The audience at Ipswich’s Regent Theatre should feel more comfortable in future – whatever the weather outside – as the building is getting a summer makeover before reopening at the end of next month.

The auditorium and inner and main foyer are being improved under a new project to install an air management system.

Theatre assistant operations manager Mark Whiting said: “We want to vastly improve audiences’ enjoyment of a performance through making them more comfortable.”

The refurbishment will also see the original ornate ceilings from the 1920s reinstated and redecorated.

Mr Whiting said: “We are thrilled at the opportunity to bring back some of the grandeur of what the theatre was like when it first opened and we want to pay respect to the original décor.”

The box office is still being operated from the Tourist Information Centre situated in St Stephen’s Church opposite the Buttermarket Shopping Centre, where customers will continue to be able to buy tickets between 9am and 4.30pm, Monday to Saturday.

Customers are still able to purchase tickets by telephone from 01473 433100 and online.