Mansfield’s Palace Theatre is seeing its visitor numbers grow for the second year in a row, an encouraging sign that visitors are coming back to enjoy live theatre post-pandemic.
Figures from the 2023/24 financial year showed more than 99,000 tickets were sold, with the annual pantomime last year of Beauty and the Beast at 98% sold.
In 2021/22, more than 72,000 tickets were sold for performances. This increased to 90,865 in 2022/23 and was 99,035 in 2023/24.
Drawing audiences from both the Mansfield District areas and beyond, the iconic venue on Leeming Street programmes a wide variety of shows to attract audiences of all ages.
Head of Health and Communities at Mansfield District Council, David Evans, said: “The Palace Theatre is an important cultural asset to Mansfield. Its continued success demonstrates that the venue is popular with local people and has a wider appeal as a visitor attraction.
“The ambitious programme of events will continue to encourage more people to come to Mansfield and enjoy its entertainment offer. The theatre is the cornerstone of the town's visitor economy, and it is excellent news that audience numbers are growing yet again since the pandemic.”
The Theatre is proud to receive a significant amount of customer feedback in a range of ways, such as questionnaires, comments on social media, and letters sent in. Comments regarding the shows, the staff, and the venue itself help the team build on new ideas such as ranges in the bar, programming, and customer service delivery.
Some of the comments received include:
“We’re so lucky to have Mansfield Palace Theatre so close to home. For a local theatre, it is fantastic.”
“Never been to this theatre before and I thought it lovely and charming. I’d recommend it to anyone.”
“Very thankful the theatre survived the lockdown as a local venue continues to be fully supported by its local community and beyond…Long may it continue.”
So, what is next for the Palace? This year sees us continue to grow our programme with more shows than ever before and new genres being performed including contemporary dance and classical music.
We will, of course, continue to offer shows to suit all ages and tastes, as well as supporting and enabling local talent to perform on our stage, from our in-house youth theatre to local dance schools and amateur dramatic companies.
In the next few months, there will be a variety of genres coming up for all the family including comedy drama Importance of Being Earnest, contemporary dance by Motionhouse, and The Lion Inside based on the best-selling children’s book straight from the West End.
To find out more about what's on at the Mansfield Palace Theatre, please see our website. (opens in new window)