United Theatre Practitioners

The United Theatre Practitioners (UTP), a blanket body representing 12 Gauteng community theatre groups was formed and registered as an NPO (non-profit organisation) in October 2004.

In the early years of the new millennium the frustration amongst many performing artists reached such a climax that in June 2003 fifty members of the United Theatre Practitioners occupied the NAC premises in Newtown, Johannesburg to protest the delays in funding and the fact that eventually ten of the twelve productions for which the UTP had applied for funding had been turned down by the NAC. This meant that works in rehearsal and already on the Grahamstown Festival programme would have to be cancelled. In the end the protestors had to be removed from the premises by the police. (JvH)

The United Theatre Practitioners was de-registered in October 2012.