Two Greater Manchester Theatres have been given a share of £60,000 from the Theatre’s Trust as part of their Resilient Communities grants programme
The grants aim to help progress the restoration, reopening or revitalising of At Risk theatres by funding expert support.
Salford Victoria,an architecturally important theatre, designed by eminent theatre architect Bertie Crewe, with rare substage machinery believed to be the only complete surviving example of its kind in the UK. Salford Victoria Theatre Trust will receive support to carry out a governance review, looking at the organisation’s structure, skills gap analysis and recruitment/training and visioning.
While Tameside Hippodrome, Ashton-under-Lyne’s only Grade II listed, purpose-built theatre, the Hippodrome is a rare theatre survival, illustrating the interwar fashion of adaption to cinema, and retaining a wealth of Art Deco features from its 1930s re-fit. Ashton Empire Hippodrome (Building) Ltd will receive support with governance so the group has the most beneficial structure and the skills required to take forward the project.
The theatres are all on the Theatres at Risk Register 2023, published by Theatres Trust in February, which highlights and supports theatres across the country that are at risk of closure or demolition, and which have architectural and community merit.
Theatres Trust Director Jon Morgan says, We believe every theatre on our Theatres at Risk list has the potential to be returned for use by their communities, providing performance venues of types currently lacking in their local areas and bringing much needed footfall to town centres. We are pleased to support these theatres with projects that will help each theatre move a step closer to their ultimate goal.
Funded thanks to a grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund as well as funding from the Pilgrim Trust and Swire Charitable Trust, Resilient Theatres: Resilient Communities aims to reduce the threat to At Risk theatres and strengthen the theatre sector’s resilience as it recovers from the pandemic and deals with the challenges of the cost-of-living crisis and difficult funding landscape.
Eilish McGuinness, Chief Executive of The National Lottery Heritage Fund, says, We welcome the great news that seven resilience grants have been allocated by the Theatres Trust to special but at risk theatres across the UK. We are delighted to work in partnership with the Theatres Trust with a grant of £249,000, which alongside funding from the Pilgrim Trust and Swire Charitable Trust, ensures that communities can consider how these important theatre buildings, so central to their communities and places, have support and funding to plan towards their future.
Sue Bowers, Director of the Pilgrim Trust says, The Pilgrim Trust is delighted to support this important programme which provides stepping stone support to help these at risk theatres on their journey to resilience.
