Storyhouse steps up its Save Storyhouse campaign

Chester’s Storyhouse says its financial position is becoming “steadily worse” as the region’s various lockdowns start to bite following a successful summer, and as touring programmes from the cinema and theatre producers dries up.

The charity has requested over £700k from the government’s delayed Cultural Recovery Fund and says its immediate future relies heavily on receiving support. 

CEO Andrew Bentley says the organisation can still come through but not without significant support “I’ve been so overwhelmingly proud of what we have achieved since lockdown in March. We were the first theatre, first library and first cinema in the UK to re-open and now we are one of only a small handful of venues to put on a Christmas show.  Staying open when so many others are closed is a really hard position to be in, especially in this current climate, but we are in a fight for survival and this is how we fight. We are open simply to preserve jobs and to serve our community, it’s all we can do, and the least we should do.  

“The situation however could not be more serious for us than it is right now, with two thirds of the country’s theatres still could be out of business by Christmas. We need to get through this period successfully if we are to avoid that fate”  

“We would hope that everyone will buy a ticket for Christmas as we go full steam ahead with preparations for A Christmas Carol, it really is the best way to help us right now.  The show must go on, we’ll take any lockdowns and circuit breakers in our stride and will do our best to ensure that everyone gets to see the show, so customers can buy with confidence”  

“We’re making all the usual preparations for a wonderful family Christmas. We’ll find a way of making sure Christmas happens in Chester, come hellish lockdown or high water”   

A Christmas Carol, which is being written and directed by Storyhouse’s Artistic Director Alex Clifton, runs from 7^th November until 19^th January.  Audiences are limited to 180 per performance (normally 480) and are spaced out during the show which will run without an interval.  The venue is introducing a new service for customers to order drinks from their seats as well as in advance. 

About Storyhouse:  

Storyhouse is one of the UK’s foremost cultural centres incorporating a library, theatres and a cinema. It is one of the country’s most successful arts buildings, with more than one million customer visits each year. 

The pioneering new library within Storyhouse, where members of the community work alongside city librarians, boasts the longest opening hours of any UK public library and is open every day until 11pm. It runs over 2,000 sessions a year for marginalised communities 

The company also runs a highly successful theatre company and the country’s most successful regional open-air theatre, in the city’s Grosvenor Park. 5,200 saw a post-lockdown A Comedy of Errors in August 

Storyhouse currently holds the official title as the UK’s Most Welcoming Theatre and was the overall national winner in the 2018 Guardian Public Service Awards 

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Address: Hunter Street, Chester, CH1 2AR.

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