With theatre here, if you flush the tiolet in one, you empty a bath in another.
In most cases it is word of mouth & rumours, especialy with the luvvies [warm props] who cross polinate between groups, following auditions.
Other wise as most groups insulate them selves behind their 4 walls generaly. They don't tend to comunicate, other than on the local website forum.
We have an eceptional relation ship with the 3 main groups around us, which didn't start off that way at first, untill I sent them all double comps for our season. It broke the ice & they all recipricate, with double comps for each of thiers.
Frankly I treat it all like water, allowing it to find it's own level.
we don't consider any being competition, just complimentry.
With any play that works one area, may not work in another or vice versa.
I have always advocated & don't under stand why, after a group has spent resources on a production, they don't take it to another location. Which exsposes it to a wider audiance & have a better chance to maximise on the returns.
Each year a lot of groups. list thier next year season infomation, but clashes still hapen.

In our small village, there are two CTs and they are less than one mile apart. We both use the same actors and some behind-the-scenes helpers but other than that there is no sharing. Up through this year, we each only do one play and that is in February. Next year we will do two shows, one in November and one in February.
Barb

Joe, I had the same problem when I started creating a new theater group.  They hated the competition and bad mouthed me and the group (or anyone involved).  Yet if they need something, they never hesitated calling for our help.  The group I started had some highly knowledgable, technically educated people.  We would get calls for a specific costume from the 1800s, and my costume designer would have one designed and created in days for them.  I was asked the day of a huge gala event to run follow spots (I had two professional lighting people just off tour)  for their show.  Everything was curteousy of the Production company we started to help augment the local theater scene and to produce shows that would otherwise get overlooked because of "small minds".  Anyways, back to the topic at hand.  We plan our season but are very flexible with other suggestions.  Then after the other theaters list their season, we will change out duplicate shows and then publish our season.  We do enough business and loyal following to not have to worry about duplicating shows, but trying to be "good neighbors" we wait for them.  Of course, if the time came that they didn't post their seasons in a timely manner, then we'll go ahead and post ours.