Temporary theatre closure after water leak 'a big loss'

The Alley Theatre in Strabane will be closed for about six months

The Alley Theatre in Strabane is to close its doors for about six months after a water leak was detected.

Derry City and Strabane District Council described the leak as "substantial".

Extensive repair and restoration works will be carried out during the closure, which will come into force from 25 September.

Ciara McCay, who is festival director of the Strabane drama festival, said the closure of the theatre and visitor information centre was "a big loss to Strabane as a whole".

As soon as the leak was detected a full assessment of the damage and necessary work was carried out by council's property teams.

A further external report carried out in recent weeks indicated the urgent need to address the issues.

The council said the closure would also provide an opportunity for other potential improvement works to take place at the venue ahead of its 20th anniversary in 2027.

Strabane Drama Festival in doubt

Ciara McCay is the festival director of the Strabane Drama Festival

Ciara McCay told BBC Radio Foyle's North West Today programme that the news "sent everything into a tizzy".

The Strabane Drama Festival takes place over nine nights in March, with each night featuring a different group from across Ireland.

Ciara said: "The festival is confined to certain dates in March determined by the awarding bodies, we have a very short window in which we can hold the festival."

The company have been offered a sports hall as an alternative but she said this would be "extremely expensive" to turn into a theatre.

"We didn't receive any funding from the council this year, we were running our 40th anniversary on a shoe string as it is."

She said it remained unclear if the festival would be able to go ahead next year.

'Disappointing but unavoidable'

Sinn Féin councillor Brian Barney Harte said it was "disappointing but unavoidable" and would affect shows booked for Halloween and Christmas.

Councillor Harte had a meeting with the council after the leak was detected.

He said it had gone undetected for so long that it had led to "damp seeping through to the auditorium and reception areas".

The councillor said the timing of this news was particularly "inconvenient" as it would affect a number of acts around busy festive periods.

He understood alternative arrangements were being explored for acts and shows already booked in during the planned closure period.

A council spokesperson said the closure was regrettable and it was working with all its partners to minimise the impact.

"This will lead to the cancellation of some events planned for six months until the end of March 2026 and the venue team are working with promoters to manage that process," they added.

The council said staff at the venue would remain in the employment of the council for the duration of the work and would support Alley Theatre projects or other council services during this period.

They said customers with tickets for performances cancelled during the closure would receive a full refund from the Alley box office.