About Us
The Beaufort Theatre & Café Bar is a volunteer-led community arts centre in Ebbw Vale, South Wales, that provides opportunities for performance, participation and coming together through an expanding programme of events and activities in a 310-seater theatre, ballroom, meeting room and café bar.
The Beaufort Theatre was a much-loved community asset that faced closure. The Board of Ffin Dance (registered charity No. 1129663) saw an opportunity to harness the strengths of the local community and develop a broader-based arts organisation that could make a significant contribution to the wellbeing of the people of Ebbw Vale and beyond. Beaufort Theatre Ltd was therefore established in 2016 as a company limited by guarantee.
Our aim is to create a thriving and sustainable venue where the wider community comes together to enjoy and participate in a broad range of artistic activities. Offering the additional value of personal, social and skills development, providing benefits beyond the normal reach of an arts venue is central to our aspirations.
The Beaufort Theatre has stood on this site since 1910 and then in the 1960’s it was converted from its previous life as a cinema. The ballroom still boasts its original sprung wooden ballroom floor which is now used as a dance rehearsal studio and social space for bands and conferences. The ballroom is still used for Tea Dances and in-house Ballroom and Latin tuition.
The newly refurbished Cafe@TheBeaufort is situated on the ground floor adjacent to the ballroom and serves a seasonal lunch menu and hosts evening supper clubs. The café bar offers full hospitality services for events as well as serving great coffee, homemade cakes and wine. The space offers a fully licensed bar serving traditional beer and ciders as well as soft drinks to patrons during performances.
Since 2017, FFIN DANCE has managed The Beaufort Theatre & Café Bar as part of a community asset transfer to save the building from closure. The company has been able to once again put The Beaufort Theatre at the heart of the community welcoming community societies, amateur and professional theatre companies and local schools to perform and create in the space.
The Beaufort Theatre & Café Bar community is extensive, with a team of 32 volunteers from across South Wales ensuring that the venue is able to be enjoyed for generations to come.