Alexandra Theatre Reacts to Public Opinion

Written 27/07/07

This week it was announced that in the last year the Alexandra Theatre has had an audience attendance of over 25,000, this also gives us an average audience attendance of over 50% per performance. Adam Cunard, Centre Manager, said "This is an amazing achievement, In one year we have gone from being closed to figures like this. It is something that we hoped to achieve and are very pleased we have. It proves conclusively that there is a huge need for an arts centre/theatre facility in Bognor Regis. "

"Amongst the biggest attendances were our pantomime 'Beauty and the Beast', BROS Musical Production's 'Thoroughly Modern Millie' and Art of Dance and Fitness show 'Wish Upon a Star. I would like to thank all the volunteers and patrons for supporting us and we plan to continue to build on this success. We have an exciting programme planned for the rest of this year including 'One Night in Vegas' and 'Down Memory Lane' over the summer, a new comedy show based on current affairs starting in August and The New Seekers and Georgie Fame in the autumn. We finish the year with our fantastic pantomime 'The Wonderful World of Oz'."

With this success in mind the trustees hope to be finding ways to make visits to the Centre even more enjoyable and also to improve its public image. The Centre has recently conducted a public survey asking questions about the name of the Centre. Following the results the Trustees have decided that the name of the Centre should revert to the original Regis Centre. Adam Cunard explained "The results of the survey were conclusive. The highest percentage of those asked still know the building as the Regis Centre and the new name Hotham Arts Centre seems to cause confusion. We have therefore taken the decision to go with public opinion and change it back. This change will not affect the artistic direction of the Centre or what we hope to achieve."

The change of name will gradually be phased in over the next few months. The Alexandra Theatre and Phoenix Gallery names will be retained alongside the Regis Centre name as distinct parts of the centre.