annual review 2024/25
welcome
I’m thrilled to introduce Capital Theatres’ 2024-25 Annual Review, a year that marked meaningful progress and bold new beginnings. We launched a new five-year strategy to deliver on our ambitions, measure our progress and stay focused on what matters most: sharing extraordinary live experiences with everyone, again and again.
As we began implementing this new strategy, we also articulated a renewed vision, mission and values. At the heart of this is a commitment to people – our audiences, artists, communities, and staff – and to building a sense of belonging across our three theatres. Our values are not just words; they are lived daily by the Capital Theatres team through our work on stage, behind the scenes, and in the communities we are part of.
This year saw some of the most exciting creative highlights in our recent history. From the spectacular sell-out run of Hamilton at the Festival Theatre to the world premiere of Nessie, the first musical from our new commissioning partnership with Pitlochry Festival Theatre, our stages were alive with innovation and artistic ambition.
We also made major strides in deepening engagement with our communities, with over 29,000 participations recorded across our creative learning programmes. I’m so proud that we welcomed nearly 394,000 audience members this year, with strong growth in new bookers and an outstanding Net Promoter Score of 76 (NPS is a metric that measures customer loyalty and satisfaction).
None of this would be possible without the passion, creativity, and dedication of our staff, artists, partners, funders and audiences. As we look ahead to the next stage of our journey, I’m filled with optimism. Together, we are building something extraordinary.
Thank you for continuing to support us and being part of this new adventure.
Fiona Gibson Chief Executive, Capital Theatres
2024/25 the year at a glance
394,427
1,508,449
93,378
a five-year road map
Our new five-year strategy is centred on four key pillars: Organisational Advancement, Creative Strategy, Audience Development and Resilience with clear goals to measure progress each financial year. We have developed an evaluation framework to measure progress and performance year on year to ensure we deliver on our strategic vision.
We also refreshed our vision, mission and values to guide us in this exciting new chapter for the organisation.
Our vision
To share extraordinary live experiences with everyone, again and again.
Our mission
We build a sense of belonging across our three theatres in Edinburgh, enriching the lives of those around us through the strength of our creative programme and partnerships.
Our values
We care
n We take a people-centred approach
n We go above and beyond so everyone feels welcome
n We are thoughtful, respectful, and sincere
We share
n We are collaborative, transparent, and inclusive
n We truly listen and respond
n We are committed to widening access
We dare
n We rise to any and every challenge
n We are ambitious in outlook
n We are courageous
Together we deliver
n We have a ‘can do’ attitude and take pride in our professionalism
n When we collaborate, there is unmistakable energy
n We are trusted to deliver a quality experience every time
organisational advancement
Stewardship
We preserve and improve our theatres as major cultural and community hubs for the future King’s Theatre redevelopment
The King’s Theatre redevelopment saw major progress with key structural additions now in place, including three new lifts (2 Front of House and 1 Back of House), completion of the raised fly tower and significant progress on the new Creative Engagement Studio, dressing rooms, bars and street-level café.
This transformational project is safeguarding the King’s for future generations and is supported by statutory funders and thousands of individual donors. The theatre’s rich heritage is being thoughtfully woven into the redevelopment, honouring its cultural legacy with a programme of heritage-focused activities already underway.
Festival Theatre improvements
At the Festival Theatre, refreshed hospitality areas a fully integrated point-of-sale and digital pre-order system, and a new partnership with The Secret Garden Distillery are all enhancing the overall audience experience, both pre-show and during intervals.
6,000 free Panto tickets to charities supporting those in need
13,600 access tickets sold
Culture
We strive to be a brilliant place to work, to perform, and to visit
We continued to build an inclusive and supportive workplace, earning a spot as the 10th best company to work for in Scotland and being shortlisted for Best Improver at the 2024 Best Companies Awards. As a Young Person’s Guarantee Employer, we offered apprenticeships and training for young people, including a second technical flying apprenticeship. We remain a proud Real Living Wage Employer and abide by the Scottish Government’s Fair Work principles.
Inclusivity
We aim to achieve genuine inclusion and a sense of belonging
We launched our new Access Scheme, enabling online booking for accessible performances – resulting in over 13,600 tickets sold and 812 memberships. Over 6,000 free pantomime tickets were distributed to charities, and a record-breaking 1,115 children and carers from ASN schools attended the relaxed performance. We hosted the inclusive sensory production Brrr for young people with complex needs and expanded our dementia-friendly programme, including the production of a festive show touring to care homes.
creative strategy
Collaboration
We develop meaningful partnerships that collectively enhance our impact
We co-produced James V: Katherine with Raw Material and premiered Nessie, the first work to emanate from our Musicals Commissioning Hub partnership with Pitlochry Festival Theatre. A new creative partnership was formed with Barrowland Ballet, which became our first associate company, supporting innovative dance programming and strengthening our commitment to inclusive, community-focused work.
We supported sector development through a range of different initiatives including the Musicals Commissioning Hub with Pitlochry Festival Theatre, seed commissioned ten new productions through our Open to Ideas residency programme and presented three scratch nights for new work in development.
At The Studio we built on pilot activities to establish a regular touring programme and consolidated the development of our artist support initiative Open@TheStudio, positioning this previously underutilised space as an important incubator for new Scottish work.
Our first Associate Company: Barrowland Ballet Three co-productions Scratch nights
We offer a programme of extraordinary live experiences for everyone
Spectacular musicals
We started the financial year on a high with the sell-out run of Hamilton at Festival Theatre and finished the year celebrating Scottish talent and legends with our co-production with Pitlochry Festival Theatre Nessie, the first full production from our Musicals Commissioning Hub. Musical lovers also enjoyed Disney’s magical Mary Poppins and a moving revival of A Chorus Line.
World-class dance
The Festival Theatre remains Scotland’s premiere stage for large scale dance. Highlights included two stunning Matthew Bourne productions – Edward Scissorhands and the 30th anniversary of Swan Lake – plus Scottish Ballet’s Swan Lake. Rambert thrilled with Peaky Blinders: The Redemption of Thomas Shelby, and Ballet Black impressed with works by Mthuthuzeli November and Sophie Laplane. Dance Consortium’s tour of QDance Re:INCARNATION lit up the stage with explosive African dance. Fans of Strictly Come Dancing enjoyed performances from Nadiya and Kai, and Anton and Giovanni.
Gripping drama
This year’s drama captivated audiences with Life of Pi, featuring breathtaking puppetry, and Death of a Salesman, starring David Hayman. Crime lovers enjoyed Rebus: A Game Called Malice and Murder on the Orient Express, while Ghost Stories delivered spine-chilling thrills. At The Studio, we were delighted to host the world premiere of our co-production with Raw Material, James V: Katherine, continuing the exploration of Scotland’s history and identity. Other shows included The Collie’s Shed, Love The Sinner and The Land That Never Was.
International music stories
Broadway star Lea Salonga wowed with her concert Stage, Screen and Everything in Between, while Where Mountains Meet blended traditional Nepali and contemporary music in a moving tale of migration.
Dazzling Opera
Scotland’s national opera company, Scottish Opera, visited us three times with a programme that delighted our audiences: La Traviata, Don Pasquale, Albert Herring and The Makropulos Affair
Inviting community performances
We welcomed Edinburgh’s amateur and youth talent in The Gondoliers, The Music Man, Cats, and the annual Gang Show. In the Studio Theatre, we hosted Rambles of the Heart and That Feeling When, two productions made by and for young people.
Family magic
Families enjoyed Bluey’s Big Play, Tortoise and the Hare, Treasure Island, Nigerian children’s classic Anna Hibiscus Song, Ballet Lorent’s The Velveteen Rabbit, and a wonderful festive season with the pantomime Cinderella (with record breaking audiences), Barrowland Ballet’s The Gift, and Scottish Ballet’s The Nutcracker.
29,000 participant engagements
1,600 young people in our Creative Pathways programme
4,000 copies of Dementiarts magazine
Empowerment
We build a sense of belonging and nurture everyone’s creative journey
During 2024/25, our participants engaged with us 29,000 times across workshops, talks and events, representing an increase of 67% against last year’s live participations.
As part of this our Creative Pathways programme supported 1,600 young people, offering workshops, ambassador roles, and networking opportunities designed to encourage young people to consider a future in the arts.
Our Dementia Friendly programme continued to celebrate what people living with dementia can achieve through projects led by community members including the world premiere of Dementia The Musical by Ron Coleman, and My Wonky Brain, an intergenerational graphic novel exploring lived experience of Alzheimer’s. Our quarterly magazine, DementiArts, achieved a circulation of 1,000 copies per quarter.
We also embedded community consultation in the heart of our decision making, with our King’s Theatre Access Panel, Heritage Engagement Community and Opportunities panels, and King’s Youth Panels sitting alongside our established Youth Advisory Board and Dementia Focus Group.
audience development
394,000 tickets sold
40,000 new bookers
77% occupancy
NPS score: 76
Growth
We sustainably grow our audiences
We sold 394,000 tickets, attracted 40,000 new bookers, and reached a 77% occupancy rate across the year. We developed a digital marketing strategy, including a CRM strategy, always-on campaign on Meta and a Google search campaign. We segmented our audience according to frequency and recency of attendance, enabling a more targeted approach in our mailings (brochure and leaflets), saving on cost and becoming more environmentally friendly. Our 25 & Under scheme grew to 2,500 members, generating almost 4,000 bookings.
Depth
We build authentic and lasting relationships with our audiences
Audiences gave us a Net Promoter Score of 76, a 10% increase compared to last financial year. In our surveys, audiences feedback highlighted the warm, personalised welcome from our staff, contributing to a strong sense of belonging with an overall rating of 4.7/5. Following extensive consultation with our audiences and collaboration with specialist partners, we have developed a refreshed, more engaging brand identity and are building a new website designed to deliver a more personalised experience and a better showcasing of our brand narrative throughout. These will be launched at the start of the 25/26 financial year.
cross-cutting themes
In addition to our strategic priorities, two cross-cutting themes underpin every aspect of our work: Environmental Sustainability and Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI). These guiding principles are woven through our operations, programme, partnerships and organisational culture, ensuring we remain responsible, inclusive and future-focused.
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI)
We are on a journey to build a truly inclusive organisation where everyone feels safe, welcome and represented. Our five-year EDI plan focuses on increasing diversity across our Board, workforce and programme, removing access barriers, and fostering a culture of inclusivity and belonging. With expert support, we are committed to meaningful change that reflects and serves the communities around us.
Environmental Sustainability
Guided by the Theatre Green Book, we are addressing key emission sources, improving sustainability across our buildings, and embedding greener practices at every level. During the financial year we made significant efforts to improve our sustainability. Initiatives include:
• moving to a renewable energy supplier for our electricity
• ceasing sales of plastic toys at our pantomime
• using local suppliers for our bars, cafe and for catering events
• upgrading our taps with motion sensors to minimise water wastage
• offering reusable plastic cups for drinks in the auditorium
• installing hand dryers front of house to reduce waste paper
• reducing printed materials used for marketing and tickets
• donating office and stage equipment to be reused where possible
capital theatres staff
Executive Team
Charlotte Di Corpo
Development
Fiona Gibson
CEO
Charlotte Gross Audiences
Crawford Hunt
Finance and Business
Services
Brian Loudon
Operations
Chief Executive’s Office
Susan Leask
Fiona Syme
Georgie Waters
Programming
Munya Redman-Bayasi
Gregor Weir
Finance & HR
Sarah Henderson
Jane Keddie
Development
Lucille Bluefield
Connie Clark
Mitchell Collins
Jordan Seath
Angela Voyajolu
Marketing and Communications
Laura Cotham
Kathryn Daniel
Sam Goldblatt
Emma Goodacre
Jane Greig
Neil McLeod
Joanna Miller
Allan Ramsay
Jennifer Reeves
Sales and Revenue
Lindsay Anderson
James Beacham
Jenny Brotherstone
David Brown
Miriam Byrne
Felix Charlton
Camilla Hayes
Duncan HenleyWashford
Caitlin Higgins
Jessica Innes
Melissa Malcolm
Melissa Malcolm
Hannah Mcgregor
Ciara Middleton
Richard Miller
Ross Nisbet
Scott Ringan
Peter Roberts
Kirsten Russell
Christopher Townsend
Joshua Waterfield
Sarah Whyte
Creative Engagement
Gus Harrower
Alex Howard
Lucie Jeffrey
Abby Pendlebury
Joe Rattray
Izzy Sivewright
Claire Swanson
Hannah Webb
Facilities
Sharada Adhikari
Lucy Brown
Nicholas Brown
Claire Campbell
Clare Dingwall
Thomas Dutton
Christine Findlay
Emily Hall
Stephen Hood
Ross Howie
Barry Jones
Konrad Kopec
Lukasz Kulwicki
Brody Laing
Louise Laing
Chris Lindsay
Ali McInnes
Laura McPherson
Gary Norquay
Olga Podbielska-Nykiel
Gavin Rutherford
Caroline Thewlis
Keith Wright
Front of House, Customer Service and café
Fleur Adam
Kirsty Anderson
Andrew Bain
Elena Batey
Anna Bill-Lopez
Catriona Blair
Harry Bluefield
Edward Bone
Lucy Booth
Duncan Bowers
Megan Bowles
Eve Boyd
Katie Bruce
Beth Bugden
Lewis Burzynski
Rowan Calder
Robbie Cameron
Sarah Cameron
Aiden Campbell
Myles Campbell
Jordan Cant
Evan Christie
Evelyn Clarke
Emily Combe
Matthew Cowan
Rosie Cram
Rachel Cram
Amber Crozier
Sophie Cruikshank
Leo Crutchley
Alexander Davidson
Jennifer Dewar
Conall Dewar
Niall Dewar
Kirsty Dickson
Mary-Lou Doherty
Rachel Doherty
Stephanie Donneadieu
Susan Downie
Colin Dunlop
Andrew Dyer
Marilyn Elliot
Adam Ferguson
Susan Fernandes
Andrea Ferreira
Kirsty Finlay
Heidi Fogarty
Gill Foster
Jourie Fraser-Harris
Silvie Furneaux
Catherine Gauld
Sally Gerrard
Catherine Gibb
Eilidh Gibson
Alex Gilbert
Eilidh Gilmour
Chloe Goldsmith
Imogen Graham
Hope Green
Rosie Harrower
Elijah Heath-Ayite
Oliver Hiemann
Linda Hogg
Olivia Holdcroft
Alistair Horsburgh
Alexandre Hunt
Emily Hunter
Emily Jackson
Ailsa James
Laura Johnston
Toby Jones
Thea Jones
Clea Jordan
Liza Jordan
Ben Kelly
Ewan Kelly
Erin Kielty
Romy Kissane
Harrison Knight
Ben Laidler
Karmen Law
Kirsty Law
Alexandra Lawrie
Angela Leith
Kayleigh Lennon
Rebecca Lewis
Andrew Lindsay
Euan Lownie
Ishbel Macdonald
Katie MacIver
Katie Mackenzie
Harrison MacNeill
Leo MacNeill
Lucy Martin
Rebecca Matthews
Emily Matthews
Clara-Jane Maunder
Zoe Maunder Arianna-Marie McCulloch
Robbie McHardy-Reid
Kim McKenna
Lucy McLaren
Rory McLean
Holly McLeod
Maria McStay
Catherine McStay
Brodie Miller
Hamish Montgomery
Dylan Mooney
Daisy Morcom
Doreen Moyes
Ruth Murphy
Robert Murrell
Ryan Ness
Nena Perez Naveiro
Sydney Peters
Abby Pickavance
Lily Pollard
Matthew Price
Alfie Primrose
Lucy Pritchard
Corin Rhys Jones
Sandra Riddell
Josefina Sanchez Davila
Mathilde Scott
Olivia Scott-Kaegi
Eamon Sheikh
Andrea Shek
Manal Shqair
Graham Simpson
Fraser Sivewright
Gerald Smith
Daryl Smith
Elizabeth Snowden
Manvir Soora
Lori Beth Stott
Katy Stubbs
Alexander Tait
Olivia Thrower
Ailsa Tully
Laurie Turner
Darren Walls
Rosalyn Watson
Ewan Watson
Eilidh West
Leo Wheeler
Loren Wigley
Ellen Wilkie Evie Williams
Harry Williams Clare Wootton
Cannell
Dunn Ross MacTaggart Niall MacTaggart
Andy McInnes Moira McInnes
Heather McLuskey Cormac O’Callanain
Mark Pringle
Tom Sedgwick
Liz Dokukina
Joe McCowan
Amy Louise Allan
Calum Anderson
Filip Borowiak
Thomas Brophy
Harry Campbell
Tsz Kiu Jamie Chiu
Michael Clark
Gianluca Cockburn
Christopher Drew
Anthony Duff
Abbie Edgar
Matthew Wright Ciaran Young Alexander Zawalnyski Technical Lewis Allan
Katie Edmundson
Imogen Ensoll
Louise Frame
Emily Girdwood
David Grierson
Stuart Haldane Lisle Hardie
Darrell Harding Susan Hill James Hulligan James Hulligan Jnr Paul Hunter Patrycja Jastrzebska Tony King
Patricia Kenny
Knox Fiona Kruger
Garry Mackenzie
Rebecca Marnie
Candida Marnie
Aaron McCall
Stewart McGill
Robyn McGowan
Dean McLeman
Sandy McLeod
Karen Montgomery Kelsey Nicol Giulia Pizziol
Graham Raith
Emma Reid
John Robb
Marie Rimolsroenning
Elizabeth Sanders
Finnian Summers
Alexander Taylor
Charlotte Wallhead
Rosemary Ward
Samantha Wilson
thanks to all our supporters
As a charity, Capital Theatres relies on the generous support of many who help us to share extraordinary live experiences with everyone again and again.
Public Funders
Corporate Supporters
Trusts and Foundations
Cash for Kids
Cruden Foundation Foundation Scotland Historic Environment Scotland
The Donnelly Foundation
Jean and Roger Miller’s Charitable Trust
RS Macdonald Charitable Trust
Viewforth Trust
Principal Patrons
Sir Tom and Lady Farmer
Kate and Gavin Gemmell
Alastair and Elizabeth Salvesen
Supporting Patrons
Jamie and Kyle Anderson-Weir
Sir Ewan and Lady Brown
Richard and Catherine Burns
James and Patricia Cook
The Criper Family
Reverend and Mrs David Dalglish
Bill and Janice Gammell
Malcolm and Avril Gourlay
Eileen Henry
Bryan A. Hislop and Graeme Roberts
Anthea Lints and Alasdair Short
Donald and Louise MacDonald
Chris and Gill Masters
Sir Ronald and Lady Miller
Elsie and Steven Murray
Jane and Bernard Nelson
Walter and Norma Nimmo
The Ritson Family
David Rodgers
Jim and Isobel Stretton
Professor Dame Joan Stringer and Roel Mali
David and Terri Warnock
Patrons
Tish Alderson
The Cameron Family
Margaret Daniels
Joan and Kevin Doerr
Donald and Rona Ferguson
Richard Findlay and Gerald McColgan
Colette Grant
Shields and Carol Henderson
Phyll and Wren Hoskyns-Abrahall
Rhona Irving
Ian Jackson and Sally Cross
Alan M Johnston
Lesley Knox
Roxane Laird Craig
Barrie and Janey Lambie
Christine and Stewart Mackay
Vivienne A McCulloch
Lynda McGrath
Marie McSherry
Judith and Alasdair Peacock
Brenda Rennie
Martin Reynolds
Christine Richard OBE and Fiona Fahey
John Shand and Malcolm Nelms
Derek and Ann Shepherd
Ged and Nikki Welch
Helen and Peter Wilde
And all those who prefer to remain anonymous.