Theatre will be 'state-of-the-art' for reopening

Andrew Taylor says he hopes theatregoers will think the refreshed venue is an incredible space

The last theatre standing in a city centre will look "state-of-the-art" by the end of the month as its reopening date approaches, the chair of its board of trustees says.

The Kings Theatre in Kings Barton Street, Gloucester, closed in February after an audit exposed safety risks, with extensive repairs needed.

It was hoped the theatre would be able to reopen in May but, as the revised opening date of 30 August nears, chair of the board of trustees Andrew Taylor said the refurbishments and repairs had included a larger bar area and a "vibrant" paint job of the theatre's exterior.

Artist Tash Frootko, who has helped to paint the exterior, said she was "really excited for how it's going to look".

She added she hoped it would "hopefully, put it back on the map".

Mr Taylor said of the renovations: "It's chaotic at the moment, we're still amongst paint cans and off-cuts of wood but I don't think I've ever been to a job site that's clean."

He said there was a "new coffee bar bistro area", which had been fashioned out of the former walkway into the bar, extending it to serve "lots and lots of people".

Before the reopening of the theatre, Mr Taylor said he hoped "to finish wallpapering" and "for people to walk in on our launch day and go, 'wow, what an incredible space'."

"I can see how it will look in my head, you probably look at this and think, 'what an absolutely chaotic dump' but to me, this will look like a state-of-the-art theatre," he said.

Tash Frootko (second from left) has been painting the exterior of the theatre with vibrant colours

Mr Taylor added: "Outside is going to be nothing short of vibrant, we have been incredibly blessed to collaborate with Tash Frootko who is just a visionary of colour."

Ms Frootko explained she had made space in her diary especially for the Kings Theatre.

"It's a dream for an artist to come and paint a theatre," she added.

"People are really happy to see this theatre saved and the local community are really excited to see it coming back."