I AM relieved that the Swan Theatre looks as if it has been saved. It would have been a travesty if the theatre closed.

However, I am also disappointed in the news that it will not be producing its own theatre.

I am now a professional actor and might not have been if it wasn't for the Swan Theatre and the Artistic Director, Jenny Stephens.

She gave me an opportunity when I was in my last year at school to have a small part in two of the Swan's Shakespearean plays - The Merchant of Venice and Romeo and Juliet. It was this experience that allowed me to gain knowledge from a variety of actors and also to learn about how the theatre worked.

ALISTAIR BINNEY, Worcester.