News ? Palace to close again

Southend?s Palace Theatre has again been earmarked for closure unless a commercial operator can be found to take on the running of the venue.
Currently funded by Southend Borough Council and managed by Southend Theatres which also operate the Cliffs Pavilion in the town, the Palace last closed in 2002 when its previous operators, Green & Lengagan, pulled out suddenly. It re-opened in 2003 as a receiving venue for smaller-scale touring productions, but despite growing audiences and improving financial returns, the Council has voted overwhelmingly to close the Palace from October 2005. At the same time, commercial operators are being invited to tender for the management of the Cliffs Pavilion in a cost saving bid by the Council, which is thought to be facing a £5m gap in its budget for 2005/06. All staff have been given notice of risk of redundancy and a proposed staffing structure is being prepared to enable the 1,600-seat venue to operate alone, without the Palace.