Exeter Northcott

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Buy a Ticket - Bring a Friend 22/03/10

Following the news that Exeter Northcott will remain open for the remainder of its spring season, the theatre is sending out a Buy a Ticket, Bring a Friend message to spread the word that it is still a working venue and very much open for business.

The following events in the Spring 2010 season will now definitely be going ahead and show off the range of accessible, exciting work that Exeter Northcott has become known for: -

Famed for their innovative mix of visual trickery, film and outlandish storylines, the South West’s own Forkbeard Fantasy return to Exeter Northcott with The Colour of Nonsense (Mon 22 to Sat 27 March), a comedy about the theft of an invisible artwork.

For children, How The Koala Learnt To Hug (Fri 9 April) and the Northcott Young Company production James and the Giant Peach (Thu 15 to Sat 17 April), featuring a cast of 30 local youngsters, offer quality family entertainment. We’re also delighted to announce the addition of an extra 2.30pm matinee performance for James and the Giant Peach on Thursday 15th April, which has been added due to popular demand.

Buying a ticket and bringing a friend is the best way that theatre-goers can support Exeter Northcott, ensuring that the remainder of our spring 2010 season is a success, whilst work begins to develop a longer term plan for the theatre.

Chief Executive, Kate Tyrrell says: “The staff at Exeter Northcott are pleased that Arts Council England, Exeter City Council and the University of Exeter have pledged their commitment to the ongoing future of the theatre. The Exeter Northcott makes a valuable contribution to the cultural life of the city and it's great that this looks set to continue. I'd like to thank the theatre staff for their exceptional loyalty and commitment during the last few difficult weeks. The team at the Northcott would like to thank everyone who has voiced their support for the theatre over the last few weeks and would urge others to demonstrate their support by buying a ticket for upcoming shows in our spring season."

Members of the public and the theatre community have also been coming out in support of the theatre’s work: -

Exeter resident Penny Wilcox says, “we really need to show huge support in the city and surrounding area for the Northcott. I really love going there - all seats are brilliant, it's a nice location and it's good to meet up with friends in the bar before a show. And it has a great and varied programme. Opera and ballet are my favourites.”

University of Exeter student Emma Phillips, who played in the orchestra for Exeter University Footlights’ production of Guys & Dolls, believes, “this venue is invaluable to so many. Exeter students are incredibly lucky to have a venue such as the Northcott on campus.”

Mother and Exeter University tutor Dr. Pascale Aebischler says, “the shows we’ve recently seen have been of the quality one would normally associate with the best of the West End and have catered to the diverse tastes of our family: our three and five-year-olds have loved The Tiger Who Came to Tea and Mother Goose and we adults have had memorable evenings watching Ibsen’s A Doll’s House and The Ministry of Fear.

Regular theatre-goers Jackie and Bob Witkin explain, “over recent years we have travelled to London, Plymouth and Bristol to experience good theatre. However, after we were more than pleasantly surprised by the high standard of the September production of Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, we suddenly found ourselves present at six productions throughout the season. As well as classical plays we are delighted that the theatre is presenting cutting-edge drama and promoting new writing.”

Vicky Salter, Expressive Arts teacher at Queen Elizabeth’s Community College in Crediton, says the theatre has become an invaluable resource for her students. “We have been given some fantastic experiences at Exeter Northcott over the past year, giving the students so much inspiration and motivation to go out and produce their own work. It is such an amazing venue that we want to continue working with.”

Marcus Romer, artistic director of Pilot Theatre, who visited Exeter Northcott in February, says. “We have just returned from a successful opening of our touring show, The Fever Chart. The opening night was a buzzing evening. The audience was great and filled the house and the venue felt very robust and forward looking.”

To endorse the Buy a Ticket, Bring a Friend message, call the Box Office on 01392 493 493 or book online via this website. You can also show your support by emailing info@exeternorthcott.co.uk or visiting our Facebook page.

We have also produced a Public Information Pack which highlights some of our achievements of the past year:

Public Information Pack

About Exeter Northcott

The Exeter Northcott produces, presents and creates thrilling, surprising and life-changing theatre and performance work for audiences of all ages and backgrounds from across Exeter and Devon. We work in our own venue on the University campus, from our dedicated workshop and rehearsal studios in St Thomas, in site-specific locations in the city of Exeter and beyond. We also offer lots of opportunities to become involved in theatre to anyone who wants to give it a try, through a wide variety of learning and participation programmes, workshops and community productions.

Exeter Northcott was founded in 1967 and has a strong history as a leading producing theatre as well as being a ‘springboard’ for some of the UK’s best actors, writers and technicians in the early stages of their careers. Over the past year we have continued to build on these foundations and involve as many people as possible in the creative life of the theatre – extending our reach throughout the communities of Exeter, Devon and beyond.

Our Achievements: 2009 - 10

There have been a great many positive changes and achievements at Exeter Northcott over the past year…

• 3 vibrant seasons of visiting work
• 3 major festival collaborations
• Over 88,000 attenders
• 4 exciting co-productions
• 4,000 more tickets sold (compared with 2008)
• 2 acclaimed In-house productions
• 3 imaginative community shows
• 44 work opportunities created for local theatre professionals
• 3 excellent student productions
• Over 650 facebook and twitter fans
• 3 new writing projects
• Training and participation opportunities for 94 local actors, writers, technicians, students and volunteers
• 1,977 free theatre tickets distributed to under 26’s through Arts Council England’s A Night Less Ordinary scheme

At the Box Office

Despite financial difficulties, our Autumn 2009 season was extremely well received by audiences.

Highlights included sell-out runs for two contemporary dance shows, Jasmin Vardimon’s Justitia and Richard Alston Dance Company. Fans of Shakespeare flocked to the theatre for the Headlong/Schtanhaus co-production of The Winter’s Tale, which ran at 95% capacity, better audience figures than for anywhere on the production’s extensive national tour.

We also proved there is an appetite for new writing in Devon when Out of Joint’s Dreams of Violence secured its highest touring figures in Exeter. English Touring Opera’s Handelfest, a season of lesser known operas, achieved 86% capacity. Overall, 8,000 more tickets were sold for Autumn 2009 than for the Autumn 2008 season.

In Spring 2010, our co-production with Theatre Alibi, The Ministry of Fear, ran at 91% capacity. Our creative development work received a real boost when more than 300 people showed their support for local new writing by coming to see Beyond Nora.

It has been suggested that the closure of the Stocker Road car parks near the theatre would have a serious negative impact on attendance. However, statistics do not bear this out. In the three months following the closure of the car parks, 28,484 people saw performances at Exeter Northcott, compared to 28,750 in the corresponding 3 months in the previous year. Moreover, if two performances of Mother Goose not been cancelled due to the snow, we would have surpassed last year’s figure.

We have seen a significant increase in the number of young people coming to the theatre. 6,846 more tickets were sold to families and under 26s in 2009 than 2008 – an improvement of almost 50%.

Our Creative Work: 2009 - 10

The flagship for any theatre is its own productions. We’re very proud of A Doll’s House and our 2009 pantomime Mother Goose. Both these productions respond to the times we live in as well as having the transformative and theatrical quality that are essential to a good night out.

“An ensemble production that incorporates everything that’s good about pantomime, imbued with tradition from first to last.”
The Stage on Mother Goose

“Contemporary language and a stunning set make this production of Ibsen’s compelling drama instantly accessible to modern audiences.”
Western Morning News on A Doll’s House

Since 2009 we have co-produced a number of very popular shows that have drawn great audiences; Romeo and Juliet with Ludlow Festival Society, the stage premiere of Peppa Pig’s Party - an imaginatively produced puppet show for the under 5’s, Trading Local, a site-specific piece co-produced with Bristol’s prestigious Show of Strength and most recently the sell-out Ministry of Fear, with local company Theatre Alibi.

Exeter Northcott has also been an active partner in some of the city’s best-loved festivals, the Exeter City Festival, the Exeter Autumn Festival and the Laugh Out Loud Comedy Festival. We have contributed to these festivals in lots of ways – from offering space for workshops to producing and presenting shows, commissioning new local writing and putting on free public performances in the heart of the city.

As well as bringing the best to Devon we have invested in the careers of theatre artists based in the South West. All of our productions to date have featured actors, stage managers and creative teams who are locally based.

Our Work in the Community: 2009 - 10

In 2009 -10, our Creative Learning Programme has gone from strength to strength.

Community Company Productions

We have seen a significant increase in the number of people auditioning for roles in Northcott Community Company and Northcott Young Company productions. An impressive 84 young people auditioned in January to take part in the Northcott Young Company’s next show, James and the Giant Peach. Open auditions have attracted young people from all over the county for performance opportunities alongside professionals such as Boy Blue’s Pied Piper and our annual pantomime, Mother Goose.

There have been three community productions in the past year, including the NCC production of Ionesco’s challenging Rhinoceros and the joint NYC/ NCC shows Through The Wardrobe. This Spring the Young Company will present their brand new production of Roald Dahl’s much-loved James and the Giant Peach, (for which, due to popular demand, we have just added an additional 2.30pm matinee performance on Thursday 15th April) - please do come along if you can! The Northcott Community Singers now have 80 members and audiences have enjoyed two great concerts in the theatre, with another performance planned for this summer.

Work with Schools and Colleges

We now run inventive and original workshops for people of all ages, linked to in-house productions and visiting shows. Workshops run by our Creative Learning Manager are now free to state schools giving unprecedented numbers of students the chance to engage one-on-one with our work. We are also finding more schools and colleges want to see shows at the theatre. 14 schools visited us in September to see A Doll’s House – a higher number than for any in-house production in recent years. Young people are encouraged to participate in post-show discussions where they regularly engage with performers posing insightful questions and talking confidently about theatre.

Creative Development for Local Artists

We have been delighted to work with local actors and writers through The Big Read, Trading Local and Beyond Nora and consider these projects to be an important part of the theatre’s creative identity.

“This was a fantastic example of a theatre in a completely creative dialogue with, and in touch with, the community it serves”
Audience comment on Beyond Nora and its post-show discussion

University of Exeter Students

We are now enjoying a much greater dialogue with students than ever before. Throughout the Autumn season productions such as Dreams of Violence and Justitia proved great entrance points for students who showed their enthusiasm by staying for vibrant post-show talks and expressing their view that these shows were the most exciting they’d ever seen at the Northcott. Several students have volunteered to promote our shows among their peers and they have also set up a Theatre-Goers Society. We also support the Guild Societies performances and the Drama Department with curriculum-based performances. Student volunteer opportunities to work on projects such as Trading Local, have further developed the perception among students that the Northcott is a theatre for them.

Our Supporters

“Apart from offering the city shows of an outstanding quality for decades, the Northcott has also been the lifeblood of the local theatre scene, offering inspiration, practical help and expert guidance to everyone, from local schools to arts festivals and amateur dramatic groups. I speak from experience as the director of Stage by Stage Academy when I say that, having performed in venues across the country, the support given by the Northcott’s tremendous professional staff has been unequalled!”
Ian Trafford, Director of Stage by Stage Academy

“Over recent years we have travelled to London, Plymouth and Bristol to experience good theatre. However, after we were more than pleasantly surprised by the high standard of the September production of Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, we suddenly found ourselves present at six productions throughout the season. As well as classical plays we are delighted that the theatre is presenting cutting-edge drama and promoting new writing.”
Jackie and Bob Witkin, theatre-goers

“This venue is invaluable to so many. Exeter students are incredibly lucky to have a venue such as the Northcott on campus.”
Emma Phillips, musician and Exeter University student

“Smaller companies like Cheekish need theatres like the Northcott to support us at this crucial stage of our development - when we're making the move from tiny fringe venues to a larger touring circuit… Please, everyone, support the Northcott and help it to continue the great work it is doing.”
Dan Ayling, Artistic Director of Cheekish Productions

“The shows we’ve recently seen have been of the quality one would normally associate with the best of the West End and have catered to the diverse tastes of our family: our three and five-year-olds have loved The Tiger Who Came to Tea and Mother Goose and we adults have had memorable evenings watching Ibsen’s A Doll’s House and The Ministry of Fear.”
Dr. Pascale Aebischler, mother and Exeter University tutor

Buy a Ticket – Bring a Friend

Following the news that Exeter Northcott will remain open for the remainder of its spring season, the theatre is sending out a Buy a Ticket, Bring a Friend message to spread the word that it is still a working venue and very much open for business.

The following events in the Spring 2010 season will now definitely be going ahead and show off the range of accessible, exciting work that Exeter Northcott has become known for: -

Famed for their innovative mix of visual trickery, film and outlandish storylines, the South West’s own Forkbeard Fantasy return to Exeter Northcott with The Colour of Nonsense (Mon 22 to Sat 27 March), a comedy about the theft of an invisible artwork.

For children, How The Koala Learnt To Hug (Fri 9 April) and the Northcott Young Company production James & The Giant Peach (Thu 15 to Sat 17 April), featuring a cast of 30 local youngsters, offer quality family entertainment.

Buying a ticket and bringing a friend is the best way that theatre-goers can support Exeter Northcott, ensuring that the remainder of our spring 2010 season is a success, whilst work begins to develop a longer term plan for the theatre.

Thank you for supporting Exeter Northcott!

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