The Maltings Theatre & Cinema
 The Main House Theatre. | |
| Address |
Eastern Lane Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 55°46′07″N 2°00′15″W / 55.76863°N 2.0042°W |
| Owner | The Maltings (Berwick) Trust, leased from Northumberland County Council |
| Type | Main House: Proscenium / Studio: Black Box |
| Capacity | Main House: 331 (2 levels) / Studio: 74 (Retractable Seating) |
| Production | Presenting & Co-producing |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 1990 |
| Closed | o |
| Rebuilt | o |
| Years active | 26 years |
| Architect | Law & Dunbar-Nasmith |
| Website | |
| http://www.maltingsberwick.co.uk | |
The Maltings Theatre & Cinema, Berwick-upon-Tweed is a theatre and cinema located in the historic walled town of Berwick-upon-Tweed at the northern tip of the county of Northumberland, England.
It is operated by The Maltings (Berwick) Trust, a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity.
Architecture
The Maltings complex stands on a hillside in the centre of Berwick-upon-Tweed with views across the 17th century old Berwick Bridge and the River Tweed estuary.
The building contains:
- The Main House Theatre
- The Henry Travers Studio Theatre
- The Stage Door Bar
- The Maltings Kitchen restaurant/cafe
- The Cooke Suite: offices of the Berwick Film and Media Arts Festival
The Main House Theatre
The Main House seats 331 and is the largest theatre between Newcastle and Edinburgh.
Unusually for a main house built in the late 1980s it has a circle and boxes.
In early 2009 the main house was completely refurbished, including the installation of new house lighting and a very large central chandelier with 48 lights over three tiers, imported from the United States.
Each year there are over 500 events presented in the main house, ranging from mid-scale touring theatre/opera/dance to non-professional local productions to film.
The Henry Travers Studio
The Henry Travers Studio, named after local actor Henry Travers (Clarence the Angel in It's a Wonderful Life), is a fully equipped black-box studio space used extensively for live performance, workshops, rehearsals, conferencing, and film screenings. It can seat 74 on retractable seating or up to 120 on flexible seating.
History
The Maltings Theatre & Arts Centre was opened on 4 April 1990 by Peter Palumbo, then chairman of the Arts Council England.
It was built in the ruins of an early 19th-century Maltings, which had been destroyed by fire in 1984. The new theatre was designed by the architectural firm of Law & Dunbar-Nasmith.
The first artistic director of the theatre was Ron McAllister. In the 1990s and into the 2000s (decade) the theatre had a chequered financial and artistic history as both a presenting and producing house. In 2004 the then artistic director David Ramage left, and the building was run by a caretaker general manager until 2008.
The theatre's council funding was cut in 2007 by some 12%, while at the same time controversy was generated by a short-lived plan to charge Scottish theatre-goers more than their English counterparts.[1]
In October 2008, Dr Miles Gregory, formerly director of the Bristol Shakespeare Festival and a regional producer for Shakespeare's Globe Theatre was appointed as chief executive officer & artistic director.[2]
By March 2009 the main house, foyer, and Stage Door bar had been comprehensively refurbished, while simultaneously the amount of programming was significantly increased. Ticket sales rose sharply in this period. At that time Gregory signalled a desire for the theatre to present 'world-class performances'.[3]
In July 2010 The Maltings was described as a 'place of real magic' by The Journal Culture Magazine, which noted the success enjoyed by the theatre since its refurbishment.[4]
In November 2010, the theatre announced a record sales year, increasing its non-funded income by 82% in an eighteen-month period and doubling the quantity of programming. Due to the increase in film programming, The Maltings also became one of the leading independent cinemas in the north-east, screening over 200 titles a year.[5]
In late 2010 The Maltings changed its trading name from The Maltings Theatre & Arts Centre to The Maltings Theatre & Cinema.
In February 2011, The Maltings secured £78,000 in funding from the Leader Coast and Lowlands funding programme to redevelop the Henry Travers Studio into a 'world-class' studio for theatre and cinema. Work was completed on 31 March 2011.[6]
In March 2011, The Maltings was named as one of Arts Council England's new National Portfolio Organisations, securing an uplift in funding from April 2012 of some 270%. This was the fourth highest percentage increase in Arts Council England funding in the country.[7]
Dr Gregory announced on 18 August that he would be standing down from his post at the end of 2011 to pursue opportunities abroad.[8]
Until 2012 The Maltings housed a remote studio and office for Radio Borders
Performances
The Maltings has brought some of the biggest names in British theatre, comedy and music to its venue in recent years. these include:
Theatre: Royal Shakespeare Company, Original Theatre Company, London Classic Theatre, National Theatre of Scotland, Filter Theatre, Flying Cloud, Blackeyed Theatre, DYAD Productions, Icarus Theatre and Tacit Theatre.
Music: Fairport Convention, Ralph McTell, Aly Bain, Ale Moller and Bruce Molsky, Sheena Wellington, Elkie Brooks, Steve Howe, Kiki Dee, Kathryn Tickell, Sandi Thom, Camille O'Sullivan, Scocha and Ian Shaw.
Comedy: Lee Evans, Michael McIntyre, Jack Dee, Kevin Bridges, Jason Manford, Julian Clary, John Bishop, Reginald D. Hunter, Russell Kane, Mark Watson and Jo Caulfield.
Dance: Scottish Ballet, 2Faced Dance, London Contemporary Dance School, Dance Ihayami, Mobius, Transitions Dance Company and ZENDEH
Spoken Word: Michael Portillo, Steven Berkoff, Jenni Murray and Sir Roy Strong
Funding
The Maltings is part-funded by Northumberland County Council (£108,454 annually (2010–11)) and Arts Council England (£45,000 annually (2010–11)). However, some 70% of its annual income is generated by its own trading activities including ticket and ancillary sales.[9][10]
References
- ↑ Cross Border Theatre charge row BBC Scotland online, 26 January 2017. Retrieved 12 September 2009.
- ↑ Interim director confirmed as Maltings chief executive Berwick Advertiser 15 October 2008. Retrieved 12 September 2009.
- ↑ Ticket sales up Berwick Advertiser, 19 August 2009. Retrieved 12 September 2009.
- ↑ A place of real magic Culture Magazine, July 2010. Retrieved 18 January 2010.
- ↑ Theatre enjoys record year Berwick Advertiser, 11 November 2010. Retrieved 1j9 January 2011.
- ↑ Maltings Theatre Blog, 'Creating a world-class studio theatre and cinema', 25 February 2011. Retrieved 26 February 2011.
- ↑ Arts Council Spending Cuts: The Losers (And Winners) "Channel 4 News, 30 March 2011. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
- ↑ Maltings theatre hit by chief's shock resignation "Berwick Advertiser, 30 August 2011. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
- ↑ Maltings Annual Report and Accounts, 2008 – 2009.
- ↑ The Maltings Annual Report & Accounts 2009/10, 31 March 2010. Retrieved 14 January 2011.