Regal Trust Report September 2016

Regal Trust Report September 2016

Attendance figures

September 2012 1703 patrons

September 2013 975 patrons

September 2014 1026 patrons

September 2015 993 patrons

September 2016 980 patrons

A fairly unremarkable month, with many of our core audience taking their holidays.

Predictably disappointing results for a couple of blockbusters, especially Finding Dory which Disney wouldn’t allow us to screen in the school holiday, where results would have been significantly better.

A lot of broadcast content was shown during the month, with three in the space of a few days.  All were profitable, but attracted quite small audiences, however they certainly ticked the diversity box, with The Penny Opera at one end of the scale, Norma and Cyberline at the other end and Micheal Bublé somewhere in between.  We also have a spectacular performance of Turandot that was staged on Sydney Harbour.  A huge undertaking, but with great results.

There were also two very different live shows. The first a tribute to Bob Dylan was performed on the stage in the Function room to an audience of 40.  A thoroughly enjoyable show, with seating set out in cabaret style.  The second was a sold out performance by Ruby Turner.

Regal Trust Report July/August 2016

Regal Trust Report July/August 2016

Attendance figures

July 2013    786 patrons

July 2014    898 patrons

July 2015  1287 patrons

July 2016  1839 patrons

August 2013 1352 patrons

August 2014 1398 patrons

August 2015 1117 patrons

August 2016 1797 patrons

Another great year at the Regal, and the best ever figures for July & August.

31st August was the end of the fourth year that the Regal has been under the management of the Regal Tenbury Trust.  It was also the busiest year on record with 227 Film screenings, 53 Event Cinema Screenings and 49 Live performances, a total audience of over 21,500 people.  In addition we hosted a number of public and private events, parties, conferences and rehearsals.

Type	2016	2015
Film	227	217
Event	53	36
Live	49	36
Audience	21616	19016

This time last year we reported on the plans to redevelop the service block in the function room.  Unfortunately there has been no further progress with this project will all requests for funding being turned down.

During the Summer both the current General Manager and the Deputy General Manager have resigned.

The Deputy GM will be leaving at the end of September and the GM at the end of October.

The Trustees have decided to change the management structure, and recruitment of a Theatre Manager is underway with interviews this week.  The hope is that someone will be in post by early October. The recruitment of a Theatre Administrator and a Caretaker will commence shortly.

Regal Trust Report June 2016

Regal Trust Report June 2016

Attendance figures

June 2013 1438 patrons

June 2014   726 patrons

June 2015   789 patrons

June 2016   871 patrons

June was a month of surprises and disappointments.  Eddie the Eagle and Florence Foster Jenkins performed below expectations, whereas Jungle Book, Eye in the Sky and Angry Birds exceeded our expectations.  Our final film of the month, The Train, a 1964 war thriller starring Burt Lancaster was a great success. The local audience was swelled by the arrival of two vintage bus loads of re-enactors from the Severn Valley Railway in authentic costumes.

We had four live shows this month, all were thoroughly enjoyed by those that attended, but all had disappointing tickets sales, which does seem to be a slightly worrying trend at the moment.

We now wait in anticipation to see how well our packed summer season performs.  We kick off the school holidays with The BFG, which is our first ever “first run” film, and follow with numerous family friendly presentations throughout the holiday season.

Regal Trust Report May 2016

Regal Trust Report May 2016

Attendance figures

May 2013 1516 patrons

May 2014 1358 patrons

May 2015 1061 patrons

May 2016 1108 patrons

A rather unremarkable month.  Some films, such as Batman v Superman failed to deliver, and whilst Eddie the Eagle and Eye in the Sky were successful they still failed to live up to expectations.  Only Jungle Book exceeded our expectations, but perhaps only because we had revised those expectations downwards.  We are seeing smaller audiences for family films as more people are now seeing films on release with the much improved offering in Hereford.

As our report was not on the agenda for the last meeting so I thought it was worth repeating this section from the report that was prepared.

We have just finished booking films for our summer season, and perhaps as an indication of the fragmentation in the marketplace, this has been the most time consuming and complicated process of all the seasons we have booked so far.  

The good news is our summer programme is much stronger than last years and for the first time we have been able to secure a film on a first run basis so we will be screening  Steven Spielberg’s The BFG at the same time as the big cinemas.  

As an indication of the fragmentation.  The BFG  is a Spielberg production, Spielberg productions are owned by Disney, so this is a Disney Film, but we are negotiating with Entertainment One (EOne) who have the UK rights.  The trailer is being distributed by MPD via the Lansat system, how we will receive the DCP or digital package is at yet unknown but will probably be via the Unique system.  As the different distribution platforms roll out I’m sure there will be further confusion until a dominant player emerges.

Regal Trust Report April 2016

Regal Trust Report April 2016

Attendance figures

April 2013 1298 patrons

April 2014 1902 patrons

April 2015 1497 patrons

April 2016 639 patrons

Our worst month for patrons since our launch in September 2012.

This was partly due to a lack of live shows. This time had originally been planned as a period for remodelling the function room service block.

Film sales were particularly weak with no blockbuster in this month’s available films.  First run cinemas were reporting a strong month, but only time will tell if we will see better figures for those films or whether they will be a spent force by the time we screen them.

We have just finished booking films for our summer season, and perhaps as an indication of the fragmentation in the marketplace, this has been the most time consuming and complicated process of all the seasons we have booked so far.  The good news is our summer programme is much stronger than last years and for the first time we have been able to secure a film on a first run basis so we we be screening  Steven Spielberg’s The BFG at the same time as the big cinemas.  As an indication of the fragmentation.  The BFG  is a Spielberg production, Spielberg productions are owned by Disney, so this is a Disney Film, but we are negotiating with Entertainment One (EOne) who have the UK rights.  The trailer is being distributed by MPD via the Lansat system, how we will receive the DCP or digital package is at yet unknown.  As the different distribution platforms roll out I’m sure there will be further confusion until a dominant player emerges.

Regal Trust Report March 2016

Regal Trust Report March 2016

Attendance figures

March 2013 3074 patrons

March 2014 2058 patrons

March 2015 2164 patrons

March 2016 2351 patrons

Although we increased the number of patrons this month, only a few films performed well.  The best was Dad’s Army but even this failed to deliver the numbers that had been expected.

We only hosted one live show this month, The Sounds of Simon, a Simon and Garfunkel Tribute show.  The show was excellent and did perform better than our target. Broadcast shows were poorly supported and there may now be an oversupply in the market, with less popular titles and events being screened.  The award winning adaptation of the Railway Children wasn’t as well attended as we had hoped.  Sales across the country had been very good and we gave it maximum exposure so we are at a bit of a loss to understand this.

Lindridge School held their Oscar’s evening at the Regal, screening a selection of short films shot by and featuring the Children from the school.  We did have a small technical problem with the media supplied, but experience has now taught us to have a back-up copy, so we were able to switch with a very short delay.  After the screening, the children were presented with awards.  From the exit chatter, I think we can conclude that the evening was very successful.

The newly formed Regal Theatre Company for adults are to host an open day at the Regal on Saturday 9th April.  They are encouraging anyone with the slightest interest in Theatre to come along and find out more about the Regal and how they can “Make Theatre Happen”.

Regal Trust Report Feb 2016

Regal Trust Report Feb 2016

Attendance figures

Feb 2013 1261 patrons

Feb 2014 1698 patrons

Feb 2015 2074 patrons

Feb 2016 1498 patrons

A disappointing month with a limited choice of good titles available to us.  Although Danish Girl and Revenant performed better than expected they were no match for last years The Theory of Everything.  

The half term films (Snoopy & Pan) were also less popular titles than last years (Penguins of Madagascar & Annie).  

The Musical Theatre School has now restarted with new tutors and the numbers attending are close to our maximum capacity in the older age group.

We have also announced our intention to form the Regal Theatre Company for adults and are in the process of collating information about what people want.

February saw a number of electrical failures in the building.  The Aisle lighting system had to be repaired as a section of the cable had corroded leading to short circuits.  The fire shutter control mechanism also overloaded blowing its fuses.  Also the Community Centre emergency lighting charging system developed a fault and the control switch was replaced.  

Regal Trust Report Jan 2016

Regal Trust Report Jan 2016

Attendance figures

Jan 2013 699 patrons

Jan 2014 1311 patrons

Jan 2015 2266 patrons

Jan 2016 3082 patrons

A good month starting with the last two pantomime performances. Suffragette, Bridge of Spies, Addicted to Sheep and Star Wars did very well.  The Lady in the Van was a film that crossed over and brought in many people who don’t usually go to the cinema.

Our Shakespeare season from the Globe hasn’t achieved the successes of previous years.  This maybe as the plays were less popular titles or because people were more attracted to other films.

We distributed in excess of 17,000 brochures at the beginning of December and this has helped to make the venue more popular.  We have also been lucky so far with the weather with only a few icy nights.  The heating in the building is better since all the additional insulation work done last year, but is still insufficient to keep the auditorium warm on very cold days.  The additional radiator and warm air door curtain helps to keep the box office to an acceptable working temperature.

We have had disappointing news from potential funders with two grant applications being turned down at the initial stage.  We now have the necessary planning permissions in place for the alterations to the function room and the stage so will continue to pursue funding opportunities.

Our technical team have almost completed the annual clean and maintenance of the lighting rig, and a number of lamps have been earmarked for disposal.  Additional LED lights have been integrated into the rig and linked with DMX control.  They have also completed the supplementary power supply installation in the projection room to power these lamps.

Regal Trust Report Dec 2015

Regal Trust Report Dec 2015

Attendance figures

Dec 2012 2297 patrons

Dec 2013 2459 patrons

Dec 2014 3054 patrons

Dec 2015 5283 patrons

A good month overall, starting with Spectre, and a number of school visits including Burford Primary for their annual nativity play, and a sell out Band Concert.  We then closed for a week to the public whilst we made preparations for our Pantomime.

This year we more than doubled the number of performances and whilst some performances did sell out we had an overall average loading of 80%, which was our initial target.

The pantomime was very well received and we have had lots of positive comments by email and on social media.

We have also heard that the businesses that stayed open to match our shows had a significant increase in footfall and takings.

The success is only due to the hard work of about 100 people and so once again we would like to publically thank all of our volunteers who gave up extra time during December and at Christmas to make the Regal and ongoing success.

Regal Trust Report Nov 2015

Regal Trust Report Nov 2015

Attendance figures

Nov 2012 1447 patrons

Nov 2013 1303 patrons

Nov 2014  1433 patrons

Nov 2015  2031 patrons

A good month overall with only three films making a loss. One a supposed blockbuster that completely failed to deliver.

We had a good audience for Raymond Froggatt and for GAGA, reversing the recent trend for live shows.  Our live Children’s show staged after the Christmas Lights switch on was also well received.

The Tenbury Floral Club’s Christmas Show was another successful evening.

We also staged three performances of a Dance show with a cast of 165 children.  This was a fantastic success and we hope they will book their next show with us.

We have seen a marked increase in school visits, with Tenbury Ormiston Academy seeing Of Mice and Men, Orleton Primary and Bayton Primary seeing Hotel Transylvania 2 and Luston seeing Polar Express.

We have now completed most of the wiring infrastructure improvements, which will be utilised for future live shows, and especially for the Pantomime.  The rehearsals for which are now fully underway.  Ticket sales are still strong, but we do have plenty of tickets left for shows after Christmas.

We now enter our busiest period of the year and would like to thank all of our volunteers who will be giving up extra time during December and at Christmas to make the Regal and ongoing success.

Regal Trust Report Oct 2015

Regal Trust Report Oct 2015

Attendance figures

Oct 2012 1293 patrons

Oct 2013 1010 patrons

Oct 2014  1247 patrons

Oct 2015  1323  patrons

A better month overall with only two films making a loss and one live show cancelled due to low ticket sales.  Unusually we were able to benefit from this by scheduling a film that we have missed and this proved to be very successful.

The live Shakespeare production of Much ado about nothing also proved more successful than we had expected, with reasonable audiences for all the performances.

Two of this month’s broadcasts were headlined by household names.  David Suchard in The Importance of being earnest and Benedict Cumberbatch playing Macbeth.  Both were successful, but numbers were slightly down on expectation.  Tony Stockwell also had a disappointing audience of about 50% of his previous visit.

The sales for the Pantomime are doing well and reacted immediately to our large mailshot.  A number of the performances have already sold more than 50% of the available tickets.  We are hoping to appear in next weekend’s Mail on Sunday in their top 100 pantomimes. We also hope that our new look website will launch this week.  As more than 50% of people now look at our website using a tablet or phone, it has been optimised for this growth area.

To address the slightly disappointing audiences of late we are doubling our print run of brochures and having them delivered by a distribution company in Ludlow, Leominster and most of Tenbury.  We will then ask our volunteers to concentrate their efforts in the area’s not being covered.

We have completed the installation of the new “clean power” circuits for the sound system, and have almost completed the installation of the sound circuits.  This should enable us to support smaller shows with our PA system without the background hum & crackle.

The replacement function room fire escape doors have now been replaced making that end of the building more secure.

We have completed the installation of a heat curtain in the box office, which along with the additional radiator should mean that this winter the cashiers can work without having to resort to additional outdoor clothing.  

The application for grant aid to support the internal renovation of the function room has now been submitted.  Hopefully this will be successful as yet again this month we have had random flooding events in the function room toilets, but still cannot ascertain where the problem is.

Regal Trust Report Sept 2015

Regal Trust Report Sept 2015

Attendance figures

Sept 2012 1703 patrons

Sept 2013 975 patrons

Sept 2014  1026 patrons

Sept 2015  993  patrons

A slightly disappointing month.  The final film of the school holiday failed to deliver significant audiences.  Again this was a major blockbuster and the feeling is many families saw the film on release at the beginning of the school holidays.  We had a poor response to our school advertising this summer holiday so have checked with all the local schools and they have all asked us to continue to supplying them with leaflets.

This month we had some interesting live broadcasts, with the Rocky Horror show bringing in a better than expected audience for a Thursday evening, including some in costume.

The Battle of Britain at 75 broadcast and the Romeo & Juliet ballet were also well supported.

Live music events again showed a reduced audience.  The local appetite for this kind of event seems to have waned.

Almost all the cast for Jack and the Beanstalk have now been selected, and ticket sales remain strong.  The marketing effort is being stepped up and leaflets will be delivered to 30,000 local households in the next few weeks.

There will be a lot of effort expended in the next couple of months upgrading the technical infrastructure to enable us to deliver this very challenging production. We are investing thousands of pounds in new wiring and equipment.

We are also converting much of the remaining halogen lighting in the foyer and auditorium to LEDs.  This will return savings in power usage, replacement lamps and labour.

Plumbing problems remain an issue, with some of the taps installed during the refurbishments already having to be substantially overhauled and replacement parts installed.  Random flooding events also occur in the function room toilets.  

Regal Trust Report July/Aug 2015

Regal Trust Report July/Aug 2015

Attendance figures

July 2013 786 patrons

July 2014  898 patrons

July 2015  1287  patrons

Aug 2013 1352 patrons

Aug 2014  1398 patrons

Aug 2015  1117  patrons

Two very different months.  July saw a leap in attendance, with a good number at nearly every event.  The August numbers were primarily affected by a poor choice of new family films this summer and the Blockbuster Minions which was so popular many people had already seen it before it came to Tenbury.  We did have some very successful events during the holiday season.  MiniCineMonkeys attracted record breaking numbers each week, and two Musical Theatre Workshops were well supported and greatly enjoyed.  The Frozen sing along party was also extremely successful.

The Trust has made good progress with plans to redevelop the service block in the function room.  This will provide additional toilet facilities by allowing separation between public and backstage areas.  The upgraded facilities will make the room more attractive to hire and improved sound proofing will enable two events to be held simultaneously.  The provision of two dressing rooms will make the theatre more acceptable to incoming shows and the provision of a fixed bar will allow smaller shows to be booked into the function room, and make it a better facility to use when large audiences are expected.  Additional storage has also been procured so excess tables and chairs can be stored outside of the room

The stage curtain motor has been replaced and will now hopefully give problem free service.  The security shutters that secure the auditorium fire doors when not in use have also had a replacement motor.

The latest programme (Number 13) has just been released and details a very ambitious and wide ranging programme of events for the Autumn.  We have relatively few live shows as we struggle to find good original content, but the variety of Broadcast content continues to grow.  Over the next few weeks we have live feeds from the Albert Hall, the Playhouse Theatre, Biggin Hill, the Royal Opera House, the Donmar Theatre, the Vaudeville Theatre, the Barbican,  the London Coliseum, the Courtyard Theatre Stratford upon Avon, the Garrick Theatre, and possibly Manchester’s Exhibition Centre.

Live highlights are the Here to There productions staging of Much Ado About Nothing and the Baroque Theatre Company’s The Great Santa Kidnap.  Both of which should be great fun and should not be missed.

We are in the countdown towards our pantomime Jack & the Beanstalk.  This year we have twice as many performances than last year and have already sold twice as many tickets per show as this time last year.  This is a major event for Tenbury and with 50% of the performances being matinees this should also have a positive effect on the whole business community.  Hopefully they will step up to the challenge of providing linked shopping, and dining opportunities to capitalise on the increased footfall.

Regal Trust Report June 2015

Regal Trust Report June 2015

Attendance figures

June 2013 1438 patrons

June 2014  726 patrons

June 2015  789  patrons

Another quite disappointing month with low audience figures.

With the exception of Far from the Madding Crowd the film programme this month failed to excite.

During June we hosted the WI National Centenary AGM live streamed via the internet from the Royal Albert Hall.  There were a few technical problems early on in the broadcast, but unlike some other local venues our transmission settled down and most of the broadcast was seen and heard without problems.

We also hosted the volunteer recruitment fair organised by Malvern Hills Volunteering.  More people attended during the first 90 minutes than during the whole event in 2014, but the attendance ceased after mid-day.

A well attended information evening for volunteers was also held this month, where feedback of the trust’s performance over the last six months was shared.  The volunteers also watched some short video clips shot at the Musical Theatre School, which was met with delight and a round of applause.