Hackney Empire
As a supporter of the Hackney Empire we fully understand that you must be concerned and, perhaps, confused by the many stories that are circulating about the current state of the theatre and its future. It is very heartening that so many people hold the Empire so dearly; and we would like to take this opportunity to give you some more detail about our circumstances and our plans moving forwards.
Since its reopening in 2004 after its major refurbishment, the Empire has been steadily accumulating a very substantial deficit. A part of this deficit relates to the refurbishment, but the majority relates to consistent operational losses. By this summer the Empire had accumulated more than £1.5 million of debts and was in the position where it would have had to close its doors permanently but for the support of the Arts Council and the London Borough of Hackney. The description that has appeared in the press of 2008/09 as the Empire’s “best year yet” is somewhat misleading. Last year also made a loss, but that loss was less than in previous years. Nevertheless, it still added to the accumulated deficit.
It is clear that the business model that the Empire has been operating to date is not a viable or sustainable one. This is not just a simple question of more or less public subsidy. We need to review all aspects of the company including organisational structures, procedures and assumptions around budgeting, financial policies and procedures, programming mechanisms and strategies, the costs of maintaining and running the building, marketing and audience development, fund-raising strategies, and ancillary trading (bars etc) profit margins.
We are continuing through the autumn/winter with a programme of hires where we are not at any risk of further financial loss and are working hard to ensure that the pantomime remains within budgeted expenditure and reaches its income targets. From February 2010 for 6 to 9 months there will be a period where the main stage programme will be substantially reduced to enable the organisation to address its business problems in detail as well as to undertake some badly needed maintenance work in the theatre.
There will be events on the main stage, but not nearly as many as there are in a normal year. We hope to be able to run a major creative learning and participation programme during this period and to keep the Marie Lloyd bar open. However, we will not be in a position to move forward on any of these activities until the end of January next year when we will have a better idea of the company’s financial position in respect of its debts and available monies for the future. In this context, a lot rests on the successful sale of, and granting of planning permission for, the 117 Wilton Way building (currently the main Empire offices). We will also be further down the line in the design of the new business model.
The Empire will return to full operation and programming within the new model with the pantomime ready for Christmas 2010.
Sadly, this reduction in activity and a redesign of the business model and staffing structure will necessitate some redundancies. We are doing our best to mitigate the potential loss of organisational knowledge. However, there will be a need for fewer staff in the first part of next year and it is imperative that we design the most fit-for-purpose structure for the future. We would like to reassure you that our current planning maintains a high level of existing expertise.