Friday 21 November 2025
12-1pm webinar; 1-1.30pm Q&A
Free
Online via Zoom
For the final webinar of our three-year pilot programme, Resilient Theatres: Resilient Communities, we have invited four regional theatres who responded to our summer call-out about the role resilience or local community engagement plays in the development, operations and management of their theatre building.
This webinar will interest anyone who wishes to hear first-hand about regional theatres’ management, different models and practices for local community engagement, or different forms of resilience and its impact. The talks will each offer a case study to provide insight into the leadership and management culture and approach of each theatre.
We will first hear from Alex Youngs, the Chief Executive of the Gorleston Pavilion Trust in Norfolk which took over the lease and operation of the 125-year-old Gorleston Pavilion Theatre. Alex will speak about the changes he has initiated following a review of all operational aspects of the venue to ensure the Pavilion’s resilience and survival in a seasonal, seaside economy.
Clare O’Hara and Vanessa Managhan from The Theatre in Chipping Norton will reveal what it is like to work in a theatre that is situated in an area of extreme affluence alongside pockets of disadvantage and increasing deprivation. They will speak about the community work they initiated in 2020, as part of their successful Take Part programme, to reach those who face multiple societal barriers. They will share how their needs-first, whole-family approach has yielded positive results for their theatre.
Neil Gwynne, Chair of the board and management committee for the Plaza Theatre in the small market town of Romsey in Hampshire, will talk about the organisational resilience behind the Plaza which is owned and managed by approximately 320 members of a Community Interest Organisation - the Romsey Amateur Operatic and Dramatic Society (RAODS). The theatre was created in 1983 by converting the 1931-built art deco Plaza Cinema and has gone from being within years of needing to be sold, to now running an annual programme of shows.
The final talk will be by Bill Hamblett, Artistic Director of award-winning near zero carbon Small World Theatre /Theatr Byd Bach in Cardigan, Wales. Bill will speak about his interpretation of resilience and what it means for him and his team, and the impact it has on the theatre’s creative, management and operational work.
This webinar is an opportunity for knowledge sharing across the sector. It will benefit anyone who wants to gain insight into unique experiences of regional UK theatres and will be hosted and chaired by Claire Appleby, Head of Theatre Buildings.
The session will be recorded, so please register even if you can't attend the live event so you can receive a link to the recording.