Theatre by the Lake has won the award for Most Welcoming Theatre in the North West for the fifth year in a row, as voted by the public. UK Theatre announced the regional and national winners on Friday 28 September, after an unprecedented 56,000 votes were cast throughout the country.
Part of the annual UK Theatre Awards, Most Welcoming Theatre is an opportunity for audiences across the country to celebrate their local theatre. All the regional and national winners will be invited to the Awards on Sunday 14 October at London’s Guildhall, where an overall winner will be announced.
Theatre by the Lake’s Head of Communications, Rachel Swift, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to have won the award for Most Welcoming Theatre in the North West, which is testament to the warm welcome that our volunteers and front of house staff offer to everyone who comes through our doors, and to the hard work that all the staff here put into making this theatre such a special place. We’re really grateful to everyone who took the time to vote for us and are incredibly lucky to be so well supported by our local community and our audiences; we look forward to continuing to offer our unique Cumbrian welcome to locals and visitors alike.
We’d love to encourage many more people through our doors and as such would like to invite everyone to our upcoming ‘Fun Palaces’ (next Sunday 7 October from 11am to 3pm). Come along and enjoy a day of free and fun activities for all ages, in partnership with a range of local organisations. More info on Fun Palaces can be found by visiting www.theatrebythelake.com/funpalaces2018.
We’re looking forward to attending the UK Theatre awards ceremony on 14 October, and will of course be keeping everything crossed for the overall prize!”
Cassie Chadderton, Head of UK Theatre, added: “It is fantastic to see a record-breaking number of people all over the country casting votes in support of their local theatres this year. This award is a chance to recognise the importance of theatres as valuable cultural hubs, and the loyalty they can inspire by creating a fantastic audience experience – from friendly front-of-house service to engaging outreach projects and imaginative, entertaining programming.”
The full list of nominations for this year’s UK Theatre Awards can be viewed here.
For more information on the UK Theatre Awards visit the UK Theatre Awards website.