The Stage Door Team at the Lyceum Theatre have started a “Save Stage Door” campaign, which aims to protect their jobs after the venue announced the decision to enter a “redundancy consultation process”.
Stage Door staff, some of whom have worked at the venue for over 25 years, said in a statement that the decision was made to “plug a gap” in the Edinburgh Theatre’s finances.
In a comment to the Edinburgh Minute, the Theatre explained the reasoning behind the “painful decision”, citing inflation and rising national insurance costs, despite recently receiving increased funding of 30% from Creative Scotland.
This decision reflects the financial difficulties facing other Scottish art organisations, which have similarly experienced “17 years of standstill funding”, according to the Theatre.
The petition has received support from Edinburgh-based author Sir Ian Rankin, who described the theatre’s decision as a “mistake” in an Instagram post.
The “Rebus” series author and Edinburgh University alumnus collaborated with the Lyceum Theatre on his play “Dark Road”, which premiered at the Lyceum in 2013.
The Stage Door Team also highlighted the potentially severe impacts of redundancies, emphasising how many of them are single parents and belong to the same household.
The Lyceum Theatre issued a statement, affirming that they are engaged in ongoing consultations with those affected to reach a solution.
The Lyceum Theatre, located in Edinburgh’s West End, is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year and has pledged to remain at the forefront of Scottish arts and culture.
“Ian Rankin signing Dark Entries in Forbidden Planet Edinburgh 06” by byronv2 is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.