Southern View: August 11, 2022

Thursday August 11 2022 7
‘It’s been a pretty big part of my life’
• From page 1
The group’s longest standing
member Colin Evans, of
Linwood, remembers his first
performance when he was 14
in 1986. He later joined the
group when he was 25, becoming
stage manager for three
years.
The now 50-year-old took
a break in 2018, but has come
back this year after seeing
the group struggle to pull
in audience and volunteer
numbers.
“I never really thought it
was my thing as a kid, then I
realised how much fun it is,”
he said.
Evans’ mother Lin and
sister Karen Doak were also
performers for the group,
while his father Dave had been
stage manager in the 1990s.
“It’s been a pretty big part of
my life, so I don’t want to see it
die,” Evans said.
There’s usually 10 shows
each season, reduced to eight
following the earthquake.
However, this year there
are only four, this Friday and
Saturday night (August 12
and 13) and next Friday and
Saturday (19 and 20).
Mankelow said the group is
also struggling to cover costs
for renting the city council
owned building Matuku
Takotako: Sumner Centre.
The group moved into
the building after the old
building at the same address
was demolished following the
earthquake.
The group uses the income
from tickets to cover rental
costs but with cancelled
shows and fewer tickets being
purchased, this was becoming
more difficult.
“We’re running on bare
bones . . . basically our costs
are increasing and we’ve had a
year of no income and a year
last year of marginal income,”
Mankelow said.
“People have changed the
way they socialise . . . some
people are quite reluctant to
be in large groups still in a
crowded situation.”
Mankelow said the old
building was used only by the
theatre group so had changing
rooms and space for storage,
however the new facility is
designed for wider community
use.
This means the group has
to pay $10,000 a year to hire
storage units for costumes and
props.
“I’m now questioning
whether we keep our costumes
because $10,000 a year is most
of our income, if we’re even
doing a full season, so it just
doesn’t add up anymore,”
Mankelow said.
She said the current building
also has leaking issues, with
the recent flooding seeing half
a metre of water sitting in the
lift shaft and getting into the
electrics.
On top of this, the group’s
technical team were all hit
with Covid two weeks before
the show. However, they are
back working on the final
touches before tomorrow
night’s first show.
Mankelow said it would be
devastating to see the group
stop operating but at the rate
things were going, it was a
possibility.
“We are hanging on by a
thread,” she said.
“We might not be the
greatest actors, singers and
dancers in the world, but we
get so much out of it.”
• To book tickets for
the upcoming winter
cabaret show ‘Live for the
Applause’ go to https://
www.matukutheatre.nz/
services/buy-tickets/
MEMORIES: Top – Colin Evans (left) and Bobby
Almond in Swan Lake in 1998. Middle – Sarah
Mankelow playing Bert in the 2019 Summer Carnivale.
V neck
merino jumpers
now only 75.00
03 322 4548 | Easy Parking
17 Lillian Street, Halswell
www.maxwellfashion.co.nz
Winter Hours
Open Mon-Fri 9.30am - 4.30pm
Saturday 10.00am - 1.00pm
Check out our facebook page
LAYBY WELCOME
WHY YOU WILL ALWAYS
COME BACK
Over 30 boutique shops
in 8 destinations
visitwaimakariri.co.nz