Doncaster's Cast theatre given £33,000 emergency bail out cash to continue trading

The town’s flagship theatre in Sir Nigel Gresley Square will get £33,374 as part of Arts Council England’s Coronavirus Emergency Response Fund which has been set up to help struggling venues stay in business during the COVID-19 pandemic.

It comes just days after the Government announced £1.57 billion of emergency cash to help venues.

Cast faces an uncertain future with over 80 events cancelled or rescheduled to date.

A spokesman said: “Today’s news, alongside the government bailout for theatres announced this Monday, represents a lifeline intervention to stem the flow of significant financial losses for the charity.

“With only six full trading years under its belt, Cast has made a great impact on the local community and the regional arts infrastructure. The theatre warns that although it has the building blocks for a positive future, Cast simply is not in a position to absorb months of non-trading.”

Deborah Rees, director of Cast said: ‘In every step of our recovery we are putting our local people first, and our role as a community catalyst will be even more needed and we are ideally placed to support cohesion and regeneration in Doncaster.

“We are grateful and relieved to receive this urgent lifeline.

“Our closure is more than just a string of cancelled shows and financial losses. Cast is a dependable community resource, responsible, trusted and engaged with the people of the town.

“This emergency grant will allow Cast beyond September to continue as a business, employ its small core team, and to do everything necessary that will allow the theatre to hold its local, regional and national artistic partnerships ready to resume when it is safe to do so. The theatre also pledges to continue to offer ongoing support to Doncaster based artists throughout 2020 and communicate on a regular basis with its audiences and touring companies.

“The last few months have hit us hard, and even with this important investment, it will remain a challenge until we are clearer about the future and when we might resume our programme.”