A programme can be beautifully designed and still misspell a performer’s name, omit a required credit or send the audience to an outdated website. Give proofreading a place in the schedule before the print deadline becomes urgent. Start with an approved content list and a person responsible for collecting corrections. The designer should not have to infer the final cast order from several conflicting messages sent after layout is complete.
Create a single source for names, roles, biographies and production credits. Ask people to confirm their own information and the form in which they want to be credited. Keep biographies within a stated length so layout does not become a negotiation over every page. Do not invent awards, training or past work to make a short biography sound fuller. A concise accurate paragraph is preferable to an impressive claim nobody has checked.
Check the agreement before the artwork
Review the actual licensing and rights arrangements for required billing, acknowledgements and restrictions. Concord Theatricals’ introduction to licensing explains the role of the agreement for its titles. Your production must use the terms that apply to its own work, music, images and other material. Do not copy a credit line from another company’s programme and assume it satisfies the current agreement.
Keep permission records for photographs, artwork and quoted material used in the programme. Identify who supplied each item and what use was approved. A photograph found online is not automatically available for promotional printing. Where a credit is required, place it accurately and legibly. If an item remains unresolved near the deadline, replace or omit it through the agreed decision process rather than allowing uncertainty to disappear into the final PDF.
Proof content and layout separately
Read the text without concentrating on design first. Check names against the approved source, verify dates and times, and confirm the running order. Then inspect the laid-out version for missing lines, broken words, small text and awkward page turns. A correct document can become incorrect during layout when a biography is shortened or a credit is moved. Changes after approval should return to the relevant checker.
Ask someone unfamiliar with the production to read the audience information. Can they identify the title, company, venue and performance details? Is the distinction between production roles clear? If a programme includes access or venue information, confirm it with the operator. Keep practical guidance concise and accurate rather than filling spare space with assumptions. A programme should not contradict the booking page or the front-of-house team’s current information.
Test the physical or digital result
Print a proof at the intended size when producing a printed programme. Fold it if necessary and check page order, margins and contrast under ordinary reading conditions. Do not judge small type only on a large bright monitor. For a digital version, inspect it on a phone and confirm that links work. Provide information in a usable form rather than relying solely on a decorative image of text where a more accessible version is needed.
Use a version name and keep approval explicit. Collect corrections into one list, apply them, then check the affected areas again. Avoid reopening every design choice during the final factual pass unless a real problem requires it. Keep the printer’s specifications and delivery arrangements separate from content approval so both are checked. An approved text file does not establish that the printed object will arrive in time or have the correct page order.
Archive the final approved programme and the permission records according to the production’s arrangements. Keep a short note of corrections discovered during the run so they are fixed in any reprint or digital update. Thank contributors through accurate credit and reliable documentation. The programme is a public record of shared work, and its small details deserve the same care the company gives to the performance.