Merrily, we roll along …

We recently announced our summer season - and we have been a hive of activity ever since. Take a look at our upcoming shows here. 

It’s all hands on deck whenever a new season is launched, as our marketing department, assisted by staff from other departments and a team of volunteers, packs and posts thousands of brochures to our mailing list members. Thousands more brochures are delivered to theatres, libraries and other public places for their leaflet racks.

And right now our box office phones are busy fielding calls; our website is being browsed and tickets deposited into virtual shopping baskets as theatregoers select what they want to see. 

As ever, we are committed to a top quality season and making sure tickets are affordable. We have never charged a booking fee and hopefully we never will.

This season we’ve done away with ‘standby’ tickets and instead introduced £10 preview and press night tickets, which means queuing in Oldham’s generally inclement weather is no longer required.

I believe a £10 ticket takes much of the risk factor out of a new drama experience. You might not risk £40 on not enjoying something in the city centre, but a tenner at the Coliseum to try out a work you have never seen before is a good deal, relatively speaking.

And if you are under 26, we can fit you in for even less with our Theatre for A Fiver scheme. Hikes in fees, and the scarcity of summer jobs (my memory of a summer on the night shift in a dog meat factory remains with me) means more belt-tightening for students, so Theatre for A Fiver means they can get in for a rock-bottom price.

We all know it is important to encourage new people in a theatregoing habit.  Offers like these make good business sense for the Coliseum. They help us to grow our audience, developing the theatregoing habit among the young and respond positively to the challenging economic climate.

We are fortunate in having an immensely loyal and generous core audience in Oldham, which has the long-term health of the Coliseum at heart and is fiercely protective of its friendly homeliness.

So they will be as pleased as we are at the prospect of new faces and young people at the theatre, enjoying both what is on stage and the unique camaraderie that genuinely makes the Coliseum so special.

We enjoy welcoming new faces, and to hearing everyone’s views. Why not come and say hello soon!

See you at the theatre,

Kevin Shaw

Artistic Director