Leading city theatre put up for sale by US owners

Published on Thursday 25 June 2009 23:04

THE 80-year-old Edinburgh Playhouse, a powerhouse of the capital's theatre scene, has been put up for sale by its American owners.

The theatre has attracted major London musicals to the city, tempting big productions with its large stage and lucrative ticket sales from its 3,000 seats.

But the US-based Live Nation entertainment group is looking for buyers for the Playhouse and 16 other British theatres it owns as it concentrates on its music business.

If a sale is agreed, the theatres will probably be bought by another entertainment chain, Alistair Smith, of the Stage magazine, predicted yesterday.

But a bid by the UK's Ambassador Theatre Group could complicate matters. That business already runs two Scottish theatres – the King's Theatre and the Theatre Royal in Glasgow.

The Playhouse has hosted shows from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Chicago to big-name stars like Bob Dylan or the recent sell-out tour of Britain's Got Talent finalists, including Scotland's Susan Boyle.

The Scotsman's theatre critic Joyce McMillan yesterday called it a vital part of Edinburgh's "theatre ecology".

"It gives a huge amount of pleasure to thousands of people all year," she said. "It's a completely commercial operation but it's very successful and they attract huge audiences.

"It's to be hoped that whoever buys it runs it in a similarly professional way."

The Playhouse opened as a cinema in 1929, modelled on the Roxy Theatre in New York, but closed in 1973 as film audiences faltered. Threatened with demolition, it gained listed building status.

After a rapid succession of owners and two revamps, it was reestablished as a theatre, hosting popular touring shows.

Live Nation, the country's biggest entertainment group, has already sold its US theatres and is aiming to concentrate on its music business, promoting the likes of Madonna and U2.

"They've been selling up venues to focus on the core business," said one observer. "The theatres are not what they are about, strategically. They make more money out of Madonna."

The Playhouse is said to be one of the most successful and desirable properties in the Live Nation group, which also includes two leading West End theatres, the Apollo Victoria and the Lyceum, and others in Liverpool and Manchester. But the group could opt not to offload the theatres if the price is not right.

"We might not sell. It's not a foregone conclusion they will be sold," Paul Latham, Live Nation's chief operating officer for live music, told the Stage.

John Stalker, chief executive of Edinburgh's Festival City Theatres trust, which runs the King's and Festival theatres, said: "A successful Playhouse is really important for the health of the arts in Edinburgh.

"We hope there's no uncertainty in the process of putting them up for sale. I can see what they're trying to do, testing the waters. They are a partner theatre in Edinburgh for us."

The main contenders are said to be the European chain Stage Entertainment, or the US Key Brand groups.

"If it goes to either of those, you are basically seeing one large international entertainment chain selling to another, so it is very unlikely anything much would change," Mr Smith said.

"The other possibility is they get split up, they might sell them off to different bidders.

"That's when things might start to change a bit."

Mr Smith said he would be very surprised if the Playhouse did not remain a theatre.