A West Leeds theatre group is urging local people to ‘knock on our door’ and tell them what activities to run at their new-look base.
Interplay Theatre, which works with young people and people with learning difficulties, recently secured a £137,000 grant from the Arts Council.
The money will be used to improve their headquarters, off Armley Ridge Road, and ‘make it more of a venue’.
Work will include installation of lighting and sound equipment, refurbishment of audience areas and installation of solar panels.
Interplay artistic director Steve Byrne said he was looking to make the building more of a music and performance venue, and run events like film clubs, but was open to suggestions from the community. He added:
“We want to know what people would like our building to be. We want to open out into the community.
“We literally want people to knock on our door and say ‘here’s something you should be doing, we want to see more of this’.
“Ultimately we want our home to be more of a venue and more of a hub for the community.”
A feasibility study into improving the venue was funded to the tune of £7,000 by the council’s Inner West Community Committee, and Interplay are looking to secure more funding from other sources.
The work will also allow Interplay to develop its status as a National Centre for Sensory Theatre and become a hub of research and development.
Interplay can be contacted on 0113 2638556, or email them info@interplaytheatre.co.uk. Tweet them @interplayleeds.