BEHIND the builders' hoardings that have surrounded the Crucible Theatre for months tall grey girders have become visible, signalling a new look is on the way for the exterior of the 37-year-old building in the £15.3m redevelopment scheme.

The interior of the Crucible theatres is now equally unrecognisable as the builders have settled in for the duration of 'the next stage' building work.

The essential work began back in 2007 when the theatre gained a new roof, which is now weathered to a distinctive bronze colour.

In January of this year work began in the auditorium with a new thrust stage installed in time for the World Snooker Championships in April.

After Ronnie O'Sullivan's triumph the builders moved back in to fill the auditorium with an intricate mesh of scaffolding reaching up to the ceiling to undertake the upgrading of the lighting and sound system and the air conditioning.

The long bar has been completely removed to make way for a wider, newly-designed open-plan space which will include a low-backed bar along the windows and a seating area for food service.

Out front the huge steel girders form the frame for what will be the new glass frontage of the building facing into Tudor Square.

A new box office and information centre will be on ground floor level in the space previously occupied by Eat restaurant and there will be one main entrance foyer.

Access is a key issue for the theatre and unlike before the new building will have wheelchair user access to all floors, including the bar, and easier access from outside to the new foyer with new wheelchair spaces also added to the main auditorium.

There will also be a new archive area where visitors can celebrate the last 100 years of social, economic and cultural history through the eyes of Sheffield's theatres, past and present.

New function rooms with a balcony overlooking Tudor Square will be created where the coffee bar used to be. This will form part of the second phase of the next stage which will follow the 2009 World Snooker Championships, along with additional offices and meeting rooms, replacing the seating in the Studio, improving dressing room facilities including separate ones for the Studio, the creation of a workshop and activity area for the creative development department and digital archive in the old box office and gift shop space.

The target is to be ready for a grand re-opening in late 2009 and an announcement is expected in October about the first productions. Sheffield Theatres continues to operate the Lyceum with a full programme of touring shows and is co-producing forthcoming productions Horrid Henry – Live and Horrid and the pantomime Aladdin.

Chief executive Angela Galvin said: "I'm frequently being asked if I'm on holiday while the Crucible is temporarily closed but in many ways this is an even busier period than would normally be the case when running our three theatre stages and it's an exciting time, too. We will be opening for the World Snooker Championships as normal in April 2009 and will close again afterwards for the final stages of the refurbishment to be completed.

"I am now speaking to companies regionally and nationally about key naming right opportunities. The Crucible auditorium and the Studio are the obvious jewels in the crown but there are also other areas such as the new Function Room (in a prime location overlooking Tudor Square and the Winter Garden) and the Long Bar that provide excellent exposure and association with one of Sheffield's most recognised brands."

The Sheffield Theatres Crucible Trust has raised more than £15m towards its £15.3m target from such organisations as Arts Council England, the European Regional Development Fund, Sheffield City Council and Yorkshire Forward.

Further funds are still required to ensure the Crucible can plan its artistic programme knowing its budget is in place. A telephone fundraising campaign is under way and there are various ingenious promotions to appeal to individual supporters such as purchasing a piece of the iconic (some might say infamous) multi-coloured carpet, sponsoring a seat in either the main auditorium or the studio, sponsoring a 'twinkle light' in the Crucible or supporting the Archive Project.

The trust also continues to seek sponsorship from other avenues. "Interest has been encouraging as companies of all sizes recognise the Crucible project as the next big opportunity to reinforce their profile," reports Galvin. "Luckily we can be creative in responding to particular companies' requests across the many levels of sponsorship and with the project moving along nicely we are now arranging site tours for businesses to discuss potential naming partnerships with a view to finalise main partners in the next few months."

lAny individual or business interested in finding out more about supporting the next stage campaign can contact the Partnerships Development Team on 2495999.

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