We’re pleased to say that Cinema will be back at The Roses from Monday 5 February.

With thanks to a very generous donation, a used server has replaced the one The Roses projector, bringing cinema at the venue temporarily back to life, just in time for The Oscars. But it’s uncertain how long the projector and the interim server will survive.

The server being donated is end-of-life and running in our existing projector, which being the oldest in the UK, has far exceeded anyone’s expectations and we simply don’t know how long this solution will last. To not exhaust the projector and prolong the cinema experience at The Roses for as long as possible whilst the charity continues to consider its options, we’ll be running a light programme with just five films a week. Even with this restricted programme, cinema will sadly still operate at a loss.

The conversation about cinema at The Roses is far from concluded. While The Roses is a beacon of success in other areas of the charity, the cinematic niche, which once played a pivotal role in contributing £75,000 to the venue's core income, still faces uncertainty.

As we explained in our last update, the challenge of replacing the outdated projector and all the considerations that come with that task remain the same. In 2023, just keeping The Roses cinema experience alive cost £36,000 for film licenses and £50,000 for various venue-related costs, contributing to a £9,000 loss. Adding a new projector to the mix presents an additional financial burden of £40,000. The struggle extends beyond monetary concerns to the inflexible cinema distribution model, refusing to evolve despite technological advancements.

With that in mind, a focus group will be taking place on this February. We’ve received an encouraging amount of interest those wishing to attend and we welcome more registrations by 9 Feb 2024 at 5.00pm.

The Roses Director, Jessica Brewster says “Whilst we’re delighted with this news and incredibly grateful to the server donor, the projector and the server are both well past end-of-life, and it’s now a race against time to find a long-term solution to cinema at The Roses. In addition to technological concerns, the Covid pandemic has had a significant impact on how we all consume film content and has had a detrimental impact on cinema; over the last four years, our cinema income has declined by almost 50%. We are optimistic that we can find a viable outcome for cinema that’s sustainable for the charity but that conversation is still to be had. We welcome customers and the community to have their say.”

To register for the focus group, please email films@rosestheatre.org.

In the meantime, please do delight in everything cinema at The Roses has to offer.