New name and facilities at theatre

It's the start of a new era for entertainment in Newtown as Theatr Hafren re-opens as simply Hafren, with a newly refurbished facility and modern fly tower for improved production standards.

Hafren has undergone a transformation over the summer period in partnership with Coleg Powys, with a new reception and box office, improved exhibition faciliites and new technical enhancements through the construction of a fly tower above the stage to allow greater movability of sets and production facilities.

The theatre re-opened on Wednesday night with Mid Wales Opera's Madam Butterfly.

"It's been a summer of change for us here," said manager, Sara Clutton. "The fly tower has created an iconic building on the outskirts of Newtown, such that you can't fail to miss us as you pass on the A483. This work was necessary for the theatre to comply with legislation and it is with great thanks to Powys County Council who supplied the funding that we were able to complete these essential works."

Sara added: "We've not stopped there. The theatre has collaborated with Coleg Powys to bring about a new, fresh and modern look to the customer side of the service. We now have a joint reception and box office area located in the Coleg Powys foyer, with the old box office corridor making more space for customers to access the bar and for us to host bigger exhibitions.

"All customers will now enter via the main sliding doors where a bright new reception and box office await them. Many thanks are due to Coleg Powys who have included the theatres aspiration of more space into their refurbishment."

The new refurbishment has led to a refreshed name and from now on the theatre will be known simply as Hafren. "Given that we were undergoing so many structural changes, we decided that the whole image could do with a makeover, hence the new logo and the abbreviated name, Hafren," said Sara.

You can find our more about the shows and theatre coming to Hafren bu visiting www.thehafren.co.uk.