Authored by sociologist Ayşegül Algan and journalist-critic Mustafa Kara, the report highlights that independent theatre venues struggle to reach audiences due to financial constraints and structural barriers. Nevertheless, it underlines that the ecosystem largely survives thanks to the resilience, sacrifice, and passion of theatre teams.
Key findings of the report include:
- 77% of independent theatre venues are located in Kadıköy, Beyoğlu, Şişli, and Üsküdar.
- 75% of the venues lack a regular communication strategy, with less than 20% receiving professional support.
- 94.1% of the venues use Instagram; however, algorithm changes and access barriers directly affect them.
- Social media remains the main channel of communication between audiences and theatres.
- While satisfaction with ticket sales platforms is 68.7% in terms of sales, it drops to 31.3% in terms of promotion.
- The annual communication budget is mostly under 100,000 TL, which the majority of venues find inadequate.
- Only 11.8% of the venues receive sponsorship support.
- Direct relations with mainstream media are weak; theatre media is considered insufficient and biased.
Independent venues expect supportive interventions
Theatre venues are calling on central and local governments to open public advertising spaces to theatres, introduce supportive legal regulations, and establish a central digital platform. They also expect support organizations and academia to provide data-driven research and long-term capacity-building programs. At the same time, venues feel the need to develop solidarity networks and joint digital communication strategies through their own initiatives.
The full report is available at: sofi.org.tr