INTERVIEW
MUSIC
Simeon Walker by Rhiannon Banks Photography
GOSFORTH CIVIC THEATRE CLAIRE DUPREE DISCOVERS HOW THE GOSFORTH VENUE HAVE STRIVED TO GET LIVE PERFORMANCE BACK ON THEIR STAGE As we’re all aware, the last seven months have been challenging to say the least for venues. With ever-changing restrictions and consumer confidence uncertain, it takes a certain degree of perseverance and good old fashioned faith to stay the course. Multi-purpose venue Gosforth Civic Theatre have faced their challenges head on, putting audience needs and safety front and centre, but always with a keen eye on how the current climate is affecting musicians too. A week after lockdown was lifted they kicked off live performances in their garden, and have consistently managed to give work to musicians ever since. “The first gigs after lockdown were the first that had happened at a venue in the city since mid-March,” Rob Huggins, GCT and Liberdade CEO, remembers, “the sun, the bands and the beer will be our overarching memory of a strangely quiet summer.” Safety has been at the forefront of GCT’s strategy when it comes to getting live music back to their stage; as well as providing a safe and comfortable space for the Liberdade community, who returned to the venue in mid-September, as Rob explains. “First and foremost we are a disability arts charity that was founded by an amazing group of people with learning disabilities. They have built this place for everyone to use and enjoy, so our priority, when we were able to, was to get them back in the building. We have tried to find a balance between being there for our audience and local artists and also ensuring we are able to survive the pandemic, it is a difficult path to tread.” GCT’s relationship with their audience has always been of utmost importance. “Just as it’s important that venues and artists need to be
WE HAVE TRIED TO FIND A BALANCE BETWEEN BEING THERE FOR OUR AUDIENCE AND LOCAL ARTISTS AND ALSO ENSURING WE ARE ABLE TO SURVIVE THE PANDEMIC, IT IS A DIFFICULT PATH TO TREAD 32
heard, audiences need to be too and we need to move forward together, so it’s like a three way relationship of trust in that respect.” Says building manager Joseph Harrop. “We were very conscious that things could change at any moment, so programming too far in advance was not a viable option with the risk attached to cancelling gig after gig and the ramifications that may have on customer experience and venue reputation.” Says Rob. “We also decided early on after lockdown that we would make all of our initial events ‘pay what you feel’, this worked well and removed any anxiety audiences had about losing their money, audiences repaid this by generously donating at those early gigs. To help bring these events to a wider audience we are investing in some hardware which will enable us to stream events at a much higher quality than we have been able to up until this point.” A focus on preserving artistic talent is also at the forefront of the GCT team’s approach, as Joseph explains. “The longer there are restrictions on the sector and the community for putting on live art and performance, the more potential artists or early career artists we’ll lose because they aren’t able to create and they’ll end up entering different career paths. So it’s not just about weathering this winter but it’s about weathering the next generation and making sure they have the support to come through it.” Forthcoming events taking place at Gosforth Civic Theatre include GCT Folk Club performers Annie Ball & Katie Tertell on Friday 6th, and Alice Grace Quartet perform as part of the GCT Jazz Club on Thursday 12th November, plus there’s more music and cinema events with food tie-ins planned thanks to the vision of new chef Dyonne Branch, not to mention a winter family show and music, film and food line-up for December, with the local community at the heart of their programme. “Our decisions are based on the fact that we want to make positive social change within our community,” says Rob. “I hope everyone that comes to GCT feels that.” www.gosforthcivictheatre.co.uk
