Circa Theatre at the Crossroads?

MIKE NICOLAIDI

Greater Wellington's population should be able to support two professional theatres. . . But if the alternative to Downstage simply means doing the plays that Downstage can't do because they can only perform 12-odd main bills a year, then I'm not so sure we need an alternative theatre, for all it means is more of the same. I'd like to see a commitment to something other than just putting on plays. . . a commitment to what? Anything you like as long as it's believed in and done with imagination, wit and love. Or indignation, anger and hatred. Asking too much? Probably. . .
Laurie Atkinson in the course of reviewing Circa's opening production of David Hare's Knuckle, ACT, May 1976.

A gallery of fine performances, but only occasionally that sense of ensemble and ritual celebration which should surely be Circa's forte. That sense requires innovative producers and a precise sense of now - not the indirection and vague sense of the times epitomised in this theatre's title.
David Dowling in the course of a review of Circa's 1977 season, ACT, March 1978.

The reasons for the birth of Circa Theatre, almost three years ago now from first performance date, can be argued many ways.

Some might say it came into being from a fit of pique by a group of leading actors in the capital - their pique being directed at Downstage, whose policy to form a permanent company at that time appeared to threaten 'free-lance' acting opportunities in the city.

Others might say the actors, and some of those directly involved in Circa's formation, were frightened of the new challenges presented by the Hannah Playhouse and the new standards of excellence it demanded.

And yet others - probably more down-to-earth and less acid-tongued - saw the development simply as a response to the fact that Wellington could possibly sustain two professional theatres offering continuous programming.

It was almost a year from the time that serious talking began, that Circa finally opened up shop in Harris Street behind the Wellington Public Library. During that time another group, The Performers Theatre, also attempted to get underway in a former nightclub opposite the St James' Theatre in Courtenay Place. As well, the city's long-established amateur group, Unity Theatre, just across the road from Downstage's new home, eased towards a semi-professional situation. The crux of the matter in all three cases was an attempt to evolve a type of theatre cooperative. But of them all, Circa is the only one to have survived.

After a brave start, TPT foundered and its premises are now part of the disco scene. Unity has lost direction and is now just a place, rather than a theatrical 'cause', offering its space irregularly to just about any group of performers in town.

Circa remains. But in recent months, it, too, has given the impression of faltering slightly, programming difficulties resulting in the theatre going 'black' for three weeks in September. Many reasons, again, have been offered - the volume of work elsewhere, particularly at Downstage and in film and television, which has eaten into the scarce resources of good male actors; the lack of suitable scripts; a paucity of directors.

A major factor has certainly been a certain loosening of Downstage's permanent company structure which has en sured more regular 'free-lance' opportunities at the Hannah. Or it could just be that alleged lack of genuine theatrical belief and commitment, hinted at by local critic Laurie Atkinson when he reviewed the first Circa production - the real imperative for creating theatre. Only time will tell.

Time will also tell whether the theatre chooses to continue to operate, as it has until now, without subsidy from the Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council.

Meantime, the temporary hiatus at least provides a moment to wonder at, and in many instances vigorously applaud, Circa's achievements from the time David Hare's Knuckle first opened the theatre's doors on April 23, 1976.

If for little else, it will have written itself into the country's theatre history as being the place where Roger Hall's Glide Time and Middle Age Spread first burst into life, capturing new, huge audiences.

It has been the place where Grant Tilly's many gifts as actor, designer and, more recently, director, have been regularly displayed and where Ray Henwood has strengthened further as one of the country's strongest acting talents.

It has offered some splendidly satisfying all-round productions: Anthony Taylor's Kennedy's Children and Glide Time; Jean Betts' Claw; Anne Flannery's The Constant Wife; Tilly's Dusa, Fish, Stas and Vi, and Colin McColl's A Toast to Melba.

And it has been a place for new directors to chance their arms successfully, as in the case of John Reid with Dracula, Ross Jolly with Knock Knock, Michael Haigh with Middle Age Spread, Ginette McDonald with Old Flames, and most recently, Michael Heath with his own play, Pieties.

Although Circa has a deliberate policy of not concentrating, particularly, on New Zealand work, it has nevertheless been a venue for several. Apart from Hall and Heath, first performances of John Banas' Package Deal and Frank Edwards' Pigland Prophet have taken place within its walls.

The mainstays of Circa's small, 'closed' society membership, and the key personnel on its working council, are Henwood, his wife, Carolyn, Tilly, Susan Wilson, Haigh, Jolly, Reid, Lee Bruce, costume designer Gwen Kaiser and treasurer Neville Carson.

In conversation with the Henwoods and Susan Wilson last September, Circa's history, method of operation and future direction, were discussed:

M.N.: Why, and how, did Circa come into being?
R.H.: Well, there had been quite a bit of moaning by actors in the Green Room of Broadcasting about Downstage. There was a feeling among some that they didn't want to act at the new Downstage: among others, a feeling that outlets for stage work in the city were inadequate.
C.H.: At the beginning, discussion centred not so much on a theatre as such, but a structure for working, a way of working. I said: if you get the idea together, I'll get a space. I rang David Shand who was then a city councillor and he was very keen. We eventually got a pretty impressive prospectus together, and the backing of the City Council.
R.H.: In effect, the City Council is a major patron of Circa in that they gave us our Harris Street premises for what is a peppercorn rental.
S. W.: We were all fairly agreed on a co-operative.
C.H.: Everyone felt that a formal permanent theatre structure would not work in Wellington. That the situation in the city was that there was an informal pool of experienced actors who wished to have some flexibility in the way they worked. . . not to be on long-term contract, but to come and go for particular productions.
S.W.: The situation was somewhat unique in that members of this group were essentially Wellington residents and in many cases friends of longstanding. By that I mean everyone knew everyone else's strengths and weaknesses. . .
M.N.: How does the co-operative work?
C.H.: Circa is an incorporated society with a closed membership, a minimum of fifteen members. To admit anyone new, there must be unanimity among the members.
R.H.: The working council decides who it wants to direct a play. . .
C.H.: . . . sometimes the reverse happens, and a director approaches us. . .
R.H.: . . . and then he or she organises a production team. Each production is a separate co-operative venture with the Circa 'core' always available for help and advice - for instance in providing P.A.s and lighting operators.
C.H.: Circa, as such, takes thirty percent of the gross of each production to cover such things as royalties, advertising, maintenance and rent: and the rest is divided among all those involved in a particular production, both out front and backstage. They work out a partnership agreement in terms of the split, which is usually on a time basis. . . the amount of time each member of the co-operative devotes to the production. Usually the director, actors and P .A. get the top percentages. . .
The co-operative system is a painfully open system of working. We've all experienced personal agony because it means that everyone knows each step that is taken and no-one hesitates in challenging someone else. . . all the time.
We never press people to give more than they are prepared to give. . .
R.H.: It also means we obtain great variety in productions, with a fresh group working each time. Each member of a particular co-operative will get some return from the production he or she is involved with, even if sometimes it's just a pittance. Sometimes the count exceeds equity rates, sometimes it's below.
C.H.: Our books are always up-to-date because all bills have to be paid up after each production. We have perfected a neat and efficient system.
M.N.: But despite this, it has been said that a lack of philosophy, if you like, is a handicap. . .v C.H.: We don't have a written-down philosophy.
S.W.: Our aim is to produce theatre of the highest possible standard. . .
R.H.: We have faith in the people associated with Circa. At times we have compromised because sometimes we have not been able to get the cast we wanted or been able to 'marry' a director and playas we would have wished. We decided not to have a policy to do New Zealand plays as such, because we didn't want to put New Zealand plays into a special group. . .
C.H.: We wanted to have an international approach. . .
R.H.: But because of the theatre's nature, playwrights have been able to come to Circa with scripts and have a fair chance of getting them on. Joe [Musaphia] knows that if he gives us a script it will be read and considered for production on its merits.
M.N.: Currently, the theatre is 'dark'. Are you concerned about this, and how do you see Circa's future?
S.W.: At this time, unfortunately, there just seems to be a lack of physical talent in the city.. The 'black gap' really was due much earlier. . .
R.H.: But we have rights to some excellent things ahead. After Butley, which opens on October 5, we have a new play by Simon Carr called the Everyweather Girl. It's a political play based at Avalon and just right for election time. We do expect to do Roger Hall's new pantomime version of Cinderella at Christmas. We're also looking at a new Musaphia play, Alun Bennett's The Old Country and a German play, by Fassbinder I think, Petra Von Kamp. These are all ready to be slotted. . .
We said right from the beginning that we would not go to the Arts Council until we proved ourselves. . .
C.H.: But we do, I think, have to find some sort of way to improve the funding of the co-operatives, so that what members take away is reasonable. . .

In many ways, as its third birthday nears, Circa Theatre is at a crossroads. While in one sense it has acted as a safety valve by providing an acceptable, additional space for quality theatre in the city, its continued existence remains somewhat tenuous.

Although it is unlikely to 'go under', complete commitment by those most involved, in effect, has probably yet to be given.