2021 was said to be a 'transformational year in more ways than one' for the Everyman Theatre in Cork.
The theatre saw an incredible post-Covid recovery, with a surplus of €60,000 and an increased turnover of 30%, despite being closed for 9 months of the year.
The Everyman were forced to work with reduced capacity for the winter period, but still managed to raise over 92% of it's own funds through ticket sales, donations, strategic partnerships, and fundraising activities.
Overall, 289 performances were hosted by the Cork theatre with 30,000 people attending, both online and in person.
Innovative ideas were at the core of ensuring staff at the Everyman did not have to take wage cuts or redundancies. A series of live outdoor events at Elizabeth Fort were presented, allowing people to experience the joy of theatre while abiding by Covid restrictions.
The theatre has gone from strength to strength in 2022, producing more shows, such as world premieres of An Evening with Reggie and Letters of a Country Postman and working with more artists than ever and a fundraising campaign has been undertaken that will enable The Everyman to continue producing and presenting the best shows for its audiences, supporting its diverse community of artists and further improving the historic building.
Executive Director & CEO, Sean Kelly said:
“While 2020 and 2021 were very difficult years for The Everyman we were greatly humbled by the support shown to us by the people of Cork, firstly in the form of donations and, when the time came again, through buying tickets to our shows in huge numbers. We also couldn’t have achieved what we did without our fantastic team who worked tirelessly and selflessly throughout to ensure that The Everyman remained a vibrant, healthy, theatre, worthy of the citizens of Cork. A special word of thanks must also go the Arts Council; the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media and Cork City Council. All of this enabled us to present an expanded, varied programme in 2022 and, as we stand on the cusp of opening another fabulous Everyman Production in John B. Keane’s Letters of a Country Postman, we look to the future with more optimism than ever before.”
