If you’ve walked that way lately, you will have seen The Hexagon theatre is flanked on either side by construction at this time.
To the right, hoarding surrounds an empty space which used to be the two-storey back of house and offices which have been recently been demolished. To the left, where the Council’s former Civic Centre stood, the area has been transformed into a construction base, complete with new temporary cabins. Those cabins will serve as temporary back of house for visiting companies to use as dressing rooms, wardrobe and catering.
And sat in the middle is the working and very much open Hexagon Theatre where there is a full programme of music, comedy, dance and celebrities talks on offer. In fact, those shows are now enhanced with a brand new sound system and auditorium lighting.
This all leads up to Reading’s Christmas staple – the pantomime extravaganza. For many of us, the town’s long-running pantomime was our first experience of live theatre and is always a Reading family favourite to get us in the festive mood.
This year, its Beauty and the Beast with CBeebies legend Justin Fletcher as Arthur Pint, the son of the pantomime Dame and Landlady of the Just Inn, played by Paul Morse. The show is set to be bigger and better than ever before with a healthy does of slapstick comedy, plenty of audience interaction and some memorable musical numbers.
It’s enormous credit to the dedicated team at The Hexagon to keep things going throughout the entire building programme, which comes with some challenges.
It will all be worthwhile in the long run however as work progresses on the creation of a brand-new theatre facility for the town. Our new Studio Theatre will bring a 200-seat auditorium for more intimate performances. This can be turned into a 300-standing venue for music performances.
The new back of house will allow different and more productions to consider Reading as a location, which in turn will offer audiences a wider variety of shows to choose from. The foyer and bar will be a rehearsal space when there are no scheduled shows, and an outside terrace for audiences to enjoy refreshments. Both auditoriums will be heated by ground-source heat pumps, using the naturally hot water running under the town to keep audiences warm.
This investment has been made possible through a £19.1m from the Government which is also being invested into creating a new Central Library for the town and a better reception area. The two venues will be at the heart of the new Minster Quarter to add to the town’s already vibrant nighttime economy.
There’s no need to wait for all that construction work to be completed however. Take a look at what is on at The Hexagon right now at What’s On at The Hexagon | What’s On Reading/ https://whatsonreading.com/hexagon/whats-on
Councillor Liz Terry, Leader of the Council
