Fire safety issue prompts temporary closure of historic theatre

The interior of Theatre Royal Bury St Edmonds (Suffolk, England) taken from the "Gods" during a National Trust tour.
04 Aug 2023

Theatre Royal in Bury St Edmunds says it hopes the closure is temporary and is working to reopen as soon as possible.

County Durham theatre to close due to repair costs

01 Aug 2023

The Alun Armstrong Theatre in County Durham is set to close this week due to repair costs that outstrip the town council’s budget.

Stanley Town Council, which leases the premises from Durham County Council, said the theatre no longer meets health and safety requirements due to problems including broken boilers, a leaking roof and damp.

The council said it was told that it would cost more than £100,000 to replace the boiler system, which would be “outside the realms of [its] financial capabilities”, the BBC reported.

“In addition to this, the roof in areas needs replacing, there is flooding in the cellar, damp throughout and the sewage blocks up regularly,” it said.

“Unfortunately, the building is not as it was in its heyday. However, the town council has endeavoured to keep the building open to the public and service users for as long as possible.”

It said it had given notice on the lease in February and would “look forward to investing into the community more without the burden of paying for a large, aged building”.

The theatre has been operating at the venue within Stanley Civic Hall since 1961. 

Local amateur dramatics groups expressed fears that members would be left with nowhere to perform once the venue closes. Chair of Oxhill Youth Club Gale Wilson called the closing of the theatre “the death knell for the town”.

Building owner Durham County Council said that it was assessing options. 

“Until the lease ends, any operational decisions regarding the building, including its use by community groups, are made by the town council,” said the council’s Asset Strategy and Property Manager Anna Wills

“We know the building is used and valued by the community and any feedback from the public will be carefully considered in determining the site's future.

“We are currently working with the town council to carry out surveys of the building to identify any repairs or investment that may be needed to make it suitable for future community use and we will not be making any formal decisions until these assessments are complete.”
 

Equity secures pay rise for theatre directors

31 Jul 2023

Theatre directors will receive pay rises in each of the next four years as part of a deal struck by performers' union Equity.

The union said that following negotiations with SOLT/UK Theatre, it has achieved an immediate 10% increase to minimum rates for directors in the West End and 6% in the commercial and subsidised sector.

In the West End, minimum rates will rise by 5% in Year 2 of the four-year agreement, and the CPI measure of inflation plus 2% in Years 3 and 4.

For commercial and subsidised theatre, minimum rates will rise by 5% in Year 2 and CPI plus 1% in Years 3 and 4.

Paul W Fleming, Equity General Secretary, said: "Through the incredible efforts of our members and staff we have made substantial progress in ensuring that the minimum rates can begin to match the going rates, and eliminate producers who undercut their peers to the detriment of our members. 

"There is work still to do, but Equity’s unique place at the table, along with growing theatre director membership and activism means we are in a better position than ever to advance our agenda of a fair deal for directors."

Dual theatre complex planned for Belfast

26 Jul 2023

Belfast theatre company Bright Umbrella has announced plans for a £2.6m two-theatre complex in the east of the city.

The 150-seat Sanctuary Theatre and the Little Theatre, which are both part of the same arts centre, will become the permanent base of the company, which has signed a 50-year lease and aims to use drama to improve cross-community relations.

Housed in Mountpottinger Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church, which dates from 1875, the theatres are located between the predominantly unionist areas of Castlereagh Street and Albertsbridge Road and the largely nationalist Short Strand.

The location is a short way from the peace line in Cluan Place, where sectarian rioting was once a nightly feature, the Belfast Telegraph reported.

“The church sits directly on what is arguably Northern Ireland’s most notorious interface,” the theatre company’s mission statement says.

“Many buildings and sites in the vicinity are derelict. Levels of paramilitary influence are high. Violent incidents and murders ramp up community anxieties, but despite this there remains a strong sense of community belonging.”

Bright Umbrella plans to refurbish the historic church, with backing from both sides of the community. The planned upgrades will preserve original features including the stained-glass windows, pews, vaulted roof timbers and the plaques and monuments honouring soldiers from the First World War.

“The original plan was to tour classical plays to other people’s theatres, but when we started to rehearse at Mountpottinger we realised it would be a wonderful performance space,” said artistic director Trevor Gill.

“We know funding’s tight but we are quietly confident that we can get the money we need,” he added. “We hope construction work will start in January 2025, with the opening a year later.”

Theatres Trust awards £64k to futureproof theatres

Hope Mill Theatre
26 Jul 2023

The trust says improvements to accessibility and energy efficiency will help the supported theatres ensure their long-term survival.

Theatregoers evacuated in West End bomb threat

26 Jul 2023

Theatregoers were evacuated from a matinee performance of The Lion King in London’s West End on Sunday after a bomb threat.

The area around the Lyceum Theatre on Wellington Street was taped off as police searched the building. 

In a statement on Sunday, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said confirmed nothing was found. “Staff have returned and the incident has been stood down,” the spokesperson said.

The police have released no further details about the incident, which occurred at around 4pm. A spokesperson told The Independent that the force doesn’t discuss bomb hoaxes.

Crowds of evacuated theatregoers and passersby waited outside the theatre as the search took place.

“The Lyceum Theatre got evacuated mid-performance yesterday but we managed to meet the Lion King cast in full costume,” one audience member tweeted.

The theatre has yet to release a statement but on Monday another Twitter user who had been evacuated asked the venue, the official Lion King account and Ticket Master whether theatregoers would be refunded or allowed to rebook.

Ticket Master’s customer service account responded to the query asking him to check his direct messages. The company has made no official statement about whether or not audience members should expect to be refunded for their tickets.

Other theatregoers contacted the Ambassador Theatre Group on Twitter to request information about whether or not tickets would be refunded, but did not receive a public response.

Central School and New Earth Theatre announce associateship

25 Jul 2023

The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and New Earth Theatre have announced an associateship that will see the organisations work together to promote equity, diversity and inclusion.

The formalised associateship will solidify the close working relationship between the two organisations, which has previously seen delivery of the New Earth Performer’s Academy and Academy Plus London. 

Together, they aim to inspire and expand the platforms available for East and South East Asian (ESEA) theatre artists, actors, writing, directors, makers and practitioners.

Current plans include the development of events focused on the work of ESEA artists, the exploration of research and fellowship opportunities, and the delivery of masterclasses, workshops, guest lectures and other teaching opportunities for ESEA artists.

“This associateship marks a key moment for the company as we seek to reimagine how theatre companies can continue to grow and thrive in these relentlessly challenging times,” said Kumiko Mendl, Artistic Director of New Earth Theatre.

“By working together with a world class drama school we can begin to create new pathways of learning and sharing, of knowledge exchange that will in turn inform the work of our company and of ESEA artists. 

“The opportunities that this associateship presents are rich and varied and I look forward to embracing them in our shared goal of supporting and empowering ESEA artists and practitioners of the future.”   

Time to be heard

19 Jul 2023

Young people are often excluded from conversations and decision making in the arts. Jacqui O’Hanlon shares an initiative which aims to ensure their voices are heard.

Worcester theatre plans cut back due to increased costs

19 Jul 2023

Plans for a new 500-seat theatre in Worcester are to be scaled back due to a £3.5m funding gap.

Worcester City Council said the decision to revise the plans for the Scala Theatre, which is being paid for with a share of nearly £18m from the Future High Streets Fund, was due to a "dramatic increase in construction costs". 

The new plans for the listed building will reduce capacity to 300.

Other cost-cutting revisions include scrapping a planned flexible stage along with proposed taller rooms and balconies.

David Blake, the city council's managing director, said: "Rising costs are having an impact on every aspect of our lives and unfortunately the council's ambitions for the Scala are no exception.

"We have had to reconsider our plans and work out how we can still provide Worcester with a popular and attractive new arts venue, one that will become a popular hub for live entertainment and the arts in the very heart of our city."

If councillors back the revised plans, the council intends to ask the Department for Levelling-Up, Housing and Communities for permission to spend its funding beyond the March 2024 deadline.

Three-fold increase in theatre roles with digital remit

Camera on theatre set.
17 Jul 2023

A cross-European study of digital theatre production before and during the pandemic reveals steep rise in roles with a digital remit since 2019. 

Quarter of music and theatre venues fear closure

Exterior of Lighthouse Poole Centre for Arts
13 Jul 2023

Experts warn entertainment venues are at risk as bills and energy costs continue to soar, leaving them 'clinging on' to survive.

Theatre Bristol announces closure following ACE funding loss

10 Jul 2023

Former National Portfolio Organisation that provides support for artists and freelance creatives is to close after the loss of all its core funding.

A hostile environment for migrants

PROJEKT ENCOUNTER at The Marlowe Theatre, February 2023. Image focuses on a Black man wearing a Black zip-up hoodie performing with his hand in front of his mouth, as he looks at the camera.
03 Jul 2023

Projekt Europa is an international theatre company committed to celebrating the lived experience of migrants in the UK. Its director Maria Aberg wants to challenge the current anti-migrant rhetoric.

ABTT survey flags two key pipeline challenges

Visitor to the ABBT Theatre Show in Alexandra Palace
03 Jul 2023

Pay and work-life balance are among the key factors affecting recruitment and retention in technical theatre roles, a survey has shown.

NT's Let’s Play offered free to primary schools

29 Jun 2023

The National Theatre has announced its Let’s Play programme is now free to all state primary schools across the UK.

The programme pilot was launched back in 2017, but the National Theatre is now offering it to all state primary schools for free to enable more teachers to use theatre, drama and creativity in support of learning across the curriculum.
 
Let’s Play offers learning resources and training opportunities for primary school teachers covering three key areas: using theatre and drama to support learning (Let’s Learn), creating performances in schools (Let’s Perform) and watching high-quality theatre productions with related resources through the National Theatre Primary Collection (Let’s Watch).
 
For the first time, Let’s Play is also offering free online and in-person professional training for teachers to help them reconnect with their own creativity and develop new skills.

Frazer seeks theatre 'power shift' from US to UK

London's West End at night
27 Jun 2023

Culture Secretary says mix of theatre in London is 'stronger than ever' and wants Creative Industries Sector Vision to spark a shift in the balance of power from Broadway to the West End.

Ipswich theatre adds restoration levy to ticket prices

27 Jun 2023

Ipswich Regent Theatre will begin charging a restoration levy of £1.50 per ticket to fund a planned £3m refurbishment.

The additional cost will be added to all tickets priced over £10, with the money raised going towards funding the theatre’s improvement and upkeep. 

Plans for the refurbishment include improving disabled access and modernising and increasing the venue’s toilet provision, including the installation of a new onsite changing places facility.

The bar area will be extended and the Circle Lounge fully refurbished. The project also aims to restore some of the almost century-old building's original art deco features.

“The investment is required to ensure that the facilities are modernised so that customers receive the very best experience,” said Sophie Connelly, Ipswich Borough Council portfolio holder for culture and customers.

The theatre last underwent an upgrade in 2014. Permission was granted for new dressing room facilities, catering and wardrobe space in 2022. 

RSC expands Shakespeare in schools scheme 

26 Jun 2023

The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is expanding its partnership scheme with schools across England to five new locations.

It will start working with pupils in Skegness, Coventry, Peterborough, Corby and Hartlepool to help them become more familiar with Shakespeare's work.

The RSC's Associate Schools Programme currently includes 26 areas of structural disadvantage across England, where opportunity in culture and art is low and where educational attainment and employment opportunities lag behind the national average.

The programme reaches 135,000 children and young people each year, helping them to build language skills by engaging with the richness of the Bard’s plays. It also aims to show them the range of job opportunities possible in the theatre sector.

The RSC aims to accelerate language acquisition, raise aspiration and widen creativity and critical thinking. 

A study is under way to assess the programme’s overall impact but teachers have reported that “children who weren't previously meeting expected standards now consistently are – because of how they're taught Shakespeare”, Jacqui O'Hanlon, the RSC's director of learning and national partnership, told the BBC.

RSC actors perform in the schools, as well as at local theatres involved in the programme, and the company trains teachers at participating schools in techniques used by actors and directors in rehearsals.

They guide children in acting, exploring characters and their language choices, and analysing the words to find their meanings.

“The language development of a child by age five is still the greatest predictor of whether that child can escape poverty in later life,” O'Hanlon said.

Children “get really curious about the possibilities of the meaning of particular words, rather than finding them scary or confusing”, she added.

“Time and again it's the children who have struggled with reading and writing who are absolutely captivated by these plays.”

It is precisely the difficulty of Shakespeare's language that can be life-changing, she said.

“It's all about giving the children the tools to decode things. They get a feeling of power. It's like unlocking a secret code. So they feel like they can do anything.”
 

Freelance theatre workforce ‘under siege’

A young man taking part in theatre rehearsals
22 Jun 2023

Study finds freelance workers in theatre are underpaid and facing financial uncertainity across all career stages and regions, with some forced to live hand-to-mouth and considering careers outside the sector.

Mackintosh Foundation launches technical apprenticeship programme

20 Jun 2023

A new apprenticeship programme for technical theatre professionals has been launched to address a shortage in the sector.

The inaugural Regional Theatre Technical Apprenticeship Programme has been initiated by the Mackintosh Foundation in partnership with 13 venues across the UK.

It aims to offer young people a "stepping-stone into the theatre industry" and support the "next generation of technical theatre professionals".

The foundation is funding an apprenticeship at each venue, and applicants can apply through each participating venue's website.

Theatre producer Cameron Mackintosh said: “I started my career sweeping the stage of the Theatre Royal Drury Lane and have worked in nearly every department in the theatre from backstage to marketing – except the wardrobe, as my sewing wasn’t good enough!

"Learning how all the elements of a show are put together has been key to my long career as a producer.”

The 13 venues taking part include Bristol Old Vic, Birmingham Hippodrome, Edinburgh Lyceum Theatre, Nottingham Playhouse and Theatre Clwyd.

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