Following renovations from Levelling Up finding, The Muni Theatre in Colne, Lancashire has put back its reopening from spring to midsummer 2024.
Pendle Leisure Trust, which runs the building on behalf of Pendle Council, said that during the £1.56 million refurbishment of the 122-year-old building, it was found that further structural work would have to be carried out before it could be reopened to the public.
Alison Goode, Chief Executive of Pendle Leisure Trust, said, “it is with a heavy heart that we’re having to further delay the opening of Colne’s beloved theatre. We feel the frustration of our patrons and we wish, as they do, that we could reopen The Muni as originally planned. However, it’s simply not possible without further work being done to make The Muni as safe as possible, which I’m sure everyone would agree is the most important factor. For the health and safety of all the visitors to the venue, we simply can’t open the building to the public without this work going ahead."
The pantomime of Jack and the Beanstalk this January was transferred to Pendle Hippodrome, but it won't be possible to transfer any of the other shows that should have run at the Muni in the first half of the year and so they are working to reschedule them for a different time.