VOLUNTEERING FOR LEITH THEATRE
Leith Theatre Trust took over the management of the Leith Theatre complex in January 2016 and our volunteer programme started in August that year. The main theatre had been used as a store by Edinburgh City Council and the first task for our DIY volunteers was to clear the auditorium of furniture and office equipment. The volunteers also cleared years of vegetation growth from the back of the theatre so it could be used for access – and fire escape! It was because of their hard work that the theatre was sufficiently ready to host the Hidden Door Festival in the summer of 2017, the first use of the main theatre for almost 30 years. Our volunteers have also repaired furniture and balcony seats, painted dressing rooms, swept and cleaned, and got a baby grand piano back on its feet!
Meanwhile, our Gardening volunteers have worked on the small garden to the front of the Thomas Morton Hall (TMH). Most of the new plants have been donated and what was a fairly barren space is now full of colour for most of the year. In 2018 we also painted and planted up a number of wooden planters made for us by Edinburgh Tool Library volunteers. These now line the colonnade and prevent it being used for car parking.
“I’ve loved my volunteering. It’s been one of the best things I’ve done this year.”
The Event volunteer programme is the oldest as a small group of volunteers helped out at the Trust’s fundraising events and stalls before 2016. Some of them are still volunteers and the Events volunteer programme is now our largest and will, hopefully, keep growing as more events and performances take place in the building.
“This year has been absolutely fantastic and none of these events would have been possible without our awesome volunteers.”
Thanks to all our wonderful volunteers – in so many ways, you have helped Leith Theatre get to where it is today, on its way to becoming a much loved cultural and community hub. There’s still a lot more to do and we look forward working with you in 2019.
If you are interested in finding out more about volunteering with Leith Theatre, see www.leiththeatretrust.org/volunteer
- Contributed by Katharine Taylor (Gardening & DIY Volunteer Coordinator)
“We have to do what we can to help wherever and whenever it is possible for us to help.”