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Dear anthony
Firstly, I hope that you are safe and well at home during this unsettling time. I wanted to take this opportunity to reach out to each and every subscriber and give you an update on Park Theatre, as we now adapt to a ‘new normal’ away from our building that provides a place of work, a community hub and a creative home for artists.
We’ve been overwhelmed by the positive messages we’ve received so far and are thankful that we can count on the support of so many of you. Together, I know we can weather this storm.
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Where we were
Park Theatre had a blazing start to the year – an Olivier nomination for Taz Skylar’s Warheads; sell out performances of RAGS the Musical, Shackleton & his Stowaway, Time and Tide, La Cage aux Folles [The Play] and Corpse!; plus the introduction of extra creative learning classes to meet high demand. Our building was buzzing with life and, as a theatre that receives no regular government or Arts Council funding, healthy box office figures were providing vital financial stability and allowing us to look ahead to the rest of the year.
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Where we are now
For an organisation whose community is at its core, the necessary closure of the theatre has been incredibly distressing. We have been faced with a catastrophic loss of income and have been working tirelessly to address the shortfall. An unprecedented level of personal support from a number of generous donors in the first week of lockdown raised an initial £300,000, meaning we can manage minimum outgoings during the closure, maintain our building, keep our team on our payroll using the government’s job retention scheme and operate a skeleton staff. But we still need to raise a further £100,000 to fund a 3 month run up to us being able to re-open; with no income generated during this time we will still need to pay staff, rehearse a production in each theatre, generate an audience and resume other areas of activity. We are investigating other grant giving organisations to see what support they could offer though nothing is certain at this time.
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Where we are going next
Today we launched a new fund online in the hopes of reaching thousands of theatregoers who could provide us with a lifeline. The Park Life fund will mean that when the crisis is over we will be ready to support our community again; so we can welcome back the thousands of visitors we attract each year, continue to provide affordable accessible theatre, resume our outreach programmes with those in real need, open our buzzing Cafe Bar as a safe space for all, and most of all resume our role of creating exceptional theatre in the heart of Finsbury Park. Watch this personal video message from Artistic Director Jez Bond to learn more.
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I am looking forward to the time when, powered by passionate people, life and creative energy will flow through our building and community once more. I’m hugely grateful to all those who want to help life return to Park Theatre.
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With thanks and warm wishes,
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