Campaigners have pleaded with council bosses to protect the future of live theatre in North Shields.
More than 1,000 people have signed a petition calling for the Exchange Theatre to be saved, with the charity which runs it set to be evicted after seven years at the listed building. Performing arts union Equity staged a rally outside the Howard Street site on Tuesday lunchtime, demanding that North Tyneside Council commit in writing that live theatre will continue to be performed at the Exchange under its new operator.
The centre is due to undergo a renovation by new leaseholders Stonebanks Investments, which has promised a “jam-packed cultural programme” for the revamped Saville Exchange. Dominic Bascombe, Equity regional official for North East, Yorkshire and Humberside, said that the people of North Shields “deserve a local theatre in the heart of their community”.
