Star Wing Brewery submits plans for outdoor theatre
A Redgrave brewery is hoping to hold up to 18 events a year at a proposed outdoor theatre, following the success of its ‘Shakesbeer’ festival over the past two years.
Star Wing Brewery, which is based at Hall Farm, has applied to Mid Suffolk District Council to create an embankment for use as an open-air theatre, to build a wooden platform, create a new access track and install a fence.
“The vision was always to expand the Shakesbeer festival and we are at a really beautiful location in Redgrave,” said director Mark Duxon, 47, who lives in the village.
“We thought it would be very good to put an amphitheatre, albeit on a very small scale, in our hop field.”
The four-day festival attracted more than 500 people last year and was sold out on two days.
“We are a bit of a destination venue and we want to attract people in, so we are trying to do a number of different things,” said Mr Duxon.
“What’s been great is we don’t just bring people in from local villages, but also from quite a wide radius.”
The site is located on an agricultural field to the north of the brewery, which occupies two adjoining buildings at Hall Farm.
The farmyard comprises a number of historic and more modern agricultural buildings, such as a Grade II-listed barn and the Grade I-listed St Mary’s Church to the north.
“We want to keep it a very nice greenfield site,” said Mr Duxon.
“It’s all in keeping with the rest of the farm and the outdoor settings.”
In the future, the business hopes to offer an outdoor cinema, especially for the elderly, as well as opening up the theatre to schools.
“It sounds almost cheesy for me to say, but there is a real issue with rural isolation in communities and there is a lot more that needs to be done,” said Mr Duxon. “If we can be a small part of that, we’d love to be.
“We hope Mid Suffolk Council will support it, because we think it could be a really great addition to the community.”
The council is expected to rule on the application in the coming months.
