Studio 1A is part of a national initiative launched by Theatres Trust to prevent the permanent closure of hundreds of UK theatres.
Bangor Drama Club Limited are an amateur drama group who own and run their own theatre, Studio 1A in Bangor, Northern Ireland. We are one of the few drama groups in Northern Ireland lucky enough to own its own theatre. We also serve as a hub for other drama groups who can and do use our premises throughout the year. At this time though, we are struggling to cover the costs of having our own building as we are prevented from doing what we do best - making theatre.
Why are we crowdfunding?
Our theatre risks permanent closure because we are currently unable to rehearse and perform plays to provide income. We have also lost a considerable amount of revenue from hire cancellations and do not know when we will be able to resume performances and external hire.
Your donations will be used to help us cover our overheads such as insurance, rent, water, gas and electricity because despite being closed the bills are still arriving!
About Studio 1A
Bangor Drama Club Limited, established in 1935, purchased a former council property in 2015 and with fundraising and a grant renovated that building. The result is Studio 1A, a 100-seat theatre situated in the heart of Bangor, Northern Ireland. The theatre was opened in April 2017 and is run entirely by volunteers from the drama club. The club stages two or three in-house shows each year and the venue also hosts drama festivals, summer festivals and is hired to many amateur and professional groups.
It is the only community theatre in the local council area and in a normal year provides quality entertainment at very affordable prices all year round.
Bangor Drama Club is a well-known and well-respected organisation in the local area with a long history. It's future is now facing threat.
About Save Our Theatres
In villages, towns and cities across the country, theatres are at the heart of their community. Places to come together, to be inspired and be entertained. Theatres are where our best-loved actors learn their craft and thousands of others learn valuable skills.
But we risk losing this forever.
Theatres saw their main source of income disappear in an instant when they closed in March in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Six months later, we still don’t know when they will be able to reopen fully. A decision won’t be made until November at the earliest – too late for most to put on their annual pantomime, which often provides the income to support the theatre for the rest of the year.
This ongoing uncertainty puts theatres in a perilous situation. The government’s bailout is spread across all cultural organisations and certainly won’t be enough to save all of the UK’s theatres.
Every day theatres are facing the tough decision to make staff redundant and to close their doors until next year. And there is a real risk that those closures could be permanent.
Without urgent support, we could lose our nation’s amazing theatres. Please help us to make sure our theatres survive this crisis and will be there to be enjoyed by future generations.
#SaveOurTheatres