With a report full of recommendations in hand, the cultural councilor and theater director in Hoogeveen will sit down at the table in the coming months. They both want De Tamboer theater to continue to exist, but the foundation above the theater is faltering. It will hurt somewhere to close the financial gaps, but where?
In the conversations between councilor Mark Tuit (PvdA) and director Pieter-Bas Rebers, we will first look at what needs to be done in the short term to keep Stichting Cultuurhuis Hoogeveen going. The foundation includes theater De Tamboer and music venue Het Podium. After 2025, the piggy bank will be empty, even though more will be spent than taken in.
The piggy bank has partly become empty because the higher costs (energy, wages) were not compensated by the municipality for years, says research agency Berenschot. The question is therefore whether the municipality will come up with extra money. “We definitely have to look at that,” says Tuit. “The Berenschot report has now learned how we can increase income. Then as a municipality you must also look at the annual operating subsidy.”
This will not close the entire gap. In 2023, that gap in the foundation’s budget amounted to 3.5 tonnes. “We no longer have any buttons to turn,” says Rebers. “We have the task of creating broad programming. We cannot work any harder. We are a small team and are already doing a lot.”
Replacing staff with volunteers is not an option for Rebers. He dismisses the consultancy firm’s suggestion in advance.
And so the question arises: should less be done? Rebers agrees that things are moving in that direction. The consultancy firm mentions youth theater as an option where less money can be spent. That would be with a lot of pain in Rebers’ heart. “It’s almost the best thing we do.”
Councilor Tuit wants to postpone the painful choice for a while. “It is still too early to provide clarity about this. It is one of the buttons we can turn, there is a whole range of possibilities.”
But the palette is not that broad. The Podium seems to remain out of reach and little seems to be achieved in professional theater performances. Rebers likes to repeat Berenschot’s conclusion about this part: “We are doing extremely well with the theater.”
City theater and city programming perhaps? This concerns, for example, a neighborhood project such as De Wijk De Wereld. In the budget, the municipality has focused on expanding city programming. What can still be looked at to save money are the educational school performances. But these are important for the foundation to introduce children and parents to De Tamboer.
If the parties can solve the complicated puzzle about 2026, we can look further. In any case, sustainability is necessary, but this will not result in savings on energy bills in the short term.
So look for parties with whom the bill can be shared. “De Tamboer is a large building where you can also hold cultural activities in a different way and utilize the possibilities,” says Tuit. That would mean extra income. Tuit hopes that entrepreneurs will also want to use the spaces in the theater building. “There used to be a restaurant there. And there are meeting facilities.”
In the past, a plan for a large cultural center in Hoogeveen fell through, but it now seems to be back on the table in a different form. Tuit sees a music school, library or Van Gogh spin-off as options. So the library is in De Tamboer, right? “I don’t rule it out, but I’m not saying we’re going that way,” says Tuit. This week it was announced that the library will be moving. “But there is still a contract until 2029. So that will take a while. But it is certainly a possible scenario.”
And who knows, other creative ideas may end up on the consultation table in the coming months. Because Hoogeveen wants to keep De Tamboer no matter what. “This council has said that we are not going to close De Tamboer,” says Tuit. “We want a sustainable and future-proof theater. That is important for Hoogeveen and also for Drenthe. Many visitors come to our municipality as a result, and entrepreneurs benefit from this.”