Royal Shakespeare Theater
The Royal Shakespeare Theater is a large national theater owned by the Royal Shakespeare Company and dedicated to the work of the British poet William Shakespeare . It is in his native Stratford-upon-Avon in the English Midlands. The theater is on the banks of the Avon .
history
The modern theater opened on April 23, 1932 . The design comes from the architect Elisabeth Scott . This was the first major building in England to be built to an architect's design. The construction became necessary after a fire on March 6, 1926 destroyed the Shakespeare Memorial Theater from 1879 (opened April 19 ). It has been managed and played by the Royal Shakespeare Company since 1961 and was then renamed the Royal Shakespeare Theater . The theater is on the west bank of the Avon and the bar and restaurant overlook the river.
building
The theater building from the 1960s had a proscenium - stage , called a proscenium stage and a seating capacity of 1,500 spectators. These were placed on three levels, the parquet, the tier and the balcony (with side balconies). The entrance to the balconies is through a separate side door outside the building. The theater has some notable Art Deco elements, including the stairwell, the hallways on either side of the auditorium, and the doors to the auditorium. It is a listed building (Grade II * listing). The Swan Theater and the RST (Royal Shakespeare Theater) have a common stage entrance and also a common stage space behind the back walls, so that it is possible to switch from one stage to the other (which is sometimes even used in productions, like that at Venetian Twins in Swan 1993).
modification
Plans to rebuild the theater were controversial, especially since plans were made to completely demolish the building. The renovation began in 2007. There was space for more than 1300 spectators in addition to an advanced stage. The public areas have been renovated and expanded, the roof-top café and restaurant have been renewed, as well as the areas for actors and stagehands behind the stage. After the renovation, access for visitors with disabilities will be easier.
The theater itself is a one-room theater that allows actors and spectators to share the same space, as was common in Shakespeare's time. The stage extends into the auditorium and is surrounded by seats on three sides. The stage construction not only allows traditional Shakespeare productions, but the RSC can bring the audience into closer contact with the actors. During the closure of the theater, performances took place in the Courtyard Theater , a temporary building that was added to the nearby theater The Other Place and temporarily replaced it.
The theater reopened on December 4, 2010 with a one-time performance for sponsors of A Masque for the New Theater , performed by a small group of cast members. The first production for a paying audience was a short modern ballet entitled Handbag on December 6, 2010. The first play in the new theater was Macbeth , directed by Michael Boyd , in June 2011 .
literature
- Marian Pringle: The Theaters of Stratford-upon-Avon 1875-1992 . An Architectural History. Stratford-upon-Avon 1993. ISBN 0-9514178-1-9
swell
- ^ Pringle: The Theaters of Stratford-upon-Avon, p. 29
Web links
- Royal Shakespeare Company homepage
- Old postcard views of the original Memorial Theater, including pictures of the 1926 fire
Coordinates: 52 ° 11 '25 " N , 1 ° 42' 16" W.