The Stage

West End costs damage Weldon-Elliott partnership

Published Tuesday 8 June 2004 at 14:05 by Jeremy Austin

One of the West End’s most enduring partnerships, between Duncan C Weldon and Paul Elliott, is scaling down its operations, citing the rising cost of West End production as a key factor.

While Elliott stressed that the 40-year friendship between the two remains as strong as ever, he said the Triumph Entertainment co-production element of their operations will cease to be, although the pair will continue to produce together as and when the appropriate project arises.

Said Elliott: “Our operation with Triumph Entertainment, we have decided, is going to end in July. I am veering towards what I do and Duncan is veering towards what he does. I will continue to produce pantos with Qdos, I am executive producer on eight this year and I thoroughly enjoy it and I am also doing shows for P&O ships, which I also enjoy. Duncan is going to do a production now and then.”

The two producers will now share the third floor at the Aldwych Theatre, their base for the past 31 years, as they reduce operations. They still have three shows in the West End and Ellliott is this year working on eight pantomimes and shows on two ships.

He said that the current state of the West End has hastened their decision, particularly after the premature end of Thoroughly Modern Millie, which Triumph closed early “to stem the loss of blood”, according to Elliott.

“It was regrettable for it to close but there will be a massive tour which I will do next year because I enjoy the musicals. We have paid back quite a lot of the investment and it is a sensible decision to take it off now,” he said.

“But we are tired. We are depressed with the state of the West End and have been depressed for some time. It has its problems. It is terribly expensive to produce shows. You get to the point where you produce shows for the sake of it and you make a mistake and it hurts. We want to take it slower and see what is a good idea and it might take a year to create. We are 63. We are eminences grises.”