Dear All

Welcome to the September edition of Ensemble. I hope you’re all keeping well.

Many of you, like me, will have been moved by the momentous and sad events of recent days and as you will know The Queen’s State Funeral has been confirmed for Monday 19 September.

To reiterate my communication from yesterday, the day has been declared a Bank Holiday and so, for most of us who were due to be working, it will not be necessary to come in to the office, so we can pay our respects and watch this historic occasion. Any essential work can be carried out from home.

Taking everything into account, we have also decided to close all our UK theatres on the day of the funeral as a mark of respect. Whilst there was no absolute requirement to do so – it simply feels like the right thing to do. And on Sunday 18 September there is a national moment of silence planned at 8pm. 

I’d like to take this moment to thank everyone across TE who responded swiftly to the news about The Queen’s death as it broke last week. Together, you responded calmly and professionally to ensure that the moment was sensitively and appropriately marked; in our theatres and elsewhere in the business.

Also, this week, we start to bear the fruits of a yearlong companywide rebranding project for TE, that will enhance our brand identity in the global marketplace and enable us to share in our successes together. You will start to notice these brand changes taking place over the next few weeks, on our websites and social media accounts, in our offices and theatre buildings and in print and digital assets.

With the Trafalgar Entertainment rebrand, the brief was simple – to develop an identity which could tie the various divisions and sub brands that form Trafalgar Entertainment together in a strong and recognisable way. The final solution uses the same typeface and colour family as the original Trafalgar Entertainment logo, so that it feels fresh and familiar at the same time. We hope you like it!

As a fast-growing global company with global ambitions, having a strong identity has never been more important, so a huge thanks to Jo Scalpello and Chris McGuigan for all their hard work in delivering this project.

Finally, an update on the new Learning Management System “Stage to Excellence”. I’m excited to say that ‘phase-one’ is going live as we speak. The curtain has been lifted to a controlled test group with the aim to gather feedback before wider rollouts over 2022 and beyond. Initial reaction, and honest feedback gathered so far, has been invaluable. This information will help shape the system and start laying the foundations so that Stage to Excellence will one day play a vital part in TE’s future training needs.

Until next time, take care of yourselves.
Best wishes
Rosemary