It appears that everything Kookaburra, Peter Cousens’ new National Musical Theatre Company, touches (or indeed, everything that touches them) turns into a flap of feathers and ends in a nest falling dramatically and violently.

Michaela Boland, an arts writer for Variety, as well as the Australian Financial Review appears to have found herself in the cross fire around the musical theatre company due to the slightest indiscretion.

On Friday, she published the article ‘Kookaburra musical lands leading lady’ which states that “Caroline O’Connor will topline new Aussie musical period drama The Hatpin, the latest production from Peter Cousens’ controversial Kookaburra Theater Co.”

The problem is that The Hatpin has nothing to do with Kookaburra.

On seeing the article, some furious members of the crew believed that Kookaburra had misled the journalist. Boland suddenly found herself in the very dark territory that is now known as Kookaburra.

The issue of apparent contention appears to be a misunderstanding about who is producing The Hatpin. A quick enquiry by Crikey found that the producers are Neil Gooding Productions, White Box and the Seymour Theatre Centre.

Boland made the mistake of translating the press release phrase “in association with Kookaburra” to be a producing role for the musical. A spokesperson for the producers of The Hatpin confirmed that “Kookaburra’s involvement is to provide marketing, sponsorship and resource support”.

The producers swiftly prepared a statement and immediately requested that Boland write a retraction for her “web exclusive”. Suddenly the name Kookaburra is proving to be a hindrance rather than a help for an industry that desperately needs some leadership.

Despite the noble intentions of Cousens and the many investors involved, Kookaburra is increasingly becoming the Wile E Coyote of the theatre industry as it is plagued with problem after problem after problem.

Established by Cousens to “affirm musical theatre’s central role in the cultural and social life of Australia”, Kookaburra has found itself bearing the brunt of bad news stories published by all the mainstream news outlets in Sydney.

Their first production Pippin was slammed by critics with Bryce Hallett from the Sydney Morning Herald calling it “empty and vacant”. It then drew the wrath of audiences when the company removed scenes from their next show, Stephen Sondheim’s Company, when they didn’t have understudies to fill the role of an ill cast member.

According to The Daily Telegraph, Cousens then called a senior Herald journalist ‘a d-ckhead’ in a text message for running the front page news articles.

Kookaburra then cancelled their next show, Floyd Collins, and got into trouble with the Herald once more when it was discovered that the people signed up to the show were “fighting for their money following the cancellation”.

Kookaburra then cancelled their first show of 2008, Sideshow Alley, and in the meantime engaged the services of Wilkinson Media, an agency established by ex-TV journalist Peter Wilkinson, which has “an extensive track record in issues and crisis management”.

Crisis management indeed.