Durham’s Gala Theatre is ten years old. But with bosses considering outsourcing it to a charitable trust, how will its next act play out? Mark Tallentire reports.

THE ten-year-old Gala Theatre has had more twists than a good whodunit.

On January 15, 2002, the £14m venue opened – the centrepiece of Durham’s flagship £30m Millennium City development.

The production was the Alan Ayckbourn comedy Flat Spin. It might have described the Gala itself – audience numbers flat, finances in a spin.

The first words uttered on stage: “Oh God.”

A concert by pop group A1 was postponed and plans to beam another by Westlife onto a big screen nearby were abandoned amid poor ticket sales.

The cracks were papered over for an official opening by the Queen on May 8, but the act did not last long.

Within two weeks, Gala managers The Entertainment Team (Durham) Limited (TET) had collapsed owing £700,000 to 150 creditors.

The taxpayer was left £200,000 out of pocket.

Only a last-minute rescue by Durham City Council prevented the 550-seat theatre’s immediate closure.

Liquidator Alan Marlor chastised the council for its careless choice of operator, while TET chiefs blamed the late opening of various theatre facilities and disastrous ticket sales. A cinema incapable of showing mainstream films for the first 16 months cannot have helped.

The council initially stepped in for 13 weeks.

Ten years and millions of pounds of public subsidy later, the authority is still in charge – and still paying.

By 2005, the Audit Commission considered the venue “stabilised”, and the recruitment of former Coronation Street script editor Simon Stallworthy that April proved a hit.

Over coming years, the Gala hosted 12 world premieres, including locally-set productions The Likely Lads, All Creatures Great and Small and Alf Ramsey Knew My Grandfather, and between 2006 and 2010, audience numbers grew by nearly half to 200,000 a year.

But 13 months ago, Stallworthy stormed out, saying bosses at Durham County Council, which had succeeded Durham City Council the year before, were bogging the Gala down in irrelevant policies and leaving its future in limbo.

Stallworthy’s importance was perhaps underlined when those same council chiefs welcomed him back to stage this year’s pantomime.

Last spring, Neil Hillier, the council’s strategic manager for heritage and culture, said the Gala’s future was extremely bright. Then, last week – nearly ten years to the day since the Gala opened – the council revealed plans to outsource it to a charitable trust.

“It has had an interesting past, even though it has only been ten years,” says Mr Hillier, as he sits reflecting in Durham’s County Hall. He says building the theatre was an extremely brave move at the time and he is glad the city council went ahead with the plans.

“I think every city deserves a theatre, particularly a university city with such a strong cultural heritage as Durham,” he says.

“It has been supported throughout that period very well by the people of Durham. That is a tribute both to the Gala and its staff and also to the people of Durham – they desire to see live theatre, performance and music.

“It has brought some interesting and exciting events and festivals to Durham and it has put Durham on the cultural map in a way that is not purely about its history or academia.”

Mr Hillier compares the Gala’s early years with those of a child. “We have had the knocks and the bumps and we are now in the stage where everything is out there ahead of us,” he says.

But what grounds are there for such optimism?

Mr Hillier turns first to the Gala Theatre Stage School, which he says has helped North- East youngsters reach the West End stage.

Then there is the in-house pantomime. This year’s, Jack and the Beanstalk, was the biggest ever, with 26,738 visitors, meaning the run was 94 per cent sold out.

Comedy is thriving, he continues, with the Gala having secured intimate warm-up gigs by comedians Lee Evans and John Bishop. Such high-profile appearances help attract others, Mr Hillier argues. “We all need a good laugh.

We all know the economic climate is tough. It’s times like these when comedians really shine,” he says.

But he also believes the Gala is a “resource for the county”, inspiring and helping people create their own theatre, through Tin Arts, Durham Musical Theatre and more.

VERY laudable. But will the Gala ever be able to stand alone without public subsidy?

“It’s possible,” Mr Hillier says, rather timidly.

That’s the objective, at least.

Audience numbers are falling, though less than elsewhere, apparently.

And there is the prospect, from April, of an Arts and Festivals Hub, bankrolled with £635,000 from the Arts Council.

“Gala is packed with opportunities we haven’t yet grasped. There is no lack of aspiration or enthusiasm for the Gala to see it succeed and grow. Times are tough, but you work within the constraints you’ve got,” says Mr Hillier.

Asked to name his favourite Gala show from the past decade, he replies: “I think my favourite show is yet to come. Whatever we have had, I always think we are going to get something better.”

Given its first ten years, perhaps what the Gala needs next – whether or not its management is transferred to the proposed new leisure trust – is a period of stability.

But with hard times biting, disposable incomes falling and the public spending squeeze set to continue for several years yet, further dramatic twists no doubt lie ahead. Break a leg, folks.