Latest news with #UnicornTheatre
BBC News
01-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
How are Oxfordshire's theatres bouncing back from the pandemic?
In an upstairs rehearsal room at the Cornerstone Arts Centre in Didcot, a group of teenagers are practising for an upcoming is a sign of the booming activity the venue has been enjoying autumn, audience numbers were up 70% on the year before and a new strategy from local authorities is promising a hefty investment in its the scene across Oxfordshire is not always as rosy, with funding and access to affordable arts spaces sometimes proving a sticking point. The Covid pandemic was a tough time for arts had to deal with closures, adapting to virtual performances and keeping on top of places like Unicorn Theatre in Abingdon and the Kenton Theatre in Henley-on-Thames, this was made far harder by the high running costs of their old buildings."We had to pretty much shut down for over a year, and you've got to pay all the costs of running the building," said Greg Bensberg, chair of Abingdon Abbey Buildings Trust, which houses the Unicorn. "We staggered on through there but Covid was really bad."Lottie Pheasant, theatre manager at the Kenton, said the pandemic had nearly brought the venue to its knees."Two years ago, we were close to having to close," she said. "That year, we filed a nearly £190,000 loss."The Kenton was saved by a £100,000 loan from Henley Town Council."It gave us the breathing space to reset things," Miss Pheasant said. "We're in a much better position now. We've managed to reduce our losses down to £30,000 in a year, which is incredible. "We're really hoping by the end of August this year to be nearly at break-even point."But she said there should be more support for venues like the said: "The reality is that, for all these smaller theatres, ticket sales alone are never going to cover running costs. "Trying to look after buildings of this age, trying to look after running costs - I don't think people appreciate how much it costs just to open the theatre every day." At Cornerstone, however, the mood is venue has just been granted £405,000 from Community Infrastructure Levy funding to revamp its building."The building opened in 2008 and some parts are starting to show its age," community arts manager Daniel Harrison said."We're looking to completely revamp the cafe area, repurpose the box office and do some cosmetic improvements to the outside as well."It is all part of South Oxfordshire District Council's upcoming Culture, Heritage and Creative Industries Strategy, run alongside Vale of White Horse District in summer 2026 and lasting four years, the project will work with the Arts Council, the National Lottery Heritage Fund and others to give a boost to the creative the local economy and arts jobs are all in its Heritage, the authority's communities lead, said, "The strategy will enable us to have a four-year plan and set the vision for arts and culture, not just at Cornerstone but across the district."It would also emphasise the importance of the arts sector in south Oxfordshire "for businesses and the health and wellbeing of our residents," she added. But for some arts groups, it can be a struggle to find affordable arts spaces to Jerred is in two amateur performance groups - Buttercross in Witney, and Kidlington Amateur Operatic have struggled to find places to put on their shows."The cost of hiring places to rehearse is increasing and it is hard to find those cost effective locations," she a result, the groups have ended up rehearsing in sitting rooms and making sets in often means they do not get into the spaces they will be performing in until just before the Ms Jerred, arts and culture bring a whole host of benefits to society, beyond just entertainment. She said: "It's great for your mental health, the community, education and economic growth as well."And it brings joy for people. In the difficult times we had through Covid, people turned to theatre and music." You can follow BBC Oxfordshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Daily Mail
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Louise Thompson reveals she has taken son Leo out of nursery to spend quality time together as they enjoy a 'swanky' day out in London
Louise Thompson has revealed that she took her son Leo out of nursery for the day to spend quality time together. The former Made In Chelsea star, 35, said she wants to 'soak up any opportunity I get to spend' with her three-year-old before he starts school next year. Louise said she was 'pretty apprehensive' as she took Leo to a child-friendly theatre performance where he sat through the full '50 minute performance as good as gold'. Sharing snaps during the sweet mother and son day out to Instagram on Thursday, Louise penned: 'Today I took my little bestie out of nursery for a 1:1 day date. 'We feel v lucky that Leo's nursery runs year round allowing us (and lots of other working parents) to work long hours during the week both in and out of term time. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the Daily Mail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'He is old for his year so he won't be starting school until next September - I feel like he will practically be cartwheeling in at that point - but I still want to soak up any opportunity I get to spend with him, because I know that after that point things won't be nearly as flexible and I also know that I will never get this time back. 'So bring on the impromptu hang sessions. 'I arranged to go to this amazing kids theatre over in East London called The Unicorn Thestre. We watched an adaptation of 'the koala who could', written by one of our favourite children's authors Rachel Bright. 'I've never taken Leo to the theatre before so I was pretty apprehensive given his attention span, but he sat through the 50 minute performance as good as gold. 'It felt really unpretentious (unlike a lot of adult theatres), kids could move freely, chat, eat snacks loudly, go to the loo etc and the seating arrangements felt suitably informal. We had a great time.' Louise revealed the pair got the Uber boat to the theatre and afterwards went shopping and enjoyed a 'swanky' lunch. She continued: 'We hopped on an Uber boat there which added to the fun and we met another couple who were running the exact same operation. 'Then after we headed to Battersea power station for a little browse of the Lego shop and also bought some new shoes and had a swanky Italian lunch date… lol at me eating carbonara while Leo chows on lamb chops and hopped on the boat west to head home. Louise shares son Leo, three, with fiancé Ryan Libbey and nearly died when giving birth after undergoing an emergency C-section in December 2021 due to suffering 'serious complications' 'Managed to take an intense finance call with Leo mumbling around in the background this afternoon and kept other things afloat… so all in all I'd say Thursday was a success. 'The ven diagram of trying to feel like a good parent and a good business woman is a funny one. I'll try and mock something up which will make us all feel like less of a failure… but today was one of the rare moments where I feel like I won at both. x I'll sleep sweetly tonight.' Louise shares son Leo, three, with fiancé Ryan Libbey and nearly died when giving birth after undergoing an emergency C-section in December 2021 due to suffering 'serious complications'. She ended up in intensive spent and spent five weeks in hospital, leaving her with PTSD and post-natal anxiety due to her near-death experience. Louise has since documented her recovery and family life on Instagram. The mum-of-one, who was diagnosed with Ulcerative colitis diagnosis in 2018, has since been diagnosed with Lupus, Asherman's syndrome, suffered a second Hemorrhage and has also had a stoma bag fitted. Ulcerative colitis is a chronic bowel condition where the colon and rectum become inflamed and small ulcers develop on the colon's lining, which can bleed. Asherman's syndrome rare condition where scar tissue builds up inside the uterus and Lupus is one of the chronic autoimmune conditions where the body makes antibodies against itself and starts to attack it. And a stoma bag is a medical device that a person uses to remove body waste. After being through something so traumatic Louise confessed that she struggled a lot more with her mental health, rather than her physical. She previously explained: 'The mental stuff was a lot worse, physical, you can often fix a physical problem, the mental torture was really hard to grapple with.'
The Independent
12-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Queen meets young creators on visit to children's theatre
The Queen has celebrated the work of a children's theatre she visited with her grandchildren. Camilla toured the Unicorn Theatre that began as a mobile playhouse founded by Caryl Jenner in 1949 and met youngsters providing creative inputs into new productions. Stage and screen actor Rory Kinnear, best know for his appearances in the James Bond franchise, chatted to the Queen after she met school children who have helped with the forthcoming play Pig Heart Boy. Kinnear, a creative ambassador at the central London theatre, said: 'It's somewhere I used to bring my kids when they were small and I still bring my youngest and we were talking about how she used to bring her grandchildren, but we're both at the point where they're almost too old. 'But it's a wonderful place for not only entertaining kids but inspiring that first taste of creativity and imagination for so many people.' During the visit the Queen watched a stage presentation by the children involved with Pig Heart Boy adapted for the stage from a book written by former Children's Laureate Malorie Blackman. The book tells the story of Cameron, a teenager who undergoes a heart transplant from a pig, and the author said: 'I think there is absolutely room for challenging content and content that hopefully makes children think what they would do if they found themselves in Cameron's shoes. 'What I hope I'm doing in my books is opening up debate and discussion. 'It's never my intention to say this is right or this is wrong – what I do is say is 'this is this person's life, what would you do if you were in their shoes'.' The author has judged the BBC's 500 Words children's writing competition supported by the Queen, and said it was 'tragic' libraries across the country had closed, adding 'it's mandatory to have libraries in prisons but not mandatory to have them in schools, that's just bizarre to me'. Camilla also chatted to Kim Behling and partner George Multescu, who had brought the eldest of their three children to workshops to help develop a Unicorn production of the Princess And The Pea. Ms Behling later described how her five-year-old son Theodore and other children tried out piles of mattresses for the storyline – and even recorded sound effects, adding: 'It was an amazing opportunity for the family.'
