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Theatre celebrates 25 years with exhibition

Amy Bateman A woman with white hair and blue eyes smiling into the camera. She is wearing a grey blazer and silver necklaces. A black and white photograph of a man in a silver frame can be seen behind her.Amy Bateman
Dame Judi Dench and her late husband Michael Williams were the first patrons of the theatre

A theatre is celebrating its 25th birthday with a photography exhibition featuring 25 portraits of people who have nurtured its success, including Dame Judi Dench.

Cumbria's Theatre by the Lake commissioned local photographer Amy Bateman to capture a selection of its collaborators for its We Are 25 exhibition.

Lord Melvyn Bragg features with key creatives, volunteers and supporters alongside Dame Judi who was the first official patron of the theatre and is its sitting president.

Liz Stevenson and Simon Stephens, joint chief executive officers of the Keswick theatre, said they "wanted to tell the human story of Theatre by the Lake and its intangible heritage through 25 personal connections".

Amy Bateman A woman with brown short hair and brown glasses smiling whilst looking to the right. She is holding a large camera.Amy Bateman
Amy Bateman said it was a career highlight photographing Dame Judi

The theatre was created after a touring company, called the Blue Box, settled in the Lakeside car park on Derwentwater in 1975.

After years of campaigning, the project to build the theatre began in 1991, before being opened by Dame Judi in 1999

Ms Bateman said photographing the Academy Award winner will "go down as one of my career highlights", adding: "It can't not, can it?"

Amy Bateman A man with grey hair sitting in a brown leather chair with his hands in his lap. He is wearing a red jumper and sat in front of a bookshelf and stone bust. Amy Bateman
Lord Melvyn Bragg features in the exhibition as a patron of the theatre

Dame Judi and her late husband Michael Williams were the original patrons of the theatre and so she and Ms Bateman decided to include a photograph of him in her portrait.

Cumbrian Lord Melvyn Bragg is also featured in the exhibition as a patron for the theatre and president of the Words by the Water book festival held at the venue.

Amy Bateman A man with dark hair sitting on a purple theatre seat. He is smiling with his hands clasped together in front of his chest.Amy Bateman
Solomon Ng supported the first relaxed performance at the theatre, the first of its kind in the UK
Amy Bateman A woman with short brown hair smiling into the camera. She's surrounded by rails of clothes and costumes. She is wearing a denim dress and has a measuring tape around her neck.Amy Bateman
Louie Whitemore has designed several productions and exhibitions for the theatre

We Are 25 documents the theatre's work platforming Cumbrian stories, but also spotlights young people, emerging writers and artists as it looks ahead to its future.

Also included in the exhibition are theatre director Kash Arshad, Ullswater set and costume designer Louie Whitemore, associate artist Melina Barnett, first-time playwright Julie Carter and Solomon Ng, who supported the first relaxed performance at the theatre which was the first of its kind in the UK.

Amy Bateman A man with dark curly hair and glasses smiling into the camera in front of a sound deck with lots of switches and buttons. He is wearing a bright yellow, floral shirt.Amy Bateman
Kash Arshad is a director who has worked at Theatre by the Lake numerous times

"I feel really honoured that I was asked to photograph these 25 people," said Ms Bateman.

"It's an absolute privilege to get to the bottom of these stories, to be able to showcase these people who make up the fabric of this incredible building."

As it looks to the future, the theatre wants to reach out to younger and more diverse audiences through discounted ticket prices for under 26s and by taking shows on tours throughout the county.

Amy Bateman A woman with cropped grey hair standing in front of a lake.Amy Bateman
Julie Carter was supported to write her first play through Theatre by the Lake's development programme
Amy Bateman A woman with dark, braided hair smiling into the camera and holding onto a slim tree trunk. She has a gold nose ring and gold hooped earrings.Amy Bateman
Melina Barnett is an associate artist at the theatre working with communities and nature

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