Touring nationally and abroad can significantly increase the range of productions made in the independent performing arts community. At the same time, the work changes with every location in which it is presented or further developed. Local specifics such as historical processes and significant discourses lead to the formation of independent performative practices. The success of a production that has been developed or presented in the German-speaking world is not directly transferable to other communities. The first task at hand, that is, is to answer a few general questions:

• Why should precisely this production be presented in a different place and where should it be presented?
• Do I / do we have sufficient capacities to engage with another context and is there a readiness to make adjustments to the production if necessary?
• How clear is the profile of the production and/or that of the artist or group?

A clear self-image and a well thought-out strategy are both very helpful for the planning of additional steps and the utilization of advisement opportunities. This does not mean that you have to have a perfectly formulated strategy before you make use of the advisement opportunities. The questions listed above, however, could be of use to you in order to help you make your profile and your goals more clear – and this can increase the success of opportunities for advisement enormously.

International partnerships can be made in a wide variety of ways. All the same, there are a couple of universal recommendations that come into play when establishing and maintaining connection to other communities:

if you do not have any connections to the desired community (yet), it is advisable to first gain an overview of call for applications for taking part in festivals or residencies. Directly contacting performance venues is much easier if you have already presented your first works within the community and have been able to invite representatives of local performance venue to the performances. In addition, there are exchange programs from a variety of institutions that support the first contacts between different local art communities by, for example, providing financial support to attend festivals. 
We have put together a list of programs that we are aware of in the section Funding Programs and Exchange Formats.   

Subscribing to the LAF newsletter is highly recommended for artists who would like to bring productions to Berlin. At regular intervals, the newsletter provides information about current calls for applications and application deadlines for public funding programs as well as about industry-relevant events and information. For artists who are part of Berlin’s independent performing arts community, it is advisable to conduct research into initiatives and organizations for the local independent performing arts community and to enter into contact with them.

As soon as a local network has been formed and/or direct contact with performance venues or coproduction partners can begin, informative promotional materials and a good online presence become factors of significant importance. A clear differentiation between press and promotional material as well as high quality video material and a website that is accessible in multiple languages are of critical importance here. In addition, experience has shown that it is advisable to invest time in good, personalized correspondence. It is better to personally contact a selection of five to ten performance venues or partner institutions that are suitable for the content of your work than it is to send the same general request to thirty addresses.

Speaking for Berlin’s independent performing arts community, the answer is yes and no. There are production management offices who work together with artists whose productions tour internationally. For example, Tanzbüro Berlin provides a search function on its website for production, press and other important services. These collaborations, however, are mostly the result of a long-term development. The first steps toward international cooperations do require a proactive and independent engagement of the respective artists or groups. 

Wide-ranging opportunities for advisement from a variety of institutions can provide helpful support in this phase. For example, the Berlin Performing Arts Program offers both advisement sessions as well as workshop formats that place a focus on (inter)national touring. The information portal Touring Artists bundles a comprehensive overview online of questions concerning international artistic work and also provide individual advisement sessions on a limited basis.

The exact details of a cooperation are dependent upon the respective partner and/or institution. In light of this, providing a general answer is extraordinarily difficult. There are, however, a few general things that really should be kept in mind – especially when you are drafting or checking agreements for cooperations: 

• what is included in the fees that have been agreed upon and do they take the regular local day rates and minimum fee limits into account? 
• Is a lump-sum payment for the increased planning needs included for all of the participants? 
• Who will cover the costs of what kinds of insurance? And/or what insurance protections are already covered by the artist or group and does this coverage also continue abroad? Health insurance and accident insurance should both be taken into special consideration here.
• Who will be responsible for royalties and/or additional usage rights such as, for example, GEMA or copyrights? These are often covered by the presenter, but it is still advisable to clarify this as soon as possible. 
• Is a visa required for the guest performance and, if so, how does it have to be applied for? Who will finance it? The costs for visas can be covered as a part of the travel expenses, but this should take place in consultation with the parties who are involved. In addition, sufficient time for the application should be taken into account and an alternative plan should be thought of for the eventuality that the application is rejected. 
• How language-based is the production and what tasks result from this within an international context? In this case, not only the costs and expenses of a translation as well as the creation and operation of supertitles need to be taken into consideration. The technical setup and additional rehearsal times also require planning in advance. 
• Who has to pay which taxes? It is useful to have this broken down and clearly defined in the contract.

On the online platform Touring Artists (the information platform for internationally mobile artists), there are a number of sample contracts available that can provide helpful support during the individual drafting of contracts. In addition, the website also features Notes on Foreign Transactions. These include practice-relevant information about value-added tax with foreign elements for artists who are working internationally as well as for those who invite artists, hire them and work together with them. The notes on foreign transactions have been compiled in collaboration with the attorney Sonja Laaser.

For questions regarding taxes, the Ultimate Cookbook for Cultural Managers by Pearle (2021 edition) is a useful guide. 

Although this question is, justifiably, posed very often, it is just about impossible to answer on a general level, very similar to the question of general pointers in terms of the organization of an international guest performance.

In order to draft a budget, it is critical to know which of the parties involved will take on which specific costs for a guest performance. The general notes previously mentioned can provide a relevant orientation here. In Berlin, there have previously been comparatively few guest performance managers or production management offices that have supported the artists and groups in the distribution of their work. On the hand, this is due to funding structures (for example, there is not currently any dedicated funding for management available at the moment in the independent performing arts), on the other, this is also due to the budget planning of the artists and groups themselves. The more often that the independent managers are taken into consideration and budgeted for in the budgets of international guest performances, the more attractive the job can become for the many members of the independent performing arts community with the corresponding expertise.