Thousands of theatre-goers travel safely to Kynren thanks to Go North East partnership

Kynren, an epic theatre production which opened in July and includes 15 performances in County Durham, has commended Go North East’s support, providing park and ride services for the show’s thousands of weekly visitors.

The open-air performance, which launched in July and finishes mid-September, is located in Toronto, on the outskirts of Bishop Auckland. Detailing the story of England, though the eyes of a young miner’s son, the fantastical adventure combines myth and magic to story-tell defining moments in history, including the Viking and Norman invasions, the Industrial Revolution and World War II.

The whole show, which uses clever lighting, fireworks and has a cast of over 1000, is performed in the dark, starting at 9pm and running for two hours. To help ease local traffic congestion, Go North East provides eight double-deckers for each performance, picking up and dropping off attendees at two nearby park and rides; Bishop Auckland bus station and Colliery Field. Services start at 6pm and run until midnight and Go North East estimates it has transported around 1,200 people per event.

Organisers from Eleven Arches, the company behind Kynren, have been impressed with Go North East’s support, helping to quickly move show attendees from the theatre to the car parks and easing congestion on local roads. The bright livery of the vehicles and excellent customer service of the drivers, has also proved a talking point with visitors.

One Kynren attendee, Pauline Dobson, 67, from Crook, went to see the show with her sister who was visiting from the United States. She said: "We were incredibly impressed - not just with the actual show but with the whole set-up. The volunteers who help run it were so friendly and enthusiastic and Go North East was brilliant. Our driver could work for Disney - that's how good he was at customer service, he made us feel so welcome."

John Elms MBE, chief of staff to the chief executive at Eleven Arches, said: “As the show happens in the dark, when the performance ends late at night, we want to ensure the process is as smooth as possible for our average 6000 visitors. Go North East has helped make that happen, without disruption to local communities.”

Mark Ellis, development manager at Go North East, concluded: “Kynren is an exciting and well-talked about event in the region and we are so pleased to be a part of its history.” 

Tickets for Kynren are still available and can be purchased from https://elevenarches.org/.