You may be surprised to learn that the Theatre Royal, Plymouth, is far more than just a place to see shows. Of course it does put on a tremendous number of performances but it also works tirelessly with Plymouth schools and colleges and Plymouth charities in helping to educate and entertain those who may not otherwise come into contact with a theatre. As a registered charity itself, the Theatre Royal receives its main funding from Plymouth City Council and Arts Council England.
Plymouth's Theatre Royal has a wide-ranging Creative Learning programme which provides opportunities for anyone and everyone to become involved in the theatre in a variety of ways. There are three main elements to the programme; Education, which involves working with Plymouth schools, Plymouth colleges, and Plymouth University to improve students' and teachers' knowledge of all aspects of theatre work; Community, which engages with those who would not normally become involved with the theatre; and the Young People's Programme, which focuses on children and young adults but outside of a formal educational setting.
Plymouth's Theatre Royal is the largest regional theatre in the UK and has the best attendance record outside of London. More than any other theatre in the south west of the country, it strongly promotes the arts and produces many of its own shows, as well as launching productions which go on to sell out in the West End.
The main Theatre Royal building on Royal Parade, one of the main streets for Plymouth shops, is not far from the Civic Centre, the home of Plymouth Council offices. It is an impressive modern building with massive glass windows forming a semi-circle along most of the ground floor, which houses the foyer and stalls cafe, and also along the mezzanine (first) floor, where the more formal restaurant, The Mezz, and bar are situated.
Inside are two auditoria: the main theatre accommodates 1,296 people as standard, reduced to 800 when the innovative auditorium ceiling is moved across, and has space for between 18 and 52 musicians in the orchestra pit; the smaller Drum theatre seats only 192. The dressing room area is one of the most luxurious of all the regional theatres.
The main auditorium of the Theatre Royal provides a wide variety of performances, including plays, comedy acts, musicals, opera, ballet, and modern dance. Major tours are often started in Plymouth and the theatre has played host to such distinguished opera and dance companies as Birmingham Royal Ballet, Rambert Dance Company, Glyndebourne On Tour and Welsh National Opera. The Theatre Royal also stages shows it has produced itself, particularly plays and musicals. These are often produced in conjunction with other commercial or charitable organisations and many go on to tour the UK and end with a run in the West End of London.
The smaller Drum theatre is renowned for putting on more experimental performances. Its more intimate atmosphere lends it to trying out innovative ideas and it won the Peter Brooks Empty Space Award in 2007. This annual award is given to encourage new talent with pioneering concepts at fringe venues where the audience is less than 200. Like the main theatre, productions are often collaborations with other organisations. There is another component of the Plymouth Theatre Royal – a separate site on the bank of the River Plym. TR2 is a huge building providing space for rehearsals, costume design and prop-making, as well as being one of the largest centres for creative learning provided by a regional theatre.
When Pete Townshend of The Who was launching the hit show Quadrophenia at Plymouth's Theatre Royal in 2009, he was full of praise for the facility, saying "TR2 is a very large rehearsal stage with natural light, a view of the water that does not distract (unless you want it to), supported by workshops and expert technicians of all kinds, an incredible wardrobe department, excellent and very fattening catering, easy parking and access and two smaller stages of equal style, with lovely level dancing floors. All the time I have been working there recently I have had the pleasure of seeing young people rolling in and out on educational programmes, all of them glancing sideways at what is going on in TR2 where actors only a few years older than they are singing and dancing like young gods. The whole building vibrates with hope and excitement."
Plymouth has had a Theatre Royal since the 18th century. A theatre was built at the top of George Street in 1758 and was later named the Theatre Royal in honour of King George III who visited it in 1789. In 1810, Plymouth Council ran a competition to design a new theatre to be sited at the other end of George Street and the architect John Foulston was the winner. Construction was begun in 1811 and the new Theatre Royal opened in 1813 with seating for an audience of 1,192 on four levels. Despite the fact that Foulston took special care to minimise the risk of fire, using an inner structure of cast iron, the theatre suffered massive fire damage in 1878. There was some controversy at the time over whether the theatre should be rebuilt as audience numbers had declined over previous decades but Plymouth Council voted unanimously in favour and brought in C. J. Phipps, a celebrated architect at that time, to oversee the restoration. It took some 6 months to restore the theatre and it reopened in January 1879 to much acclaim. Over the next 50 years, however, attendance at the Theatre Royal continued to drop steadily, mainly due to the concomitant rise in the new and exciting era of cinema. The George Street Theatre Royal was finally demolished in 1937 and a new cinema, known as the Royal, was built in its place, opening the following year. Ironically, an even more exciting revolution in the world of media, the television, led to a similar decline in cinema audiences, and the Royal was partly converted back into a theatre again. Renamed the ABC Plymouth in 1958, live shows were still held there for some years. Today the site houses a three-screen cinema, Reel Plymouth, which boasts the largest cinema auditorium in Plymouth with 582 seats. Built between 1979 and 1982, today's Theatre Royal was designed by the Peter Moro Partnership. Peter Moro was born in Heidelberg in 1911 but was forced to leave Germany by the Nazis because his grandmother was Jewish. He came to England in 1936, having completed his diploma in Switzerland, and became a famous post-war architect. When he drew up the plans for Plymouth's Theatre Royal he created an adaptable auditorium with a special ceiling which can slide across to cover the upper circle, resulting in a smaller and more intimate space. The theatre was officially opened on 5 May 1982 by Princess Margaret.
Plymouth's Theatre Royal has a wide-ranging Creative Learning programme which provides opportunities for anyone and everyone to become involved in the theatre in a variety of ways. There are three main elements to the programme; Education, which involves working with Plymouth schools, Plymouth colleges, and Plymouth University to improve students' and teachers' knowledge of all aspects of theatre work; Community, which engages with those who would not normally become involved with the theatre; and the Young People's Programme, which focuses on children and young adults but outside of a formal educational setting.
Plymouth's Theatre Royal is the largest regional theatre in the UK and has the best attendance record outside of London. More than any other theatre in the south west of the country, it strongly promotes the arts and produces many of its own shows, as well as launching productions which go on to sell out in the West End.
The main Theatre Royal building on Royal Parade, one of the main streets for Plymouth shops, is not far from the Civic Centre, the home of Plymouth Council offices. It is an impressive modern building with massive glass windows forming a semi-circle along most of the ground floor, which houses the foyer and stalls cafe, and also along the mezzanine (first) floor, where the more formal restaurant, The Mezz, and bar are situated.
Inside are two auditoria: the main theatre accommodates 1,296 people as standard, reduced to 800 when the innovative auditorium ceiling is moved across, and has space for between 18 and 52 musicians in the orchestra pit; the smaller Drum theatre seats only 192. The dressing room area is one of the most luxurious of all the regional theatres.
The main auditorium of the Theatre Royal provides a wide variety of performances, including plays, comedy acts, musicals, opera, ballet, and modern dance. Major tours are often started in Plymouth and the theatre has played host to such distinguished opera and dance companies as Birmingham Royal Ballet, Rambert Dance Company, Glyndebourne On Tour and Welsh National Opera. The Theatre Royal also stages shows it has produced itself, particularly plays and musicals. These are often produced in conjunction with other commercial or charitable organisations and many go on to tour the UK and end with a run in the West End of London.
The smaller Drum theatre is renowned for putting on more experimental performances. Its more intimate atmosphere lends it to trying out innovative ideas and it won the Peter Brooks Empty Space Award in 2007. This annual award is given to encourage new talent with pioneering concepts at fringe venues where the audience is less than 200. Like the main theatre, productions are often collaborations with other organisations. There is another component of the Plymouth Theatre Royal – a separate site on the bank of the River Plym. TR2 is a huge building providing space for rehearsals, costume design and prop-making, as well as being one of the largest centres for creative learning provided by a regional theatre.
When Pete Townshend of The Who was launching the hit show Quadrophenia at Plymouth's Theatre Royal in 2009, he was full of praise for the facility, saying "TR2 is a very large rehearsal stage with natural light, a view of the water that does not distract (unless you want it to), supported by workshops and expert technicians of all kinds, an incredible wardrobe department, excellent and very fattening catering, easy parking and access and two smaller stages of equal style, with lovely level dancing floors. All the time I have been working there recently I have had the pleasure of seeing young people rolling in and out on educational programmes, all of them glancing sideways at what is going on in TR2 where actors only a few years older than they are singing and dancing like young gods. The whole building vibrates with hope and excitement."
Plymouth has had a Theatre Royal since the 18th century. A theatre was built at the top of George Street in 1758 and was later named the Theatre Royal in honour of King George III who visited it in 1789. In 1810, Plymouth Council ran a competition to design a new theatre to be sited at the other end of George Street and the architect John Foulston was the winner. Construction was begun in 1811 and the new Theatre Royal opened in 1813 with seating for an audience of 1,192 on four levels. Despite the fact that Foulston took special care to minimise the risk of fire, using an inner structure of cast iron, the theatre suffered massive fire damage in 1878. There was some controversy at the time over whether the theatre should be rebuilt as audience numbers had declined over previous decades but Plymouth Council voted unanimously in favour and brought in C. J. Phipps, a celebrated architect at that time, to oversee the restoration. It took some 6 months to restore the theatre and it reopened in January 1879 to much acclaim. Over the next 50 years, however, attendance at the Theatre Royal continued to drop steadily, mainly due to the concomitant rise in the new and exciting era of cinema. The George Street Theatre Royal was finally demolished in 1937 and a new cinema, known as the Royal, was built in its place, opening the following year. Ironically, an even more exciting revolution in the world of media, the television, led to a similar decline in cinema audiences, and the Royal was partly converted back into a theatre again. Renamed the ABC Plymouth in 1958, live shows were still held there for some years. Today the site houses a three-screen cinema, Reel Plymouth, which boasts the largest cinema auditorium in Plymouth with 582 seats. Built between 1979 and 1982, today's Theatre Royal was designed by the Peter Moro Partnership. Peter Moro was born in Heidelberg in 1911 but was forced to leave Germany by the Nazis because his grandmother was Jewish. He came to England in 1936, having completed his diploma in Switzerland, and became a famous post-war architect. When he drew up the plans for Plymouth's Theatre Royal he created an adaptable auditorium with a special ceiling which can slide across to cover the upper circle, resulting in a smaller and more intimate space. The theatre was officially opened on 5 May 1982 by Princess Margaret.
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