all bookings and provides financial, administrative and marketing support to the Volunteer Promoters. 

Artists or companies are responsible for providing all publicity material. 

We guarantee the performance fee (set by the artist). We operate a Subsidy Scheme that Volunteer Promoters can access to reduce the financial risk to their venue. 

The Volunteer Promoter is responsible for marketing the performances locally, and NEAT will provide regional marketing support via our website, social media, press and newsletter. The Volunteer Promoters run their own box office outlets, and NEAT provides an online ticketing service. Box office outlets are varied, for example, local shops, garages, libraries etc.  

Once a booking has been confirmed, NEAT will share the venue contact details, and it will be the artist/company’s responsibility to liaise with the venue before the performance. 

Relaxed performances can be a fantastic way for people with various needs to enjoy a live theatre show. 

We are committed to ensuring that access to live theatre is an inclusive experience for as many people as possible. 

Whilst we fully understand that not all productions will be suitable for everyone. We can work together to ensure that we provide as much information as possible so audiences can make an informed decision. 

It may be possible to make minor adjustments to production, for example, reducing sound levels, changing lighting states or being open to a relaxed attitude to movement in and out of the auditorium. 

Where such adjustments are not possible, we can always forewarn audiences of particular content, for example, loud or sudden noises, flashing lights, scenes of physical violence etc. This will enable individuals, parents or carers to decide whether the performance is suitable and if so, they will be better prepared to deal with content or technical effects. 

Every season we receive far more productions than we can realistically include in our Volunteer Promoter Selection Menu.  

Around 30 productions are the optimum number for our menu. If we provide more than this, our Volunteer Promoters feel overwhelmed, and it becomes more difficult for us to book well-coordinated tours. 

We try to make our menu as diverse as possible; to do this, we have to limit the number of similar productions within each genre. 

Some other factors we consider when selecting productions in alphabetical order: 

• Content in relation to people and place  
• Fee 
• Previous track record of community touring  
• Quality of work 
• Scale and playing area 
• Technical requirements  

When submitting a production, it’s possible to save the form and complete it within 30 days. We strongly recommend reading all questions before filling out the form. Most questions are straightforward, but some need more significant thought and care.  

We only have access to submitted forms; we cannot access submissions which are “save and complete later”, so if the link expires, you will have to start again. 

The production company or artist are responsible for providing posters, flyers, images, press releases and other relevant publicity material. 

If publicity material is not provided, then NEAT will deduct printing costs from the fee. 

At a minimum, we require production companies/artists to provide A4 posters and A5 flyers. 

If publicity material is not overprinted, we will provide our Volunteer Promoters with free sticky labels with event details. 

For this to work effectively, we required a minimum space for labels. Please CLICK to download our Label Size Information 

If your production is touring as part of the above fund, we would like to start an early conversation to ensure that we can maximise the experience for our audience whilst also working within Creative Scotland’s guidelines.