Puss in Boots panto scrapped before opening at the Arts Theatre - Tiny Tim Productions pull plug following landlord/tenant dispute

Published: 21 October 2010
by JOSH LOEB

PRODUCERS of a pantomime that was forced to shut before the curtain ever rose on it say they have been flooded with messages of support from across Theatreland.

Puss in Boots had been scheduled to open at the Arts Theatre, Great Newport Street, next month starring EastEnders regular Kacey Ainsworth and Hairspray actor Ben James-Ellis.

This week Tiny Tim Productions, the company responsible for the show, announced it was pulling the plug on the panto because of a dispute between the theatre’s tenant Brasrat Ltd and its landlord Consolidated St Giles LLP.

The property group said it had “called time on the relationship” with Brasrat after negotiations on the terms of a new lease failed.

Consolidated now plan to redevelop the site, but this week Tiny Tim producer Bronia Buchanan said the group should have waited until after Christmas before starting its negotiations.

Ms Buchanan said: “If they wanted to give Brasrat notice then at least they could have let us get through the production for Christmas. Instead jobs and investment have been disregarded. We are devastated.”

She added that figures from the world of West End theatre – including comedian Gareth Hale and producer Louis Hartshorn – had contacted her to express concern about the venue’s future.

The Arts Theatre – which opened in 1927 and later hosted productions by Peter Brook and the UK premiere of Waiting for Godot – has had a chequered recent past. In 2005 it went dark for a year for a facelift. Consolidated subsequently bought it and applied for permission from City Hall to knock it down and build a luxury hotel, boutique and restaurant on the site.

The application was withdrawn, but a new version is now being drawn up that will include a replacement of the performance space – a proposal supported by advisory body The Theatres Trust.

The group’s property manager Richard Metcalfe said: “We have the long-term future of the Arts Theatre in this location as our priority and so we are in advanced discussions with four theatre companies. We had hoped that the Brasrat theatre company could have joined us in the redevelopment but this has just not worked out. We are keen to move on and ensure the long-term viability of a thriving theatre on this site.”

•  Anyone who has booked tickets for Puss in Boots at the Arts Theatre is advised to contact the box office for a refund.

Kacey Ainsworth photo courtesy of Liam Juke