Brewing Up a Theatrical Storm

It's not a picture of someone drinking at a brewery, it's actually 'Rum &Vodka' which runs Wed 14th - Sun 25th October

Googling ‘Brewery Theatre Bristol’ it’s a bit disappointing that, so far, the opening of such an important space appears to have flown under the radar. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not expecting it to make the News at Ten, and I did find a short article on Original FM’s website, but for there to seemingly be no online article from any Theatre commentators is a real shame.

With so little online reportage (I am excluding Theatre Bristol’s coverage – they do appear in the search results!), you may wonder why I think it is so important. I don’t blame you. How can an audience or a city understand what it could mean for them if they have no idea of what is happening?

'Full Twist' runs Wed 28th October - Sun 8th November

If you live in the Southville area, on one Thursday night you may have spotted several people dotted around North Street wearing badges and red carnations, pointing other people down the road, towards the old brewery: they were our chaperones. It was a bit like being part of a secret society, we were directed to the rear of the building where we found ourselves in a bright open space with graffiti art on the walls and freshly made bread and cheese on a table (I never quite made it to this table as I spent most of the night talking, but I did hear some very good reports). The bread is from the bakery that will reside in The Brewery and be a quirky addition to the experience. The space I have just described is not the theatre space, but the rear part of the building, where additional plans are afoot.

I arrived just in time to hear a very funny talk from the Tobacco Factory Theatre Manager, David Dewhurst about the new venture. He made the speech instead of Artistic Director Ali Robertson, who was preparing for his own ‘launch party’ as his wife had gone into labour earlier that day. After this we were finally allowed into The Brewery.

It is brilliant. It’s a small, black, ninety-seater, studio space with huge potential, which puts me in mind of The Green Room in Manchester. In addition, as an audience member, joy of joy, there are no pillars. I would also venture to say (having tested them briefly) that the seats are rather comfy. But why is a small theatre space in Southville potentially so significant?

'Gizmo Love' runs Wed 16th - Sun 27th September

Think of The Brewery as the BBC3 of theatre in Bristol. The Tobacco Factory has been producing some great work and developing its standing over the last few years, but the closure of the Bristol Old Vic really allowed it to blossom by throwing light on its work and giving it the space to grow as the city’s main theatre venue. Like BBC1 or 2, there’s a large capacity (250 – 300+ for this space, depending on the type of performance and use of space), and is great for established companies. However, this can present a problem for new, un-established companies, without a recognised piece or a strong following. These companies need a space with a smaller capacity that can allow them to run for longer to develop the work and audience support. This is where the similarity with BBC3 lies. Think of the number of shows that have been trialled and allowed to grow their audience before transferring to the ‘main channels’, including my current favourite, Bristol-based Being Human. The Brewery will hopefully work in a similar way and this is why it is so important to Bristol: it can encourage and support development in a city with a strong tradition of companies creating nationally and internationally renowned work.

'Mrs Gerrish's Christmas Stocking' runs Wed 2nd - Sun 13th December

Anyone who attended Tom Morris’ talk at the Bristol Old Vic will know that he has similar plans to develop small spaces within ‘his’ theatre, which is equally as exciting, but the spaces he wants to utilise will be very different to The Brewery, and at a time when it feels like the city is on the cusp of change over the coming years, there is plenty of room for all of these much needed performance spaces. In addition, whilst Tom Morris and Emma Stenning have very exciting plans for the future of the Bristol Old Vic and its place within the community, George Ferguson, Ali Robertson and the Tobacco Factory team are already engaging with the community rather successfully and this new venue allows them to develop that further and bring new work to their loyal audience.

I have compared these Bristol venues in isolation, but the reality is that when the Bristol Old Vic reopens we must see each one as a component of a whole, and support them as a whole (without excluding other venues in the city such as the Alma Tavern) because that is the only way they will achieve their full potential and enable our city to continue to culturally flourish.

I opened by bemoaning the lack of local and national coverage of The Brewery’s launch, but after discussing its importance, I wonder if it is better to slip under the radar? That way the theatre can do its own thing and there’s no expectation of the outcome. However, people won’t support it, if they don’t know it exists and despite the current lack of coverage, the national press have been particularly supportive of Bristol and the Bristol Old Vic, so I hope that it won’t be long before word gets out and audiences everywhere are aware of its arrival on the theatre scene and head over to check out their exciting new programme.

Links:
Tobacco Factory
Bristol Old Vic