An international theatre operator and producer visited Newcastle’s theatres yesterday, scoping out new locations to host Broadway productions.
Sir Howard Panter was given a tour of the Victoria Theatre which is currently undergoing a $5 million restoration and the Civic Theatre which is still celebrating the record-breaking run of ‘Come From Away’.
Sir Howard owns and operates 16 theatres across Europe as well as Sydney’s Theatre Royal on a 55 year lease from the NSW Government. His company, Trafalgar Entertainment, is also responsible for producing a range of major theatre shows including Jersey Boys, The Rocky Horror Show, Jagged Little Pill, 42nd Street and War Horse.
Sir Howard Panter said he’s been hearing for some time now of the excitement and reinvention of Newcastle.
“So many people have told me that I have to come to Newcastle. I was promised a mature, heritage city built on both the harbour and the coastline. Having now finally made my way here, I must say I’ve been blown away by what Newcastle has to offer,
“To have a theatre of the size and grandeur of the Civic Theatre next to a new five-star hotel with light rail access on its doorstep, and a plethora of fine dining options on offer at Honeysuckle, it’s about as close to ‘theatre heaven’ as it gets.
“The Civic has that old world European feel to it that just adds to the sense of time travel that great theatre shows can take their audience on. I couldn’t be more keen to bring a Broadway show to Newcastle and hope we have some exciting news to share with the city in the next few months.”
More than 21,500 theatregoers from across the Hunter and as far away as Tasmania and Queensland flocked to the Civic Theatre during Come From Away’s three-week extended run in February to share in the incredible real-life story of the 7,000 air passengers from around the world who were grounded in Newfoundland Canada in the wake of 9/11.
Newcastle was also the first regional city in Australia to stage Van Gogh Alive, with 84,000 tickets sold in just five weeks for the immersive, multi-sensory display of the painter’s iconic artworks, delivered as part of New Annual 2022.