BREAKAWAY THEATRE COMPANY CONSTITUTION AND RULES
1. The name of the Company shall be “Breakaway Theatre Company”. Within this document, it shall be referred to as “the Company”.
2. The objective of the Company shall be the production of plays and the encouragement of amateur drama.
3. Membership of the Company shall be open to all aged 18 and over, upon completion of an application form. Every non-member who is involved in a Company production shall be invited to apply for Membership.
4. All Members shall be entitled to attend and address any General Meeting of the Company and all Ordinary Members shall be entitled to vote and serve on Committees (Management and/or Production).
5. The Company shall have the following officers – Chair, Secretary and Treasurer.
The Company’s affairs shall be directed by a Management Committee which shall meet at least four times a year for this purpose. Its members shall be elected annually and shall comprise the officers and other members. The number of other members may be determined by a resolution in annual general meeting, but shall not be less than one or more than 10.
No decision shall be made at a Management Committee meeting unless at least four Committee members (including two officers) are present.
The Chair shall chair meetings of the Company and the Management Committee. If unable to do so, a deputy shall be nominated by the Management Committee. The person chairing any meeting shall have one vote as a member and an additional casting vote if the votes are otherwise equal.
6. If any Management Committee Officer (Chair, Secretary, Treasurer) should resign during their period of office, then an Extra-Ordinary election for their post should be held as soon as possible. Until this election, one of the current Management Committee should be nominated to carry out the duties of the resigning Committee Officer.
7. Members of the Company may be co-opted onto a Committee for specific purposes; they shall have full voting rights, but shall cease membership of the Committee as soon as the purpose for which they were co-opted has ceased.
8. The Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Company shall take place at a date and venue to be decided by the Management Committee and notified to the Membership at least one month in advance. The notice will invite all Ordinary Members to stand for election to the Management Committee. It will also describe how votes may be cast. If postal or proxy votes are to be permitted, details of those standing for office must be circulated to reach the ordinary membership at least one week before the AGM.
The business of the AGM shall be as follows:
i) The Minutes of the last AGM shall be approved.
ii) Reports given by the Management Committee Members, including presentation of accounts.
iii) Election of Management Committee Members.
Elections will be by simple count of the votes cast by members present and additionally by post and proxy if permitted. Each Management Committee Member will resign their post immediately before the election, but may stand for immediate re-election. Management Committee Members will take up their posts immediately, with the exception of the outgoing Secretary, who shall be responsible for the Minutes of the AGM. If the Secretary has been informed that Members wish to stand for a post before the AGM, only those Members will be eligible for election. If no-one has volunteered for a post, the Meeting may elect any willing volunteer present.
iv) Members can raise any subject for discussion at the Meeting. The Secretary should be notified at least one week in advance of the AGM for inclusion on the Agenda.
v) The quorum for the AGM shall consist of at least 10 members of the Company. If, after 30 minutes of the advertised time of the Meeting, the Meeting is not quorate, the Meeting may be re-convened at a later date.
9. The Management Committee may call Extra-Ordinary General Meetings of the Company, to consider specific business. The date, venue and Agenda for the Meeting must be notified to the full membership with reasonable notice. A quorum for this Meeting shall be the same as that for an AGM. An Extra-Ordinary General Meeting may also be called at the instigation of 12 members of the full Membership of the Company. This Meeting shall take place within 14 days of the notice given to the Management Committee or representative thereof.
10. The funds of the Company shall be invested in such a manner as the Management Committee decides will best serve the Company. Disbursements from the funds shall consist of: general running costs, production costs, capital expenditure for the Company, donations to Charity. Any other disbursements shall be at the discretion of the Management Committee in accordance with the aims of the Company.
11. The Treasurer shall prepare a statement of accounts, and present it to the AGM.
12. All Members shall accept the rules embodied in this Constitution, and agree to abide by them whilst in membership. Copies of the Constitution will be made generally available at the AGM and on request. The Management Committee shall be responsible for interpreting the Constitution, subject to a General Meeting of the Company. No alteration or addition to these rules shall be made, except where approved by majority vote at a quorate AGM or EGM and then shared with the members of the Company.
Adopted by the Members at the AGM on 08 October, 2024
