Portsmouth theatre staff 'in tears' after tier three announcement now plan fightback

Performers yesterday squeezed in an extra production of Dick Whittington at the Kings Theatre in the wake of restrictions coming into force on Saturday.

Paul Woolf, chief executive, said staff were in tears on Thursday at the announcement - but then again in tears yesterday when several panto ticket holders called to say the venue could keep the cash as a donation.

Speaking to The News at the interval of yesterday’s matinee performance, Mr Woolf said 11,000 more people were due to see the panto before it was cut short.

It means the theatre will ‘lose money,’ he said, despite plans to stream a recording online for £25.

Covid measures throughout the year have eaten away at a ‘massive’ reserve built up to fund a major regeneration project.

Even with a £345,000 shot-in-the-arm from the government, the venue is on a war footing to make it through to next year’s panto as it remains theatres’ biggest earner.

Mr Woolf branded the closure of theatres in tier three ‘illogical’ and said: ‘I’m not for one minute about rash behaviour and allowing us to open regardless.

‘But we’ve invested massively in time, cost and effort in getting here and we’re safer than a supermarket.’

Around 5,000 people have already seen the panto, with the venue seating 450 at each performance. A 17-strong team of ushers ensures social distancing from queuing to seating and entry and exit, Mr Woolf added.

He said: ‘It’s not about the money, it’s a lot more than the money.

‘We’re a huge part of Portsmouth. The Kings is a huge part of the cultural offering.

‘We’ve connected with the heart and soul of Portsmouth in these last six months.

‘We feel very close to the people of Portsmouth - it’s just so sad that this has happened.’

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Within the space of 24 hours from the announcement Mr Woolf and his team have drawn up their battle plan to ensure they reach panto season next year.

Mr Woolf added: ‘We've got to get ourselves through the year and just make sure we manage our cost base and get to next year's panto.’

The rapid plans include:

:: Dick Whittington will be remounted for the February school half term holiday.

:: Panto ticket holders are being asked to transfer to February or for Jack and the Beanstalk in December.

:: A big Easter show.

:: More in-house productions will be staged through 2021.

:: The venue hopes to secure big name comedians, on a level with Michael Mcintyre and Romesh Ranganathan, in the new year.

People with tickets can rest assured their money is safely held in a production account and is not being used for cashflow, Mr Woolf added.

He said: ‘There have been quite a lot of people who have emailed and rung us and said “please keep my ticket money as a donation and thank you so much for trying to put this on”.

‘It’s heartwarming and marvellous, it brings another tear to our eye.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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