Over the last ten years, a steady decline in the volume of in-house work

generated by Scotland's building-based producing theatres has taken place[1]. Pitlochry Festival Theatre alone has bucked this national trend by maintaining the size and scale of its programmes of own-produced work. Now PFT plans to embark upon a period of expansion, one that will see a significant increase in both the range and amount of in-house work that it delivers - starting, in December 2010, with its first ever Christmas show: Cinderella.

Derek Allan, PFT`s Depute Chief Executive and Commercial Director, explained how the idea arose:

"Research has consistently shown that what the majority of Scottish audiences want from a Christmas show is a combination of story and spectacle: a great narrative, fabulous sets and costumes, big casts and theatrical magic aplenty. This is exactly what PFT delivers every year in its unique Summer Season, so we thought - why not apply these strengths to a Christmas show?"

Having opted for traditional family pantomime to fill the new Christmas slot, there was only one possible choice for the first production, said Chief Executive and Artistic Director, John Durnin:

"We knew we had no option but to start our Christmas programme with the biggest and the best panto story of them all. Cinderella will feature all of the production values that audiences have to come to expect at the Theatre in the Hills, with an extra sprinkling of Christmas stardust for good measure. We expect the panto to attract thousands of winter visitors to Highland Perthshire for a very special Christmas treat."

However, Mr. Durnin also confirmed that the Christmas show development was part of a larger programme of expansion:

"PFT is justly proud of having maintained its producing output during the last decade. But now we want to go further, to create a even greater number of our own productions for an even wider range of audiences from across Scotland and beyond, while maintaining our hard-won reputation for exceptional production values. To do that, we`re going to have to both develop the historical Pitlochry model and produce outwith the Summer Season. These are radical developments, but we know that there are gaps in Scotland`s national theatre provision that only PFT is able to fill - and that the audience demand is there."
PFT is already the biggest building-based producer of drama for adult audiences in Scotland, in terms of both the number of productions and attendances. By developing a new Autumn and Winter Season of in-house productions - both drama and Christmas shows - PFT will become the single biggest building-based producer of theatre in Scotland, attracting local, national and international audiences. Based on current projections, PFT expects that by 2012/13, the combined audience for its Summer and Winter Seasons will account for almost 15% of total theatre attendances in Scotland[2].

The famous Summer repertoire season will also be expanded over the next three years. By 2012, PFT hopes to have increased the number of shows in the Summer Season from six to eight, offering audiences even greater choice: the new strand of musical theatre programming will be further developed; family programming will be trialled; and intriguing plans to commission unusual new works are currently being discussed with potential co-producers elsewhere in Scotland.

Mr. Durnin explained that PFT`s inspiration for these developments lay both in its own past and in recent history across the Atlantic:

"Ever since it was founded by John Stewart in 1951, PFT has acted as something of a cultural magnet, attracting regular visits from audiences who are prepared to travel huge distances because of the quality and distinctiveness of PFT`s work. Now we have to build on that appeal in order to attract an even broader cross section of the public in ever greater numbers. The great festival theatres of North America have lead the way in this kind of repertoire development; now PFT has to emulate them and fashion an even larger role for itself within Scotland`s theatre infrastructure."

Having commenced Christmas show programming in 2010, PFT are targeting the autumn of 2012 for the launch of a first autumn repertory production, which will attract even more new visitors to Highland Perthshire and further extend the cultural tourism season. Alistair McMenemie, owner of the Green Park Hotel in Pitlochry, said:

"These developments - the extension of the Summer Season and the growth in autumn and winter programming - are fantastic news for the area. Culture and theatre breaks are an extremely important market for Perthshire and its continued growth as a vibrant tourism destination".

Despite its rural location, PFT is unique amongst Scottish theatres in having a huge national and international audience[3], with a drive-time catchment that is measured in hours and days, not minutes. In turn, this means that PFT generates a massive economic contribution to Scotland's economy, amounting to between £11 and £13 million annually[4].

[1] Source: Equity