A public consultation about plans to built a new eco-theatre in Stratford’s cultural quarter will launch tomorrow.
Designed by award-winning architects Haworth Tompkins, the striking red 220-seat venue will be a sister venue to National Theatre’s temporary theatre and enable Theatre Royal Stratford East to almost double its number of performances.
It is hoped that the new theatre, dubbed The Red Crate, will enhance Stratford’s cultural offering and create a vibrant destination for the local community and visitors, as well as boosting the area’s nighttime economy.
The public consultation, which runs until December 12, will provide a wide range of ways for people to get involved.
A presentation and question and answer session will be held at Royal Theatre Stratford East next Saturday from 11am to midday and on December 8 from 6.30pm to 7.30pm.
A public exhibition will be held at the theatre on November 24 and 25 from 2pm to 7pm and a front of house display will be ongoing from tomorrow until the consultation’s end.
People can also have their say by going online or collecting a comment card from the theatre.
Kerry Michael, Theatre Royal Stratford East’s artistic director, has called for as many local people as possible to take part in the consultation.
“We want The Red Crate to provide an exciting new venue for local people and partners, as well as giving a further boost to local businesses,” he said.
“It is immensely important that people talk to us and share their ideas with us so that The Red Crate has the potential to be a much-loved and highly-valued part of Newham.”
A £4.5m capital funding campaign for the project was launched last month, with the aim of opening the venue next year and it remaining in place for a decade.
Mayor of London Boris Johnson is among the high-profile figures to have backed the plans.
Speaking when the project was announced, he said a new theatre would “add to the burgeoning cultural quarter that is developing in east London”.
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