C O N T E X T 1 2 3 : M A R C H 2 0 1 2 19 Peter Carey Investigating the Theatre Royal, Bristol Beneath layers of Victorian and later decoration, Britain’s earliest surviving theatre auditorium lies part hidden, but with more of the original fabric intact than anyone had suspected. Bristol’s Theatre Royal is Britain’s oldest working theatre1. The only 18th century surviving theatre of its kind, it has been virtually continuously operational as a provincial playhouse. It is a unique testament to that cultural and artistic heritage, especially considering the average life of any theatre in the 19th century was 18 years (before burning down or failing commercially). Conceived in 1764 and opened in 1766, the Bristol theatre received its Royal Patent in 1788. The Bristol Old Vic was the name of the company, an off-shoot of the Old Vic Company in London that took over the operation of the theatre in 1946. Their success as a producing and repertory company led to the expansion of the premises in the 1970s. Under architect Peter Moro (of Royal Festival Hall and Nottingham Playhouse fame), they took over the adjacent redundant Coopers Hall (1744, listed Grade II) inserting a new foyer and adding an additional flexible performance space (New Vic Studio) and state-of-the-art backstage production facilities. The works included the hugely controversial demolition of the original, much-adapted stage house, which had become dangerously outmoded. Thankfully, the auditorium was left almost completely untouched.This 20th century amalgamation, generally termed the ‘Bristol OldVic’, was reassessed as Grade I in 2000. In the late 20th century the theatre was again at a crossroads, struggling to rediscover itself and improve its image. Andrzej Blonski, who had worked with Moro, won the commission to develop the complex. The late Kathleen Barker had collected, researched and written extensively on the theatre. Her book The Theatre Royal Bristol 1766–1961 was the acknowledged authority.2 Limited physical investigations had been carried out in the auditorium by Richard Southern in the 1950s. He had discovered an earlier 19th century painted scheme and classical detailed frieze, but had been severely financially restrained. Beyond that, no systematic research had been done on how the theatre had developed before the major reorganisation by Phipps in 1881. Frustratingly not a single illustration remained. The additional tier of the current gallery was known to have been created in 1800, requiring the ceiling to be raised, and the forestage and proscenium openings were known to have been changed, at least by Phipps. But when, how and by how much was still mostly guesswork. Donald Insall Associates undertook a desktop conservation management plan in 2001–2, supplemented by the historian and documentary researcher Jane Bristol Theatre Royal: proscenium and boxes in around 1950.The front of the stage (not shown) was originally in line with the left pilaster but was cut back by Phipps’ time to the one on the right.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjgyMjA=