Theatre needs £30k to cover increased costs

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Alice CunninghamSuffolk

News image — The Seagull Theatre needs to raise £30,000 to cover its utility bills

The Seagull A view of the Seagull Theatre from above the seats. A large stage can be seen as with a large screen at the back of it. — The Seagull Theatre needs to raise £30,000 to cover its utility bills

A theatre said some of its activities may have to stop if it does not raise £30,000 to cover the cost of rising bills.

The Seagull in Pakefield near Lowestoft, Suffolk, offers plays, musical performances, arts groups and more.

However, it said it was facing increased costs, with its electricity bill in the winter coming in at between £3,000 and £4,500 a month, while its insurance bills could be more than £11,000 a year.

Manager Karen Read said the cost of the bills was "horrendous", but the theatre was committed to delivering its services for the local community.

The theatre operates as a not-for-profit social enterprise and many of its performances are free of charge to watch.

The Seagull Karen Read sits in a row of theatre seats and smiles at the camera. She has long, curly dark red hair and wears a black T-shir with a necklace resting on her chest. — Karen Read said she was "really proud" of the community groups The Seagull offered

"I am Lowestoft born and bred... we are very aware statistically of the level of deprivation in this town, and it is not something that comes easy to us that we are now asking our community to try and help support us because actually our job is to support them, that's what we're here for," she said.

"That's what we do day after day, week after week.

"Our tagline is transforming our community through the arts, and we remain as committed to that as we always have been, but we also want to be here for years to come to continue doing the amazing work that we do.

"So right now I think we've just recognised that we needed a bit of help here, so we are asking our community to support us."

The Seagull A drone image of the Seagull Theatre. It is a large red brick building with a white van parked outside. — The Seagull building was opened in 1895 as a junior day school, but in the 1960s it was converted into an arts centre by Suffolk County Council

Read said places such as The Seagull were "expected to deliver life-changing work on shoestring budgets", but often many forget it still must pay for heating, repairs and staff.

But she said those "core costs" were "treated as invisible". The theatre has created a donations page to help with its finances.

"We're being asked to change lives, but quietly absorbing the relentless strain of the rising cost of everything," she said.

"It just feels like without investing in the roots of these charities and CICs [Community Interest Companies], the whole tree struggles to survive, and that's how we are feeling a little bit at the moment."