Tag Archives: #AtoZChallenge
York Mystery Plays – theatre on the streets
The concept of a touring theatre group is nothing new. Its origins go back much further. Ever since Antiquity, plays have been performed, and in the absence of great amphitheatres, towns and cities were home to pageants and feasts, bringing music and drama to the streets. Perhaps the most famed of these are the mystery […]
Sadler’s Wells – the home of dance
My theme – British theatre through the ages – has so far covered many forms of entertainment, but to date, I’ve omitted one key one: dance. So today, I’m off to Sadler’s Wells, home of ballet and dance. However, given the theatre’s long history, dance is a relatively recent arrival at Sadler’s Wells. In fact […]
Royal Lyceum Edinburgh – the dramatic theatre
Theatres are all about people. The actors, the audience, the backstage crew, the writers and directors (and the ghosts…) Don’t forget the money – the producers and the owners who take a risk to build theatres and put on shows. The Royal Lyceum Theatre in Edinburgh is another one of CJ Phipps creations and was […]
Palace Theatre, the house of entertainment.
When I think of theatres I think of plays – comic, dramatic, tragic or controversial. Yet so many theatres began life entertaining with music, circus and pantomime. The Palace Theatre (not to be confused with the Victoria Palace) on Charing Cross Road, which was built in 1891, was no exception, it was originally called Royal […]
The Old Vic – for those who dare
It’s a nickname, Old Vic, and it’s been around for a long time, since at least 1880. It stands for Royal Victoria Theatre. But that wasn’t its first name. Just like the Royal family, the theatre had a Germanic name – Royal Coburg Theatre. Designed in 1818 by Rudolph Cabanel, a German architect, the theatre […]
The National Theatre, a long time coming.
The establishment of a national theatre in Britain was a long affair. Given that the country is home to Shakespeare and other great early playwrights it might seem odd that it was only in the 1960s that the country finally had one… not a dedicated building, but a national theatre company. In 1847 Dramaticus (a […]
King’s Theatre and the pinball wizard
London may have many grand theatres but it doesn’t have a monopoly. Take the King’s Theatre in Southsea, Portsmouth. Grade II listed and designated as of national importance by the Theatre Trust, and a great example of Edwardian theatre architecture. Who designed it? Frank Matcham, the man who designed 150 theatres of which only 30 […]
Jackson Lane reincarnation from church to theatre
A theatre is a building. A place. Who decided it had to have a stage with three tiers? Or seat thousands? Why does it have to be purpose built? In small communities, where money is tight, and people have little spare cash, reusing buildings is a common solution. With declining church membership, many old churches […]
Her Majesty and Harold
To have a theatre named after you must be the height of achievement for anyone associated with the theatre. So I’ve two to share for you. Harold Pinter – Nobel prize winner, producer, playwright and actor – had a career that lasted fifty years. Famed for plays such as Sleuth, The Go-Between and The French […]
Acts and Angles
My first post of the A to Z Blogging Challenge – the letter A and the theme for this year? British Theatres through the ages. How to begin? There are plenty of theatres in London, and I will be touching on several, but today I’m starting out in a small provincial town, one that is […]
