Shakespeare in Love to open community-built theatre

Trustee Harri Capernaros said an adaptation of the film Shakespeare in Love would be their first production

A new theatre is to open after a community raised about £800,000 to get the venture off the ground.

The Crown Wharf Theatre in Stone, Staffordshire, will be run by volunteers and is entirely for the community.

Brewery Joule's, which owns the nearby Crown Wharf brewery tap, gifted the land to the charity behind the theatre for a peppercorn rent.

The first production this autumn will be an adaptation of the Oscar-winning film Shakespeare in Love.

"This is a completely kind of people-powered voluntary thing. No-one's earning a penny out of this," trustee Leo Capernaros said.

"It is just for the love of it and for the love of the town and for theatre and cinema and having something to do on your doorstep that doesn't cost a fortune."

Building work on the Crown Wharf Theatre began in 2019.

There was a huge buzz about the theatre's opening date, Laura Keeling, from a performing arts academy, said

The funds raised include a grant of £495,000 from the government's Shared Prosperity Fund.

The outer shell of the theatre was also built by Joule’s as a donation to the community.

The plan for the site was to make the theatre available for music, theatre and dance groups to use, the charity said.

There was a "huge buzz" about the opening date for the theatre, said Laura Keeling, from performing arts academy Rooftop Studios.

"We just can't wait to get in and cannot wait to be here watching the children on stage," she said.

Auditions for the first production will begin in May and trustee Harri Capernaros said Shakespeare in Love's story of players putting on a show against the odds was a perfect choice.

"This project over the past six years has gone on a similar journey so it really is the perfect show to open with," she said.