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Theatre Royal Winchester revamp receives £375,000 boost from civic chiefs

Winchester

WORK to revamp part of a Winchester theatre has been boosted by a six-figure investment from civic chiefs. Hampshire County Council is providing £375,000 to the Theatre Royal, as part of a £500,000 investment in its facilities. Designed and managed by the authority’s in-house Property Services team, the money will help fund internal works to remodel the front of house areas over the coming months.

It is hoped the revamp will result in a smart, contemporary new interior, designed for improved flow of people through the building and more flexible use of the available spaces for different types of activities

The recently granted planning permission and listed building permission also support longer-term proposals to make external alterations, including a new canopy and new windows and doors across the theatre’s main entrance on Jewry Street. These alterations will require separate funding and will be considered at a later time.

Leader of the county council Cllr Keith Mans said: “Winchester’s Theatre Royal is a hugely important and popular community facility, welcoming more than 70,000 visitors per year to performances – and supporting more than 300 young people regularly through the year with music, theatre and dance activities.

“By supporting the theatre to make some improvements to the internal layout, we can enable them to utilise the space more flexibly, in this excellent facility.”

Deryck Newland, chief executive of Live Theatre Winchester Trust, the charity which manages both the Theatre Royal and Hat Fair, said: “We are most grateful that Hampshire County Council and other investors have had the vision to support this exciting redevelopment. Contributions from the public via the Restoration Levy on tickets means that everyone who has bought a ticket has also made a contribution to this project. Thank you!”

Source: https://www.hampshirechronicle.co.uk/news