Pantos crucial for finances say Northamptonshire theatres

The Wizard of Oz will hit the yellow brick road of The Lighthouse Theatre in Kettering

Northamptonshire theatres that were forced to temporarily close this year said the new pantomime season would be crucial for financial security.

The Lighthouse Theatre in Kettering cancelled shows because it was making a loss and Northampton's Royal & Derngate shut when crumbling concrete was found.

Ashleigh Hammond, from The Lighthouse, said a successful festive period this year was "more important than ever".

The Royal & Derngate said missing the season would have been "devastating".

At The Lighthouse, Phoenix Leisure Management has taken over the running of the site and The Wizard of Oz opens on Friday.

Ms Hammond, the theatre's general manager, said: "Pantomime is always crucial to a theatre's annual income, but this year is more important than ever for us here at The Lighthouse - not only for the financial purpose but to bring the community together at such a magical time of year.

"The income of the pantomime is vital to the sustainability of The Lighthouse Theatre to continue operating as a business. It is the biggest event in our annual calendar, because it is essential to the running of the venue from year-to-year."

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In September, the Royal & Derngate, which is run by a charity, was forced to lower the curtains for a month.

Jo Gordon, its chief executive, said: "It is a huge relief that we were able to reopen relatively swiftly after the discovery of Raac concrete in our foyers and have a good run-up to the festive season."

This year it is putting on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

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"Following on from Covid closures of 2020, it would have been devastating to have missed another pantomime season, at a point when things are still in the process of rebuilding to pre-Covid levels," Ms Gordon said.

"With an expected number of visitors to the pantomime of 30,000-plus, this provides necessary income for the charity to sustain itself, to be able to invest in its work for the community, and to also create brand new theatre productions that can often tour across the country after opening in Northampton."

Meanwhile, Kevin Roach, the chief executive and producer of The Old Savoy, home of the Deco Theatre in the centre of Northampton, said: "We would struggle financially without the panto - we need to get the families in."

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The 950-seater theatre is fully independent and does not receive any funding, so has to be self-sufficient. It is putting on Cinderella until 24 December.

He said it made a loss in the first two years of running a panto, in 2009 and 2010.

"My wife said, 'Let's not bother,' but if we stopped we would never have gained the money back.

"We carried on, year after year, and the profits increased, as people can see the quality of the show."

Pantomime is all about "comedy, glitz and glamour", Kevin Roach said