The Stage

Sevenoaks Playhouse faces closure

Published Tuesday 21 March 2006 at 11:20 by Liz Thomas

Sevenoaks Playhouse, the only producing theatre in Kent, faces closure within weeks unless £250,000 is raised.

The venue, which was previously known as the Stag Theatre, is now launching an urgent appeal to try to raise the cash in a bid to safeguard its future, but insiders say that if the money is not found then it will close by next month. Campaigners are appealing to the public to make donations and to local businesses to consider sponsorship as means of supporting it.

The spokesperson said: “If the Playhouse closes, local theatrical, dance, operatic companies and orchestras will no longer have a base to show and develop their work. There will not be professional theatre, music, dance or comedy in Sevenoaks and it will also lose its youth theatre and its education and outreach programme.”

If the venue shuts down then there may also be an impact on local businesses that benefit from the income it brings to the area. The shortfall comes despite the fact audience numbers are up by 25.1% and programmes have been popular.

A spokesperson for the venue said that ticket sales alone were not enough to keep the venue open and problems were exacerbated by declining support from Sevenoaks District Council during the past five years. While acknowledging that the council faced mounting pressures on its resources, the Playhouse claims that in the past two years the grant it receives has been slashed by 22% and that a further £40,000 is being axed from April 1.

The council is the Playhouse’s main backer. As well as annual grants it provides the site rent free and pays for the venue’s business rates and routine maintenance.

A spokesman for the authority said the amount it would need to contribute in order to meet the gap between income and expenditure at the venue would be equivalent to an extra 3% on council tax, which was not viable.

Council leader Peter Fleming added: “The Playhouse provides a quality service to the community with significant financial backing from the council and we would be bitterly disappointed if the Playhouse were lost. The council is doing all it can to help.”Playhouse executive director Helen Winning said that without some “drastic action” there would be no future for the venue.

She continued: “I am asking for people to think about what the Playhouse means to them and donate accordingly.”