Bring home a piece of theatre history with Tyne Theatre & Opera House’s new Crowdfunder campaign
11th June 2025
In April, Tyne Theatre & Opera House announced they would be undertaking important restoration work to the gallery tier of the heritage venue.
As part of this project, all the seats in the gallery will be replaced and theatre lovers will be given a chance to own a piece of Tyne Theatre & Opera House history. You could take one or more of the existing seats home, in return for a donation of £25+, as part of a fundraising effort to support the project.
Tyne Theatre & Opera House CEO, Jonathan Higgins, said: “Our audiences are the heart and soul of our heritage venue and we wanted to be able to offer the opportunity for them to own a unique piece of the heritage venue’s history, whilst supporting its future.”
Alongside the funds contributed by the Tyne Theatre & Opera House Preservation Trust, this project is made possible by £247,500 awarded to the venue by The National Lottery Heritage Fund. The work will be undertaken in Summer 2025 and will restore the traditional sightlines in the Gallery to enhance audience comfort, safety, and views.
If you’re keen to take ownership of the theatre’s seats, you must make your donations before Friday 11th July at 5pm, and be available to collect the seat(s) on the week commencing Monday 14 July from the venue.
Project Director David Wilmore, said: “Restoring the gallery is the beginning of an ambitious project to fully restore the whole site in a sympathetic manner that also caters for 21st century comfort. We are incredibly grateful to the National Heritage Lottery Fund for their continued support on this journey of re-discovery which will focus on our local arts communities.” As a registered charity and Grade I listed building, your support helps to preserve the historic venue for generations to come.
You can make a donation for a seat via the theatre’s Crowdfunder campaign: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/gallery-seats