Keswick’s Theatre by the Lake is a jewel in the world of drama. It has a setting on the shores of Derwentwater no other professional theatre in Britain can match, and a reputation for first class productions, sometimes in partnership with other leading regional theatres. Each year it showcases classic, modern and new plays on its two stages and has won multi-starred reviews from national critics. It also hosts festivals of literature, jazz, film and mountains. Wings to fly by Vicky Robinson tells the story.
From a mobile theatre to a modern venue
But it began life as a mobile theatre hauled around the country on the back of service trailers. The transformation, from that aluminium Blue Box into a modern, bright and exciting venue with a stylish Main House, an intimate Studio theatre, and a classy restaurant, is a fairytale drama of its own. And the tale has now been written by the woman who, more than any other individual, made the miracle happen.
Vicky Robinson will say that the development of Theatre by the Lake has been a collaborative effort, and she’s right, and she introduces all those great characters with creative genius who worked so hard to give the Lake District its artistic crown jewel, notably her joint chair of the project Graham Lamont. But Vicky has been there throughout, from the very beginning of the story, a woman with dogged determination, exceptional vision and boundless enthusiasm, and here, in Wings to Fly, is her story.
A gorgeous book by a powerhouse woman
It’s a gorgeous book with a cover that matches the theatricality of Vicky herself, a powerhouse with that shock of vivid hair who wears Vivienne Westwood to go cycling and is loved by the arts world throughout the north. And I’m always excited to be reminded that I met Vicky and her sister Liz when they ran a fabulous boutique guest house in Keswick at the very time that the Century Theatre’s Blue Box failed its MOT in 1975 and came to rest permanently on the shores of Derwentwater. We played chess at the old Tea Garden cafe; she was as excitable then as she is now. “This is the story of my journey to the theatre by the side of the lake in Keswick, and the journey of theatre in Keswick itself from the Blue Box to embodiment in a new, permanent home. From then on our paths have been entwined and this book chronicles our story of the creation of a permanent theatre for Keswick: Theatre by the Lake.”
A theatrical blind date that gave birth to a beautiful theatre
She became a director of the Century Theatre board in time and then, almost accidentally, found herself agreeing to joint chairmansip with Graham Lamont, a partnership that lasted for the next 25 years. They oversaw the merger with the Cumbria Theatre Trust which was already dedicated to a new building, a process that took more than a decade of negotiation: “I often felt like a Grand National jockey as every time we cleared a fence, another hurdle would present itself. At least a jockey has the opportunity to walk the course.”
She and Graham worked together as joint chairmen until 2019 when they passed the baton to Charles Carter. Graham recalls: “We came together on a dark windy night on what I can only describe as a Theatrical Blind Date.” Vicky repeats a local journalist’s description of their teamwork: “When I describe them as Cumbria’s Odd Couple, I mean it kindly. One a shrewd business man with all the facts and figures, the other a passionate enthusiast for the arts…they determined from the outset that transparent publicity, whether the news was good or bad, was vital to the acceptance of the scheme.”
Vicky never gave up. She persuaded Judi Dench and Michael Williams to become Presidents of the fundraising appeal. Her book is a diary of the processes involved, the grants and the donations, big and small. Dame Judi eventually became Patron of the theatre, performing the opening ceremony in 1999. When Prince Charles, as he was then, visited on the occasion of naming the Lake District as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Vicky was presented to him and he asked her, “Do you act?” “Only as myself,” she answered.
Made in Cumbria
Vicky says now: “I take as much pleasure as a visitor to Theatre by the Lake today as in those first days at the Blue Box; actually it’s more, with the accumulated joy of every brick it took to build the new theatre, with wings to fly and ambitions that remain high, Theatre by the Lake’s quarter century existence is testament to great collaborative work on an initial vision. Made in Cumbria, its challenges – environmental, economical and international – have meant we have had to become as solid as the granite rocks of the Lakeland hills.”
Vicky pays tribute to the artistic directors and designers, the writers and the dramatists and the performers. As the Theatre now proudly states: “At our home in the Lake District and out across Cumbria, Theatre by the Lake produces and presents nationally acclaimed theatre, made with passion, that is seen by audiences from across the globe. We believe that theatre has the power to transform lives and we create vital opportunities for Cumbrian artists, young people and communities to come together, be inspired and explore their creativity.”
Shakespeare said it beautifully
Vicky Robinson had a dream, and she wasn’t going to rest until that dream came true. She ends her story with Shakespeare:
If we shadows have offended,
Think but this, and all is mended,
That you have but slumbered here
While these visions did appear
(A Midsummer Night’s Dream)
Wings to Fly, Celebrating Theatre by the Lake, (£19.99) is available from bookshops throughout the Lake District, and at the Theatre. Online at https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fredsbookshop
All photos courtesy Theatre by the Lake.
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