[The original rec.arts.theatre.* hierarchy was rec.arts.theatre.musicals
, rec.arts.theatre.stagecraft , rec.arts.theatre.plays and
rec.arts.theatre.misc . I have seen references to
rec.arts.theatre.improv, but it doesn't exist at my server, so I assume
it failed it's vote. rec.arts.theatre.stagecraft was supposed to replace
alt.stagecraft but at the moment both remain active. r.a.t.stagecraft is
higher traffic and has more information, but alt.stagecraft has a better
signal to noise ratio

-- Steve Atkins]

From the rec.arts.theatre.* charter:

All four groups are unmoderated

All four newsgroups will be unmoderated, which means anyone is free to
post messages to the newsgroup. All criticism ought to be constructive
and polite, and all messages ought to be compatible with generally
accepted netiquette. Personal messages in the newsgroup is discouraged,
although not so that it limits free and unencumbered discussion.

Crossposting within rec.arts.theatre.*

Like other hierarchies, all of the newsgroups within the r.a.t.* are
related, yet at the same time we have to acknowledge that they are
separate groups and that there will be a tendency to cross-post
announcements between the groups. However, it is also acknowledged that
anyone capable of reading one of the four groups will most likely know
about and have access to the other groups in the hierarchy. Therefore,
we can logically conclude that if someone isn't subscribed to all four
groups it is for a reason, and not a mischance.

The point is this: Consistent crossposting between all four newsgroups
ultimately defeats the purpose of having separate newsgroups. If you
have a message that is truly related to more than one of the topics,
such as a play with a lot of music or if you are talking about how the
tire rises in the Broadway production of _Cats_, then by all means users
are encouraged to cross-post their message to more than one group.
However, just because you *really* need to know who wrote the play
_Chryseide_and_Arimand_ doesn't mean you ought to post the message to
rec.arts.theatre.stagecraft. Posters are asked to use their own judgment
regarding what ought to be discussed in more than one group.

Use of Followup-To: encouraged when crossposting

If you ARE going to crosspost between the four groups, it is recommended
that you include a "Followup-To:" expression in the header of your
message, which will ultimately point traffic towards one group. The
justification for this is because the assumption is once again made that
people will tend to read all four of the groups and that having the same
thread appear in two, three or four newsgroups will ultimately prove
annoying. Under this method, people who do not read all four groups will
at least know the discussion is taking place and will have the option of
engaging in that discussion by joining whichever group the topic is
being followed up to. This will hopefully eliminate superfluous net
traffic.