Essential Theatre: The successful management of theatres and venues which present the performing artsBy Crispin Raymond (Art Council of England, 1999. ISBN 0 7287 0783 7, out of print) New from the Arts Council of England (ACE), commissioned by the Touring Department (who have produced a small library of good reading material over the years) and no doubt set to become an industry standard, this is a fabulous book. I'm one of those arts managers who never had any training and so had to make it up as 1 went along - and how 1 could then (and still now) have used a book like this. It is a straightforward guide to running a presenting theatre nothing more and nothing less. It doesn't preach or patronise and it doesn't overcomplicate. What it does do, in clear and concise language, is consider the many problems and opportunities that one faces in this job on a daily basis. It doesn't pretend to have all the answers; indeed, the most common subheading is "consider the following suggestions:' and these suggestions are then given in a way that makes them seem possible and achievable. It is a real book about real life issues (there is one section titled 'appoint the theatre director with the utmost care' - very wise advice) and there is much to be learned from it, regardless of your experience. Even though (or because) it is so down to earth it is also surprisingly inspiring. I'm told that it is accessible on the lnternet and that you can search it automatically. 1 couldn't actually find it via the ACE website, and, whilst I'm sure this kind of use is fine, it is really a book for a train journey - probably on the way to an ACE meeting.
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