'Theatres should keep prices low in cost-of-living crisis'

Nica Burns says 'theatre has always proved itself very resilient'

The owner of a new West End theatre has said keeping ticket prices low will be key to venues surviving the cost-of-living crisis.

Marvellous, the first show to be housed in Soho Place, formally opened on Thursday, to largely positive reviews from critics.

Some have noted the theatre itself, which has been described as "state-of-the-art", has the misfortune of opening during the early stages of a cost-of-living crisis.

But veteran theatre producer and co-founder of Nimax Theatres, Nica Burns, told BBC News: "Theatre has always proved itself very resilient.

"I agree with everything you say about the economic concerns, and food and rent is more important than everything else, but people save up to have something special that they can look forward to."

Burns suggested the key to surviving turbulent economic times could lie in keeping a lid on ticket prices, to ensure the arts remain relatively affordable for audiences.

"My personal point of view within the theatre is we have to be careful about prices," she said.

The 'theatre-in-the-round' arena has been designed in a way that means all seats should have a good view of the stage

"You can get a really good seat here [Soho Place] for £25. And £25 isn't beyond saving up for. You could say, what do you pay for a cup of coffee at Pret? So if you think about it that way, if you give up your coffee for a couple of weeks, you'll get the price of a ticket.

"But I do think it is now time when we just have to be careful about not putting ticket prices up," she continued.

"And I would be very sad if it was an unaffordable activity for people. And also, for those that are canny, you can scout around for ticket prices on the net, and earlier in the week is always cheaper."

Soho Place is a 602-seat theatre near London's newly revamped Tottenham Court Road tube station.

It is a purpose-built venue, and the first new-build theatre to open in the West End for 50 years.

Developers say the theatre has been built intuitively, with good acoustics, audience members close to the stage and unobscured sightlines.

The opening production, Marvellous, is performed as "theatre in the round", with the stage in the centre and no seat further than six rows from the stage.

Marvellous premiered in Newcastle-under-Lyme earlier this year before transferring to the West End to become Soho Place's first production.

The play depicts the real-life story of Neil Baldwin, a man with learning difficulties who overcame adversity with his positive attitude to life. His story was previously adapted into a Bafta-winning film of the same name starring Toby Jones.

"How bold to open this spanking new venue with something so rough, anarchic and celebratory, rather than a star vehicle or a classic," wrote the Evening Standard's Nick Curtis.

Writing about the theatre itself, Curtis added: "The auditorium is pristine and lovely, the building clearly user-friendly and porous in the way older theatres and converted spaces are not, but commensurately lacking in charm."

Future productions planned for the theatre include Josie Rourke’s As You Like It, and Medea with Sophie Okonedo.

Soho Place will house forthcoming productions of As You Like It and Medea

Theatres are facing lower sales from the cost-of-living crisis only a year after most re-opened following closured prompted by Covid lockdowns.

Looking to the short to medium-term future of the theatre, Burns said: "I'm hoping that we've got very big population based in London, that there are enough people to come out across the West End.

"People are still going to have birthdays, wedding anniversaries, hen nights, something to celebrate. And it's a very communal experience, enjoying live entertainment with a whole load of strangers."

Referring to cost-saving measures employed by theatres, she added: "A lot of us are going to be tightening our belts. I don't know what everyone else is doing, but we're switching our lights off the moment we can! We've got to look at the costs and try and keep them down."

Earlier this month, former Doctor Who star David Tennant said he hoped people "don't get out of the habit" of going to the theatre, admitting he had done so himself following Covid lockdowns.

He told BBC arts correspondent Rebecca Jones: "I’ve got out of the habit for it, certainly I’ve not been to the theatre all that much, and I miss it. And I hope that people will slowly get used to going again.

"It’s been so difficult, it’s been stopping and starting, ‘you have to wear a mask’ and ‘you don’t have to wear a mask’ and ‘you have to test before you go’. And we are moving out of all that – for good or ill that’s not the world we’re in anymore.

"So I hope that people will feel that it’s worth it. I love a streaming binge as much as anyone else, but [theatre] is a different quality of experience, and it’s not really like anything else."