Zoo Venues Announces the Addition of Zoo Roxy

ZOO VENUES ANNOUNCES THE ADDITION OF ZOO ROXY

Zoo Venues is thrilled to announce the addition of a third theatre to its portfolio of Edinburgh Festival Fringe venues, as it enters into partnership with the Roxy Art House to establish Zoo Roxy.

The new agreement with the Edinburgh University Settlement, owner of the Roxy Art House, will see Zoo Venues both run the Roxy alongside its existing theatres The Zoo and Zoo Southside during the Fringe, and collaborate on the Roxy's year-round arts programme. The Roxy's new management is determined to build the venue into a thriving year-round arts destination, a project that Zoo Venues is delighted to assist with.

"The Roxy Art House is a stunning and extraordinarily atmospheric building which we're delighted to bring into the Zoo fold," said Zoo Venues programming director James Mackenzie. "It deserves to be one of the premier arts venues in Edinburgh and we're confident that the management's plans for the next few years will see the Roxy become just that. We look forward to playing a part in that mission both with our Fringe programme and other collaborations outside August."

The Roxy's artistic director Rupert Thomson added that: "Zoo Venues have been consistently bringing high quality shows - in particular dance and physical theatre - to the Fringe. To bring that artistic approach into the Roxy is exactly in line with our plans for development here, as is having a whole world of fun in the process. The Roxy side of the programme is going to bring in a healthy dose of music, and will make sure there's a party to be had every night. All round, we want to make Zoo Roxy the most exciting venue on the Fringe."

The addition of Zoo Roxy gives Zoo Venues nine performance spaces across its three buildings, encompassing everything from 200+ seater auditoriums to cabaret bars and intimate 30-seater studios.

"We've been at capacity for several years now and have been turning down far more shows than we've had space to accept," Mackenzie said. "Zoo Roxy more than doubles our capacity and the additional variety of spaces it gives us means we can diversify our programme.

"We already have a reputation for hosting innovative dance and physical theatre, and while that element of our programme will be much in evidence in the Zoo Roxy bill, our new spaces can also be a home for more bold new writing and original takes on classic drama. The existing Roxy bar is already one of the most charismatic drinking spots in the city as well.

"Keeping a close-knit community feeling among the staff and performers in our venues has always been a Zoo priority too, and has dissuaded us from taking on venues in further-flung locations in the past. With The Zoo, Zoo Southside and Zoo Roxy all within a stone's throw of each other, we'll be able to maintain that atmosphere even as we expand."

Zoo Venues is welcoming applications to perform at any of its theatres via its website www.zoovenues.co.uk.  Its 2010 programme will be unveiled to coincide with the Fringe launch in early June.

About Zoo Venues: Zoo Venues Ltd was founded in late 2001 to run temporary theatres at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and beyond.  Its directors had previously run Fringe venues on behalf of other organisations since the mid-1990s.  The company's first independent project was The Zoo, a two-studio theatre set up in buildings owned by Kirk O'Field Parish Church on The Pleasance in 2002, and it still runs this venue today.  Zoo Southside - created within the Southside Community Centre - was added in 2006, and includes the majestic Main House, which features one of the largest stages on the Fringe and is reserved exclusively for dance and physical theatre. Zoo Venues won the Herald newspaper's Archangel Award for the quality of its programme in 2008.  The company is proud to be possibly the only successful Fringe venue initially funded using car loans for cars that didn't actually exist.  Between Edinburgh Festivals, Zoo Venues is based in Hereford.

About the Roxy Art House: The Roxy Art House is a beautiful, 19th Century, 8,100 square foot complex former church building located in Roxburgh Place in Edinburgh's Old Town. It was recently acquired by the Edinburgh University Settlement, who are developing it as a thriving multi-purpose arts centre in the heart of Edinburgh. The venue is perfectly suited to a whole range of activities, from concerts to exhibitions to theatre performances to lectures to workshops.

About the Edinburgh University Settlement: Edinburgh University Settlement (EUS) is a social action centre which strives to enhance public provision for those individuals who are disadvantaged through circumstance or disability and aims to help local people in and around Edinburgh bring about social change and regeneration for their communities. It is committed to providing effective and lasting social and community development that respects the whole person and the dignity and diversity of all people.

Founded in 1905, EUS is an independent organisation, registered as a charity, but with close ties with Edinburgh University. These ties have recently been reviewed, opening up many new opportunities for the future. Performance spaces are traditionally an integral part of any settlement project, and Edinburgh University Settlement has a long history of promoting the arts through all strata of the community.