Caring company steps in to save community theatre in Milton Keynes

Staff from Marshall Amplification have pitched in to save the day for a popular theatre.

The Chrysalis Theatre at Willen Park is used by Camphill MK, a community for adults with learning disabilities, and is also home to many local drama groups and musical collectives.

During the Covid pandemic, the venue’s lighting desk stopped working and the charity was at risk of not being able to put on any of the shows that were previously booked.

It also hampered plans to offer the backstage workshops that are regularly scheduled for the 70 adults with learning disabilities who live on site.

The venue borrowed a lighting desk from Marshall Amplification in Bletchley. This allowed it to stage two episodes of BBC Gardeners Question Time with audiences of up to 250 people earlier this summer.

Now the Jim Marshall Charitable Trust, which celebrates the legacy of the Marshall Amplification’s founder, has donated £8,000 for a permanent new lighting desk. The grant will also support the upgrading of lights from halogen to LED systems.

Marshall staff further extended the hand of friendship by inviting residents from Camphill MK for a tour of their factory and presenting them with goodie bags.

A spokesperson for the Jim Marshall Charitable Trust, said: “We are proud to be based in Milton Keynes, where our founder Jim Marshall established the business. Jim was a keen philanthropist and the team here is pleased to continue to support his vision.”

Lucy Davies, head of development at Camphill MK said: “Partnerships like this are invaluable to us, and I am pleased the team at Marshall saw the value in our work. The Chrysalis Theatre is popular not just with our residents but also the wider community and as part of our major capital project over the coming years we will be enhancing the theatre for even greater use.”

Marshall Amplification has been making amps for 60 years and is a household name with musicians from all over the world. It runs its own record label and live agency and even has a leading studio facility on site.