Darlington’s Majestic Theatre, originally a cinema which opened in 1932, re-opens on Sunday 1 July under new management.
It closed under its former management in April with debts of around £16,000. Now a new company, Lyall Events and Entertainment Limited, is in charge and the previous owner, Matt Campbell, a tutor at Darlington College, is no longer involved, although the new company is headed by another of the College’s tutors, Hayley Thompson, and the College itself is assisting by paying half the rent.
Campbell took over the theatre in April last year but struggled to pay acts which had been booked before his takeover, including £1,000 to The Circus of Horrors, and so his company has gone into liquidation.
The theatre is used by Performing Arts students from the College and by amateur groups such as the Bondgate Players. Also based in the theatre is Act 2 Cam, a company which is set up to teach young people how to devise and shoot high quality films based on their own ideas.
The opening event on Sunday is free and tickets can be obtained from Ticketsource. There will be a wide variety of acts including comedians, dancers and a bit of murder mystery—and upon arrival audience members will receive a free glass of fizz.