‘Final curtain’ is no more for Spa Centre

“THERE are a lot of things which came together at the same time,” Mr Flint says of the huge success that was the Sleeping Beauty production that brought 17,000 through the doors during its four-week run.

A joint production between the Spa Centre and Imagine Theatre, the pantomime proved hugely more popular than last year’s Mother Goose - helped along by the adults-pay-children’s-prices offer Mr Flint decided to run.

He says: “I have two children myself and I know that taking them to a pantomime makes for an expensive afternoon out. People are looking for getting a good return for good value.

“But I also think the new seats helped because the views are far better.

“We are now two years down the track from when we started to turn things around and people are seeing that this is a great place that they want to come back to.”

During those two years, Mr Flint has overseen refurbishments costing tens of thousands of pounds that included retractable seating in the main auditorium, a transformation of the former Royal Cinema into a studio theatre for comedy, music, film and live screenings of shows, a new ticketing system and the creation of a stylish bar, cafe and art space overlooking Jephson Gardens.

He says: “Two years ago there was a group of councillors who were very clear about wanting to shut the place. That’s definitely no longer the case.

“So many people tell us that it now looks like a ‘real theatre’ when it didn’t before. The last two years have been quite a leap.”

But despite these praises and the recent success of the pantomime, the venue, which receives no other funding apart from what it receives from the district council, is struggling with sales.

Given the uptake on the pantomime’s reduced price offer, has Mr Flint thought about bringing prices down more generally?

“I agree that some of the prices are quite high”, he says, “but the pantomime is the only show of the year where we have complete control over how much we charge for tickets. Every other charge comes from an external promoter.

“You get stuck with a choice. Do you want the show in the venue, or do you want to turn it away? There is a balance to be struck.”

He adds: “The year ahead is going to be difficult. The economy is not going to pick up and we have to accept that theatre is a discretionary spending area.

“But I am also hoping that the variety we are offering will give people something they want to see maybe once a month.”

On the other hand, his outlook for this coming season is positive. He says: “Tickets for Omid Djalili, Jimmy Carr and Ken Dodd have almost sold out and the Jimmy Greaves show is doing very well. This is Leamington’s local theatre and it’s right that we should have these names here.”

Mr Flint is also keen to mention a piece of theatre coming to the main stage - Noel Coward’s satire Star Quality, starring Liza Goddard - which will, unusually for the Spa Centre, be showing for a week-long run from February 27.

He says: “We are experimenting a bit - it costs us a lot of money to put long-running productions on.

“But these sorts of shows are good quality, for which people are currently travelling out of the district to see.

“Sales are difficult, but we are doing very well.”

And one more important change is to take place at the new-look venue. Mr Flint thinks it is time the Spa Centre was renamed to bring it forward into the 21st century and attract people from beyond Leamington.

He says: “We would like something less old-fashioned and we would like people to know that we’re a theatre.

“We’re right next to Jephson Gardens, so perhaps ‘Jephson’ can be in the name, but that’s just one idea. It’s got to be a discussion with our audiences and the council.”

To book tickets for all shows, call the 24-hour credit hotline on 0845 218 3540 or go online.