Theatres resonate with history and part of the joy of a visit is the shared experience, not just with the current audience but with the ghosts of the buildings, performers and audiences that have gone before. Norwich Theatre Royal has such a history which makes it a special place as it evolves to serve the audiences and local community of today.

Founded in 1758 and granted the Theatre Royal title in 1768, several buildings have stood on the site. It was rebuilt in 1800 and 1826 and then closed in 1894 for several months in order to carry out a scheme of reconstruction and redecoration from the designs of Frank Matcham, with a new entrance foyer and staircase, the removal of Dress Circle box dividers and introduction of electric lighting. It spent a short period being called the Hippodrome before reverting in 1904. This building was destroyed by a fire in 1934 and rebuilt before being bombed during World War Two.

The venue survived the post war era by showing films, staging wrestling matches and through the swinging 60s by putting on rock ‘n’ roll one-nighters, along with regular shows. The theatre was threatened with closure in 1972, and the City Council gathered a rescue package to create the Theatre Royal (Norwich) Trust Limited which continues to operate the venue today, with a main stage seating 1,308 and two Studio spaces seating 300 and 120.

This attractive size venue is able to bring top shows to Norfolk audiences within the next 12 months, including visits from Original Theatre production of Art, Fiery Angel’s version of Murder on Orient Express, the wonderful touring version of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, the first regional tours of hit musicals Come from Away and Dear Evan Hansen, as well as the return of classic shows Birdsong, Only Fools and Horses, An Inspector Calls, and the evergreen Rocky Horror Show with Jason Donavan. Booking is also already open for tours of both Hamilton and War Horse in October 2025.

Of course, pantomime remains a cornerstone of the programming year with Aladdin this Christmas, running from 7 December - 5 January 2025, starring Joe Tracini who returns for a fifth season . He won a special recognition award from UK Pantomime Association for his performance in Dick Whittington in 2022 for changing perceptions and raising awareness of mental health through his pantomime performance and original pantomime song. That production was also nominated for Best Pantomime. In 2020, their production of Cinderella won a Best Script nomination and in 2019, Steven Roberts was nominated for Best Newcomer for his role in Aladdin.

The creative team said about this year’s production: “Norwich Theatre’s Aladdin is a genie-us Norfolk adventure and so we needed a true Norfolk legend to step into the dame’s shoes. Owen Evans is well-known as a Nimmo Twin, and we are absolutely overjoyed that he will be bringing his comedic talent, acting prowess and love for Norfolk to our pantomime this Christmas.

“Owen completes the principal cast, with rehearsals due to start in mid-November. He joins West End musical stars Tarik Frimpong (The Drifters Girl) and Meesha Turner (Six) as Aladdin and Jasmine, alongside Joe Tracini and Lisa Maxwell.”

The Trust currently states its mission is to provide “creative experiences rooted in the art of performance and secure in our sense of place which generate positive impact for all people and inspire prosperity in all its forms”. In August, it published the results from a survey of over 2,000 British adults, which identified ticket prices as a primary barrier to theatre attendance, with 55 per cent of respondents indicating that lower ticket prices would encourage them to attend more frequently. Twenty-eight per cent of individuals go to the theatre less than once a year. Across the country, one per cent of respondents attend the theatre weekly, and only four per cent go monthly.

Chief Executive and Creative Director of Norwich Theatre, Stephen Crocker, said: “We know that experiencing theatre has huge benefits, whether that’s social and language skills, cultural awareness or cognitive development. At Norwich Theatre we are committed to ensuring that everyone has the best opportunity we can provide of coming to the theatre.

“Balancing the needs of audiences with the need and cost of creating great productions and fund charitable work in the local community is crucial, particularly for not-for-profit theatres like us. To ensure the magic of theatre remains accessible to all, it’s imperative that theatres embrace innovation to offer more affordable ticketing options.”

Norwich Theatre has explored new ways to make theatregoing more manageable, both through ringfencing a portion of their £10 seats for low-income audience members, putting shows on sale every month, rather than seasonally, and allowing audiences to spread the cost of booking tickets rather than having to do so in one transaction.

The Trust is an independent charity and receives no public subsidy from the Arts Council or other revenue funding. Instead, it generates its own income through its share of ticket sales, plus commercial activities and fundraising. In the year to 2 April 2023, the Trust Turnover was £18.4m, with £13.3m from Box office receipts and £2.7m from trading income, posting a loss before tax of £0.9m.

To deliver on its mission and achieve that delicate balance of commercial success and precious local community outreach work, Norwich Theatre continues to value local audience support as they have always received. With the ongoing public support, it can continue its impressive, planned programme to make live theatre accessible to all.

Nick Wayne

Nick has been involved in Producer and Venue Organisations for twenty-five years, seen over 1200 productions, visited over 160 of the UK Venues and invested in over 30 West End Productions