TheatrebytheLake has been awarded £878,492 from the Government’s Culture Recovery Fund.The fund was provided by the Government and administered by Arts Council England and provides financial support to safeguard cultural organisations affected by Covid-19 by ensuring they remain financially resilient for the period through to 31 March 2021.

James Cobbold, Executive Director and Liz Stevenson, Artistic Director said: “We’re very grateful to have received this extraordinary investment from the Government through the Culture Recovery Fund in support of the future of the Theatre. This award will help to protect our role in helping the communities of Cumbria to rebuild after Covid-19, and our contribution to the tourist economy and cultural ecology of the county as the only year-round producing theatre.”

Theatre by the Lake will use the funding to make alterations to its facilities to ensurethey are safe for audiences, increase its capacity and expertise to develop a new business model and plan, and to undertake a programme of events next year intended to test new facilities, develop audience confidence, engage new audiences and employ more freelance artists. The funding will also contribute to the considerable costs of re-opening on a sustainable basis when it is possible to do so.

“We are operating in uncertain times which are likely to continue into 2021,therefore we need to plan flexibly and with caution. We will re-open when it is possible and safe to do so, and we will open on an incremental basis - it will take time before we are able to operate onthescale we have done in recent years.”

“This investment will improve our financial resilience and allows us to plan and test a reimagined programme and operation. However, we continue to operate in a challenging environment, and opening with social distancing measures in place is not a sustainable solution for many theatres.Therefore the continued fundraising support from our audiences, donors and supporters will be crucial in ensuring that Theatre by the Lake can recover from the impact of the pandemic and remain resilient after re-opening.”

“We will now concentrate on planning for our re-opening in 2021 and look forward to sharing details of our plans and how people can support and engage with our new programme in due course.”

For information on how you can support Theatre by the Lake, visit www.theatrebythelake.com/donate