Upstage Theatre Company co-founder Scott Hili says they fell victim to a catfish incident during their production of Jesus Christ Superstar. ( Supplied: Norrington Media )
The Upstage Theatre Company based in Melbourne's south-east says it was caught up in a catfishing scam.
A person claiming to be from a church asked them to set aside about 150 tickets for its recent production of Jesus Christ Superstar, before disappearing at the last minute.
Co-founder Scott Hili says it was a "kick in the teeth", with the theatre company now considering the prospect of closure.
A suburban theatre company was left with more than 150 empty seats and lost $7,500 in ticket sales after being catfished by someone claiming to represent a Melbourne church.
Scott Hili, co-founder of Upstage Theatre Company in Pakenham, in Melbourne's south-east, said the not-for-profit he and his husband began two years ago may have to eventually close if they can't fundraise the shortfall.
The situation began when Mr Hili received an enquiry for a large number of tickets to a recent matinee performance of Jesus Christ Superstar.
"We had about 220 people booked. And then I got an email inquiry for 157 tickets, which was the exact amount that was left," he said.
He googled the church, blocked off the seats and even opened up some more space.
"They were back and forth, they were very prompt with replying and they were able to give me all this information," Mr Hili said.
The local theatre group says it lost about $7,500 in promised ticket sales. ( Supplied: Norrington Media )
But as the date drew nearer and the invoice he had sent remained unpaid, Mr Hili prodded them for payment.
The person behind the email promised that a priest would take care of it. After two more attempts, and a phone call to the church, who knew nothing about it, Mr Hili realised they had been catfished.
While he quickly released the block on the seats, he said it was too late to sell any more tickets for that particular performance.
Mr Hili said the incident was a "kick in the teeth" for their theatre company.
"We're putting in our own money to provide the community with opportunities to do what they love, so we want to keep doing that," he said.
"Someone has intentionally sat there, created an email, created a persona and went to the trouble of actually booking tickets and committing to buying them, and then ghosting us.
He said cast members, who'd been initially expecting a full house, were also left disappointed.
"It's the intent, right? That's what hurts the most."
Mr Hili is now considering fundraising options to try to keep the theatre afloat and pay about $8,000 owed to various people for the production.
"In a financial crisis where the cost of living is high, we're already struggling as a new starting company."
A Victoria Police spokesperson confirmed they had received a report regarding a fraudulent ticket reservation, which was thoroughly assessed by local police.
"A review of the relevant legislation determined that because no property or financial advantage was obtained by the sender, the incident does not meet the strict legal threshold for a criminal deception offence," police said in a statement.
However, the spokesperson said police strongly encouraged community and non-profit organisations to review their booking and ticketing policies to protect themselves from similar incidents.
Mr Hili shared his theatre's experience with other local theatre companies in the hope of preventing the same thing happening elsewhere.
The Victorian Drama League, the state's peak body for community theatre, also distributed the warning to its members.
League president Susan Rundle said it was already a tough time for local theatre companies, with many struggling to afford the price of renting council-owned venues.
She recently wrote to Victorian councillors and mayors to highlight the positive impact of theatre to local communities, and the challenges of putting on such shows.
Ms Rundle said unless theatre groups owned their own venue, or were able to access well-subsidised rent, they struggled.
Ticket handling fees were often another burden.
It can be prohibitively expensive for community theatre groups to rent local venues. ( ABC News: Erin Byrnes )
"I feel like there are a lot of councils that don't get the importance of things other than sport," she said.
Ms Rundle said local theatre provided another important activity to build community.
It comes as a Newcastle theatre group co-founder posted on social media in early October that they faced losses of $490,000 if they weren't able to sell more tickets to their production of Frozen.
The Very Popular Theatre Company's Daniel Stoddart posted on Facebook that ticket sales had halved compared to similar productions in recent years.
"By the time that became frighteningly clear, contracts had been signed, artists and suppliers engaged and commitments made," he said.
"Cancelling doesn't make the problem disappear. At this point, it makes it worse," he wrote.
"We also understand why people are spending differently. Mortgages, interest rates, groceries, fuel and the cost of simply existing have increased enormously. For many families, theatre is a luxury."
After Stoddart's plea, community members rallied and snapped up thousands of tickets.
Major musicals, including Beetlejuice, Waitress and Back to the Future have also had their national tours cancelled or cut short.
