Yahoo News 'Use us or lose us' plea from treasured Stag theatre in Sevenoaks
People are being encouraged to use a much-loved theatre and cinema to safeguard it for the town. The iconic Stag in Sevenoaks, which began life as the Majestic Cinema 88 years ago, has had a chequered history and could have been lost more than twice.
After going bankrupt and closing for a second time in 2008, Sevenoaks Town Council stepped in to rescue it, taking the bold decision to completely change the business model, and it has operated as a charity since. Now a short film, Saving the Stag, has been produced, highlighting that pivotal moment in its history 15 years ago and the battle to rescue it for the town and the people who made that happen.
It describes the early challenges and its gradual growth and improvement over 10 years to 2019, when something was on almost every day. Then Covid hit, and the theatre faced another battle for survival.
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With the hard work of people dedicated to it, the support of the community, and some crucial grants, it did. But it is still not back to where it was pre-pandemic.
Now, the community is being encouraged to get involved to ensure it thrives once more. Those heavily involved in saving the venue over the past 15 years feature in Saving The Stag.
Chief executive Andrew Eyre said: “The pandemic is over but its impact is continuing. Numbers are down, volunteers are more difficult to find and without those two we are going to struggle to stay open, we are going to struggle to provide the facilities for the people and community of Sevenoaks.”
Town clerk and chief executive of Sevenoaks Town Council, Linda Larter, said: “Lots of people in Sevenoaks are emotionally attached to The Stag – they used it when they were children or their children use it – and it becomes almost commonplace that it’s there, but it does need to be used, it does need people to buy tickets to ensure it’s there for the future.”
Since 2009, almost £1.4 million has been invested into it to develop its services, develop and improve the equipment it provides to hirers and to “continually improve us as a centre for entertainment for the people of Sevenoaks”, said Mr Eyre. He said he also wanted to thank the people of Sevenoaks for their support in recent years.
He added: “We have something for everyone. We set out to offer stage, screen and community for all and we have different shows in music, cinema, stage and drama as well as community meetings for young and old.”
In a message to the community, Mr Eyre said: “Come and see a show, come and see a film, come and volunteer. With you we can build back stronger, with you we can look forward to success again, with you we can be The Stag again.”
The Stag is running a questionnaire to find out more about how people use the venue and what they would like to see there. It also asks if people are aware The Stag is a charity, and that it uses volunteers throughout the building.
You can be in with the chance to win Stag cinema tickets for a year by completing a short survey here. You can see Saving The Stag here.
Anyone interested in volunteering can contact Rachel by sending an email to volunteers@stagsevenoaks.co.uk.
