With less than two weeks to go to the premiere of the live-action show Kynren in northeast England, key figures at Eleven Arches are emphasising the wider benefits the new attraction will bring to the region.
“There’s no doubt that what we have achieved here in the past three-and-a-half years is incredibly ambitious – because of the speed we have operated, the scale of what we’ve done and the aim we have to be here this year, next year and for decades to come,” said Anne-Isabelle Daulon, CEO of Eleven Arches, at a press preview of the show.
“We’re trying to be the glue for trips here and a catalyst for something great coming to the region in terms of tourism expenditure and economic fallout,” she said.
The £35m (US$51m, €45m) Puy du Fou-style attraction brings 2,000 years of Britain’s history to life against the backdrop of Auckland Castle, County Durham, using a cast of over 1,000 local volunteers.
Set to debut on 2 July at its purpose-built 8,000-seat outdoor theatre, the story follows the journey of a young boy called Arthur as he encounters historical figures and witnesses world-changing events – from the Normans and Vikings, through medieval England and Elizabethan times, through the Industrial Revolution and two world wars. Fourteen shows will run over the summer weekends until 17 September.
Eleven Arches, a charitable organisation focused on community development and education, estimates 80 per cent of its ticket sales so far have been regional, with 20 per cent coming from the rest of the UK and as far away as the US, Mexico and the Middle East. It expects to increase tourism expenditure to the area – particularly by boosting overnight and multi-day stays – by £4.75m (US$6.95m, €6.13m) per year, as well as helping create hundreds of local and regional full-time jobs.
The project is the brainchild of millionaire philanthropist Jonathan Ruffer, who wanted to do something to help sustain the castle and regenerate the town of Bishop Auckland.
He said: “Kynren is wonderfully entertaining, but there’s more to it than entertainment. This live show of English and Scottish history touches something that is not academic or intellectual inside us, but something deeper than that. I think you can see that ‘something’ in the 1,000 or more volunteers who have thrown themselves into this enterprise.”
