I am a playwright, born in Bolton, who has had the good fortune and privilege to be produced at the Octagon Theatre, most recently with Early One Morning, about a Bolton soldier in the First World War. The Octagon is a brilliant theatre, a fantastic facility for the people of Bolton, an attractive focus for tourism, an educational resource for young people. It is now in great danger.

I identify completely with Christine Moore's letter to the Boltonb Evening News. (March 4). The "rescue package" is no such thing. Christine is right that it will be very difficult for the Octagon to develop a programme of touring theatre which will prove popular with the people of Bolton. The auditorium is simply too small to attract middle or large-scale tours. A high proportion of small-scale tours are precisely the kind of adventurous theatre which the BEN and others have identified as unlikely to pull in large numbers of people.

What market research has been done to ensure that there are tours available, which are appropriate for the Octagon's facilities, and match the interests of its audience? I suspect the answer is none.

The rescue package, in my judgement, is unlikely to be successful, in short or long term. What is more, I do not believe that the Octagon board has any real faith in it. In my view they have been driven to this position by the draconian demand from the funding bodies, including Bolton Council, that the theatre clear its deficit in only two years. If the funding bodies were prepared to relax this demand, the theatre could continue as a producing house and trade out of its deficit over a period of four or five years.

Bolton needs its own producing theatre. It helps to put our town on the map, apart from anything else. It gives us real distinction which other towns of our size do not have: Blackburn has no producing theatre, neither have Preston, Wigan, Bury, Stockport, Salford. Towns the size of Middlesbrough and Sunderland have none. The Octagon's existence as a producing theatre puts us in the Premier League as a cultural centre. The funding bodies are trying to relegate us to the Nationwide Conference.

It isn't too late to stop this. It only takes one funding body to change its mind, and to put some pressure on the others. Will Bolton Council do that?

Les Smith

New Green, Riding Gate, Bolton

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