Webinar on tools for co-productions
The Development Platform for the Performing Arts and Dansk Scenekunst have jointly developed a set of contract tools for co-productions in the performing arts industry.
The tools consist of two contract templates designed to ensure clear and sustainable agreements, as well as a checklist intended to make it easier for theatres and independent performing artists to align expectations regarding their collaboration.
The agreement tools were developed with the aim of accommodating all parties, which is why UP and the employers’ organisation Dansk Scenekunst collaborated on their development.
The tools consist of a checklist for collaboration and two different contract templates
- The checklist helps all parties clarify terms and expectations in advance and ensure that there are as few oversights as possible that could lead to disagreements down the line.
- The contract templates are designed to ensure fair agreements. They were developed in collaboration with lawyers, so they can be used with confidence as contractual documents.
- There are two contract templates: one for co-productions where there is shared artistic responsibility, and one for co-productions where the project theatre or company bears sole artistic responsibility.
Download the contract templates and checklist here:
Contract Template for Co-Productions 1 - Joint Artistic Responsibility
Contract Template for Co-Productions 2 - The Company Bears Sole Artistic Responsibility
At MYKA, we have worked closely over the years with both small and large dance companies, institutional theaters, and museums in Denmark and abroad, and have entered into co-production agreements. It’s great that there’s more focus on this now, and it’s positive that UP and Dansk Scenekunst have developed a contract template and checklist to help others enter into agreements.
My Grönholdt, artistic director and choreographer of the MYKA dance company
The strength of our proposal for a concrete solution is that it was developed through a collaboration between Dansk Scenekunst, UP, and stakeholders from the independent performing arts sector. As a result, it draws on the experiences and needs of both theaters and independent performing artists.
Erik Pold, Head of UP
Background: Why an agreement tool for co-productions?
Over the past two years, UP and Dansk Scenekunst have worked together to develop contract tools in dialogue with stakeholders from the independent theatre scene and institutional theatres.
Co-productions between independent companies and theatres are a very common form of production. This was demonstrated by the survey of the independent arts scene conducted by the Development Platform in 2024/25. It also showed that co-productions are a format with room for improvement. Among the many respondents to the survey, there was a clear demand for a common contract template.
This was also the theme of a dialogue meeting between independent performing artists and institutional theatres at the Development Platform in 2024, which the Development Platform (UP) initiated following a lengthy and well-considered debate on the terms and conditions of co-productions and guest performances. As a result of the dialogue meeting, UP published the report The Good Co-Production Agreement: Inspiration for Best Practice.
Since then, UP has continued its work in response to the demand for practical tools. Through both focus group interviews with performing artists in the independent sector and consultation with Dansk Scenekunst and legal experts, we have arrived at the best possible outcome to create better opportunities for improved co-production agreements.
We have identified a clear need to establish a common framework for the many co-production collaborations taking place in the performing arts. In this way, we hope to support fair practices in this field.
Erik Pold, Head of UP
Photo: Alexis Rodríguez Cancino, from the performance HYPER CORAL by MYKA