A new committee and exciting plans mean the Empire Theatre looks set to have a successful 2016.

The theatre had a record year last year with 35 shows covering a wide range of genres, from tribute bands to local groups, and committee members are hoping to continue this into the new year.

Mike George, theatre spokesman, said although there are currently no concrete plans for acts, they are hoping to get tribute bands for The Who, the Beatles and 10cc.

“It would be nice to get Chas and Dave back here again, as they are now back together and haven’t been here for a couple of years,” he added.

“They seemed to be really popular.

“We will find some new acts as well.

“There will be a mix of new faces and some old ones next year.

“Of course, there will also be the local groups too.

“The Frederick Douglas Theatre School which has started running workshops here has been doing very well and they are set to continue into next year which is really good.

“It would be nice to have a Shakespearian performance to commemorate 400 years since the playwright died next year as well.

“We are hoping to repeat the same amount of shows and keep it moving along.

“There were 35 shows last year, which is a lot more than the previous year.”

He added that since the new committee has taken over, under the leadership of chairman Martin Laurence, and new trustees have been appointed.

“It’s the opportunity for a fresh start,” Mr George said.

“We have already completed seven of the nine things in our three year business plan.”

Work is due to start in January to improve the lighting and there are changes to the curtains planned as well.

The committee recently received a £1,000 grant from Halstead Town Council to set up an online ticket booking system, that they will design themselves.

Mr George explained: “We used to have one, but it got too expensive so we had to stop it.

“It seemed really popular and should mean we get more ticket sales.

“We hope it is going to be an exciting year.”