05/11/2024 - CAST CHANGES AT CHELTENHAM PLAYHOUSE
Tuesday 5 Nov 2024
CAST CHANGES AT THE CHELTENHAM PLAYHOUSE
Kieron Milsom and Martha Henley, Chief Executive and Deputy General Manager of the Cheltenham Playhouse Theatre, have both announced they will be leaving the charity in January, 2025.
The two-person management team has led the Playhouse through the immediate aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, overseeing a 200% increase in ticket sales, securing hundreds of additional events per year, and expanding the active audience base of the eighty-year-old theatre to a modern high of over 40,000 annual visitors.
“We cannot offer sufficient praise for Kieron and Martha’s hard work and leadership during such a challenging period for arts organisations,” said Mo Mytton, the charity’s
Interim Chair of Trustees. “They have achieved at the Playhouse what many other local community theatres have found increasingly difficult, growing our charity from the very difficult post-COVID world to the sustainable, diverse and vibrant place where we find ourselves today. It’s been inspiring to watch them work.”
The Cheltenham Playhouse is housed in a Grade II-listed former bath house in the heart of the Regency town, and has played host to a theatre since 1945. It costs more than £1,000 a day to keep the Playhouse’s doors open. Its recent focus has been on high-quality productions that have brought audiences back through the theatre’s doors.
"Nationally, it is a challenging time for all theatres, particularly those without additional funding,” explained Kieron Milsom. “The theatre's income is primarily derived from ticket sales, so it has been a huge honour to expand the Playhouse’s programming in order to achieve a more sustainable footing for the charity moving forwards.”
A range of challenges face small arts organisations nationwide, and especially local theatres: selling out every performance would still leave the Playhouse with a financial shortfall, and so further funding - such as rent reliefs from the local council - are also an important part of the charity’s mix. Milsom and Henley have worked to
advocate for local arts funding throughout their time in post.
“It’s been so rewarding helping the Playhouse through this period,” emphasised Martha Henley. “We feel really proud of the work we’ve done, and especially of securing the survival of such an important part of Cheltenham’s history.”
Having navigated choppy post-COVID waters, the Playhouse is now looking to strengthen its position by expanding the Board of Trustees, which currently consists of Mo Mytton and actors Kieran Mortell and Neve Doyle. The charity is actively recruiting individuals with governance, financial oversight, personnel and fundraising experience.
“We are extremely keen to expand,” adds Mo Mytton, “and we would love to hear from anyone with a passion for the arts and the skills to help a small theatre thrive. Our goal is to continue to serve our community for another eighty years.”
Recent productions at the Playhouse have included sell-out performances of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, The Wedding Singer and Howlers Comedy Club. The charity also emphasises its role as a community space, offering opportunities for local groups and volunteers to make use of the theatre for their own activities, meetings and productions.
“It’s a unique place with a really special past - and bags of potential,” says Kieron Milsom. “I have really valued my time as part of its long history, and I’d like to say that Martha’s work has been exemplary. Having helped it reach its present position, I can’t wait to see where it goes next.”
Anyone interested in joining the charity’s Board of Trustees should email a short letter and CV to board@cheltplayhouse.org.uk
24/09/2024 - NEW COLLABORATIVE RELATIONSHIP
Tuesday 24 Sep 2024
CHELTENHAM PLAYHOUSE AND EVERYMAN THEATRE ANNOUNCE START OF NEW COLLABORATIVE RELATIONSHIP TO DEVELOP ARTS IN CHELTENHAM
(Left, Paul Milton, Creative Director - Everyman Theatre. Right, Kieron Milsom Chief Executive - Cheltenham Playhouse)
Two leading Gloucestershire theatres are joining forces to help turbo-charge the county’s arts scenes - and will kick off the collaboration with three brand new plays inspired by a
famous son of Cheltenham.
The Cheltenham Playhouse and Cheltenham Everyman said they were “delighted” to announce the start of a new collaborative relationship to develop the arts in the Regency town and beyond.
The team behind the collaboration believes that it offers a model for co-operating that can help strengthen arts and culture. “In adverse times for the arts,” say the Everyman’s Creative Director Paul Milton and the Playhouse’s Chief Executive Kieron Milsom, “our two charities can benefit from each other’s experiences and expertise.”
Working Collaboratively: “Inspired by Holst”
Paul Milton and Kieron Milsom already jointly chair the Performing Arts Subcommittee of Cheltenham Borough Council’s Culture Board. Between them, and in their positions at Cheltenham’s two most prominent theatres and with a wealth of knowledge from other roles, they help to inform and promote the success of Performing Arts in the town.
Their vision is of an arts scene in which organisations can offer mutual benefit to each other. A new project, “Inspired by Holst”, is the first major production in years where the two organisations are working jointly to produce a single show.
Inspired by Holst” is a series of three new professionally produced plays augmented by a cast drawn from the local community. Its world premiere is coming to the Cheltenham Playhouse 26th - 28th September.
The three plays explore the music and works of Gustav Holst in a series of amusing and entertaining new plays. Inspired by Holst is jointly produced by the Everyman Theatre and Cheltenham Playhouse and directed by Kirstie Davis (The Minack Theatre, The Barn, Chipping Norton Theatre and more). This event is part of the wider celebration of the 150th anniversary of Holst's birth and supports new writers and local amateur performers.
“Better Together”
The two theatres often serve quite different audiences. But working together unlocks benefits for everyone. For example, a co-operative bid produced by both theatres working together secured a Arts Council England funding for “Inspired by Holst”.
The Playhouse hopes to demonstrate the significant value that smaller venues can play in the community and local economy, says Milsom. “‘Inspired by Holst’ is an example of where a play most suited to the size of the Playhouse can be collaboratively produced, with the Everyman providing the staging, sound, costume and a number of the creative team. This enables us to serve the play, the artists, and our audiences in a way we couldn’t working separately.”
Mo Mytton, Chair of Trustees at the Playhouse, commented: “It’s fantastic that the two venues are working together. That way, both charities can offer an even greater benefit to the community. It is really important in such challenging times that organisations work together for the greater benefit of the public, but as we can see with Inspired by Holst this can help the charities too’.
Paul and Kieron both look forward to continuing co-operation and developing Arts in Cheltenham on behalf of the two venues.
Notes To Editors:
Paul Milton and Kieron Milsom are available for interview. Please contact:
About Cheltenham Playhouse
The Cheltenham Playhouse is an independent 180-seater performance venue in the former Montpellier Baths at the centre of Cheltenham. It opened in 1945 as the ‘Civic Playhouse’ as the base for local dramatics and performance. Since then, it has grown to become a unique arts venue with a wide variety of both amateur and professional performances, cinema, inspirational talks, and rehearsal/event spaces.
About Cheltenham Everyman
The Everyman Theatre prides itself on the quality of our artistic, education and outreach work. As Gloucestershire’s main professional theatre it acts as a cultural hub for the county, supporting a range of community groups, from schools and colleges to care homes and day centres. We run 7 Community Choirs, 7 Youth Theatre groups, a Professional Development programme for writers and actors and a range of activities, to help people of all ages and abilities engage with the arts.
About Inspired By Holst
This three-play cycle consists of Jupiter by Cathie Rolinson, Hammersmith by Neil Walden, and The Planets by Jacob Woods. Each play is inspired by Holst’s life and work, ranging in setting from Edwardian Cheltenham to a dystopian future. The three
plays explore the music and works of Gustav Holst in a series of amusing and entertaining new plays. Inspired by Holst is jointly produced by the Everyman Theatre and Cheltenham Playhouse and directed by Kirstie Davis (The Minack Theatre, The Barn, Chipping Norton Theatre and more). View here.
