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Teaching venue deal for city theatre extended

Google The exterior of the brick-built and glass-fronted Haymarket theatre Google
New dance studios are being built at the Haymarket Theatre

A deal has been secured for a dance academy to use a Leicester city centre theatre as a teaching base until 2034.

The Haymarket Theatre closed in March 2020 during the Covid pandemic but stayed shut once lockdown ended.

It reopened in 2023 when Leicester City Council signed a short-term agreement with Addict Dance Academy (ADA).

The authority said that deal had been extended and it would be investing a further £901,000 in the venue.

Unused storage areas and offices are to be converted into two new dance studios and the council said it had bought equipment "needed to bring the venue back in to use for 'audience' events".

The refurbishment is being funded using money from the government's UK Shared Prosperity Fund, the authority said.

Sir Peter Soulsby Outside the Haymarket Theatre
Sir Peter Soulsby said people would be able to watch dance performances at the venue

City mayor Sir Peter Soulsby said: "I hope that by developing the theatre as teaching venue for music and dance, and supporting young people into a career in the arts, we will have found the sustainable solution to the Haymarket's long-term future we've been looking for.

"Addict have already invited audiences in to watch their end-of-term shows, and I want more people to enjoy being in the iconic auditorium again.

"While we won't be programming like a regular theatre, there will be opportunities for people to see dance performances or to enjoy a show at the Haymarket Theatre as part of city-wide events, such as the Leicester Comedy Festival."

He said events would be announced in the coming months.

Haymarket Consortium A theatre auditorium with the seats removed and a mop, bucket and cable wheel left on the stage Haymarket Consortium
The council bought the disused theatre, and the adjacent Haymarket shopping centre, in 2021

ADA founder and principal Gareth Chown said he was pleased to be working with council.

The Haymarket Theatre opened in 1973 but closed in 2007, shortly before the opening of new venue, the Curve Theatre, in 2008.

After a £3.6m refurbishment, it was eventually reopened in March 2018 and run by a consortium of local business people.

However, the enforced closure of theatres during the 2020 pandemic was too much for the fledgling business and folded.

In 2021 the city council bought the Haymarket shopping centre, including the theatre, for £9.9m.

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