2023-07-31-accounts - Broxbourne Theatre Company

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Formerly ETCEA
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Registered Charity No. 1181847

Trustees’ Report for 2022/23

and

Accounts for the year ended 31[st] July 2023

Trustees

Mr. Scott Welch Chairman Mrs. Alex Rolle Vice Chairman Mr. David Curling Secretary Mr. Ian Stretch Treasurer Mrs Fiona Taylor Mrs. Patricia Johnson

Index	Page
Trustees’ Annual Report	2
Treasurer’s Report	3
Income & Expenditure Account	4
Balance Sheet at 31st July 2019	5
Notes to the Accounts	5
Independent Examiner’s Report	6
Production Accounts	7

Formerly ETCEA

An Amateur Musical Theatre Society founded by Alec Stretch in 1944 Registered Charity No. 1181847 Affiliated to the National Operatic & Dramatic Association Headquarters: “Bollescroft” Cock Lane, Hoddesdon, Herts. EN11 8BE www.BroxbourneTheatreCompany.co.uk

TRUSTEES’ REPORT 2022/23

For the first time since the pandemic, we have been able to present two productions this year, the pantomime Sleeping Beauty and the musical Little Shop of Horrors.

Sleeping Beauty was directed by Malcolm Hollow, the musical director was Joanne Pierce, and it was choreographed by Wendy Couldridge. We have produced the same script several times over the years and the decision was made to allow the director to put forward a script of his choice and a script written by an author by the name of Ben Crocker was chosen.

The auditions went ahead without any issues and as well as our normal chorus, nine children were also chosen to join the chorus. This obviously brought with it the added complication of needing chaperones at all rehearsals and performances, however this was overcome reasonably smoothly.

The pantomime was colourful, lively, and comedic. The audiences were still lower than we would have liked, however it was wonderful to be able to perform a pantomime again.

Little Shop of Horrors was our May production this year, directed by Scott Welch, musical direction by Joanne Pierce, and choreographed by Wendy Couldridge. This marked the first time that we have performed using puppets and this brought with it many challenges, including only seeing them via photographs up until they arrived the day we got into the theatre.

Traditionally, Little Shop of Horrors is performed without a chorus, however it was important to make sure everyone was included, and the set chosen helped with this as the set could be moved by the chorus rather than using a stage a crew. This not only saved time but, in an age, where it is difficult to find experienced stage crew it made show week slightly easier backstage.

The audition started at 2 O’clock in the afternoon, and the audition panel did not leave until 9 o’clock in the evening. The reason for this was due to having several talented ladies auditioning for the part Audrey, it took a long while to make decisions. In the end the panel believed they had made all the right decisions.

The show was a challenge musically, but the cast created lovely harmonies and it was lovely to see new members joining us as well as some old members returning.

It was the lowest selling musical we have ever produced, there could be many reasons for this including the choice of musical, the week we performed as well as the Kings coronation being the weekend of the show. We moved our two Saturday shows to the Sunday to accommodate the fact both cast, and audience would want to watch, for some what would be a once in a lifetime event. The low numbers of tickets sold does not mean the quality of the show was poor, the cast and team behind the show worked hard to create a good quality musical, which we believe was achieved.

The end of this season marks the completion of 30 years of rehearsals in the society’s headquarters, “Bollescroft,” our occupancy of which is still in limbo due to Broxbourne Council’s reluctance to commit funds to carry out remedial works required before a new lease can be signed. Fortunately, income from hiring the building to other local organizations and individuals has increased over the year, covering the building’s running costs. This good news was marred at the end of the season when an apparently innocent hiring turned out to be to highly undesirable individuals who spent the evening and into the small hours doing as much damage as possible and leaving the building in an unimaginable state. Only the prompt and amazing work by our cleaners on a Sunday morning quickly returning the building to a usable condition allowed regular hiring to continue undisturbed. The incident was reported to, and is now under investigation by Hertfordshire Police.

The next season promises to be exciting, with Jack and the Beanstalk running in January and then Sister Act being performed in May 2024, with a director new to us coming on board to direct for us.

Signed on behalf of the Trustees

Scott Welch Chairman

Formerly ETCEA

TREASURER’S REPORT 2022/23

After 3 very difficult years for the theatre world, both professional and amateur, it was a relief to again be able to run a season in our more normal format, with two full productions and Bollescroft open for the entire year.

Surprisingly, Sleeping Beauty achieved a larger profit than our previous pantomime, Puss In Boots in 2020, despite ticket sales being 10% down. This was largely due to special one-off terms for the hire of the theatre, offsetting the cost of hiring extra technicians, instead of the substantial increase in charges that were expected.

We will never know whether the 40% reduction in ticket sales for our musical for the year, The Little Shop of Horrors was due to the public’s reluctance to spend money on theatre tickets in the current cost of living crisis, a lack of local interest in this niche musical, or the fact that our regular playing week for the past 45 years, the first week in May, was chosen for the King’s Coronation on the Saturday with an extra bank holiday on the following Monday, inducing many to take a week’s holiday which actually caused a drop in the national GDP for May. More likely it was a combination of all three.

The massive drop in ticket sales was a major concern financially but, fortunately there were large cost savings in various areas. The music for the show is scored for an orchestra of only 5 musicians instead of the 12 required for the previous year’s Sound of Music, saving almost £3,000; wardrobe requirements were minimal, with most of the cast supplying their own costumes, saving over £1,750; and transport of the reduced amount of scenery was significantly less than for a more traditional show. The up-side of the reduced ticket sales was a saving of another £1,750 in royalty and box office commissions. These savings more than offset the reduction in income

The combination of the better than expected outcome for both shows resulted in a profit on productions of over £6,700.

Occupancy of the society’s headquarters, Bollescroft, by other organisations was up considerably, partly due to a new regular weekly Sunday morning booking, resulting in a 60% increase in hire income. The cost of heating the building is an ongoing concern due to the inefficient heaters and the potential for significant increases at the 6 monthly price reviews, particularly during the energy crisis. The price per kW hour was increased by 21% in October, leading to monthly bills in excess of £1,700. Fortunately this was reduced by 22% in April, coinciding with the turning off of the heating for the summer. Despite this it is satisfying to achieve a surplus of £1,715 over the running costs of the building.

Other operating costs remain broadly the same as last year, although the increasing cost of renting garages for the storage of now little used equipment is reaching a level where serious action needs to be taken. Despite this, we are pleased to report that we end the year with a surplus of £6,951, being only the 5[th] year that we have had a surplus since the introduction of a professional pantomime in 2006 decimated our income; however, we do still have a healthy level of capital reserves.

Finally, our thanks to Carol Bowyer for again carrying out the independent examination of our accounts.

Ian Stretch ACIS (Ret’d) Hon. Treasurer 15[th] August, 2023.

Formerly ETCEA

Registered Charity No. 1181847

An Amateur Society founded by Alec Stretch in 1944. Affilliated to the National Operatic & Dramatic Association. Headquarters: “Bollescroft,” Cock Lane, Hoddesdon, Herts. EN11 8BE

ias 07/08/23

INCOME & EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT for the year ending 31st July, 2023	INCOME & EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT for the year ending 31st July, 2023	INCOME & EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT for the year ending 31st July, 2023	INCOME & EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT for the year ending 31st July, 2023
INCOME: Membership Subscriptions Interest on Deposits Lottery Proceeds & Other Income Premises Hire Productions: Pantomime Musical Young Set Other Events TOTAL INCOME EXPENDITURE: General Expenses Stationery & Postage Insurance NODA Subscription Bank & Zettle Charges General Publicity Premises: Rent Maintenance Light, Heat & Power Sundry Equipment Depreciation Productions: Pantomime Musical Young Set Other Events TOTAL EXPENDITURE: Surplus or (Deficit) Carried to Capital Fund	24,324 13,655 - - 428 59 1,218 122 57 - 1,865 4,962 8,519 - 265 15,383 15,812 - -	- 19,165 - 259 459 25 1,259 150 16 - 1,813 2,994 6,696 145 584 - 26,633 - 125		2021/22
				1,161 6 420 9,373 19,424
			£ 30,384
			14,141 26,758
			£ 40,899

			( £ 10,515)

Formerly ETCEA

Registered Charity No. 1181847

An Amateur Society founded by Alec Stretch in 1944. Affilliated to the National Operatic & Dramatic Association. Headquarters: “Bollescroft,” Cock Lane, Hoddesdon, Herts. EN11 8BE ias 07/08/23

BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31st JULY,	BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31st JULY,	BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31st JULY,
ASSETS Fixed Assets 1 Plant & Equipment (net) Current Assets Stock of Souvenirs Sundry Debtors 2 Pre-payments: Bank Deposits Cash at Bank Cash in Hand Less Current Liabilities 3 Creditors falling due within one year 4 Accruals Net Current Assets REPRESENTED BY: Capital Fund b/fwd From Income & Expenditure A/c	1,558 5,103	2023 - 370 - 1,990 45,217 1,882 - £ 49,458 (6,660) £ 42,798 35,846 6,952 £ 42,798	681 7,697	2022 265 280 - 2,326 40,042 1,307 6	2022
				£ 44,224 (8,378)
				£ 35,846
				46,361 (10,515)
				£ 35,846

NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS

The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention with Income and Expenditure accounted for on an accruals basis, and in accordance with Financial Reporting Standard FRS102

1 Fixed Assets & Depreciation

Depreciation on all assets is calculated on a straight line basis over 10 years.

Total Assets: Cost B/fwd 5,791 Depreciation B/fwd 5,527 Additions - Depreciation Charge 265 Total Cost £ 5,791 Total Depreciation to date £ 5,791 Net Book Value at 31/07/2023 -

2 Prepayments mainly consist of deposits paid in connection with productions scheduled for performance in 2024.
3 Sums accrued for running costs associated with Bollescroft, incurred but not paid at the year end, plus hire fees received for future hire bookings
4 The society's rehearsals and other activities are held in "Bollescroft," a building owned by Broxbourne Borough Council but managed by the society. The accrual represents a provision made for estimated future rent due but never called. Negotiations for a new lease are currently stalled.

c?tmtpanp Formerly ETCEA

Registered Charity No. 1181847 An Amateur Society founded by Alec Stretch in 1943. Affilliated to the National Operatic & Dramatic Association. Headquarters: "Bollescroft," Cock Lane, Hoddesdon, Herts. EN11 8BE

Independent examiner's report to the Members of Broxbourne Theatre Company.

I report on the accounts of the society for the year ended 31st July, 2023.

Respective responsibilities _of trustees and examiner

The trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts.

The trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year and that an independent examination is needed.

It is my responsibility • To examine the accounts
To state whether particular matters have come to my attention.

Basis of independent examiner's report

An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the society and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a 'true and fair view' and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below.

Independent examiner's statement

I have completed my examination and confirm that no material matters have come to my attention which cause me to believe that:

accounting records were not kept in accordance with relevant legislation, or
the accounts do not accord with the accounting records.

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

::::' t!!!:J:AAT ___

Date: "f7}rrf2:J

Address: Barwick Lodge, Barwick, High Cross, Ware, SGll 1Df)

Formerly ETCEA

07/08/2022

Registered Charity No. 1181847

An Amateur Society founded by Alec Stretch in 1944. Affilliated to the National Ope ias 07/08/23

Headquarters: “Bollescroft” Cock Lane, Hoddesdon, Herts. EN11 8BE

PRODUCTION ACCOUNTS 2022/23

Production	Pantomime	Pantomime	Musical	Musical
Title	Sleeping Beauty	Jan 2020 6 21,133 1,650 355 1,147 95 51 Puss in Boots	Little Shop of Horrors	May 2022 5 17,019 1,350 521 - - 275 The Sound of Music
Date Numberof Performances	Jan 2023 6 21,624 1,575 348 - 629 148		May 2023 5 11,755 1,550 321 - - 29
INCOME Ticket Sales Production Fees Programme Sales & Advertising Refreshments Mercandise Sales Other Income
TOTAL INCOME	£ 24,324	£ 24,431	£ 13,655	£ 19,165
EXPENDITURE Hire of Theatre Production Team Fees Orchestra, scores & libretti Wardrobe & Make-up Scenery, Props & Special Effects Lighting Sound & Technicians Transport Publicity Programme Printing Royalties Box Office Commissions Refreshment Costs Mercandise Sundries	2,352 1,400 1,178 1,562 2,118 600 272 780 1,479 208 863 2,162 31 328 50	2,492 1,600 1,446 1,163 2,214 500 499 650 1,955 270 658 2,395 723 47 37	4,231 1,100 2,023 153 1,764 600 45 780 1,438 146 2,257 1,176 31 - 70	6,138 1,500 4,609 1,989 1,487 600 1,602 2,231 905 295 3,269 1,913 56 - 40
TOTAL EXPENDITURE	£ 15,383	£ 16,649	£ 15,812	£ 26,634

PROFIT or (LOSS)	£ 8,940	£ 7,781	(£2,158)	(£7,469)
Number of Tickets Sold	1,244	1,391	686	1,142

This page does not form part of the statutory financial statements

Note: The Spotlighht theatre remained closed from March 2020 to February 2022, causing the cancellation of our annual pantomime for two years. The figures for our last pre-Covid pantomime are included above for comparison only.