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Queen's Theatre, Hornchurch

Coordinates: 51°33′55″N 0°13′10″E / 51.5652°N 0.2195°E / 51.5652; 0.2195
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Queen's Theatre
Theatre exterior
Map
LocationHornchurch, Greater London
England
Coordinates51°33′55″N 0°13′10″E / 51.5652°N 0.2195°E / 51.5652; 0.2195
Public transitLondon Overground Emerson Park
London Underground Hornchurch
OperatorHavering Theatre Trust
Capacity507
Opened
  • 21 September 1953 (1953-09-21)
  • 2 April 1975 (1975-04-02) (relocated)
Website
www.queens-theatre.co.uk

The Queen's Theatre is a 507-seat mid-scale producing theatre located in Hornchurch in the London Borough of Havering, east London. The theatre was originally located on Station Lane, Hornchurch on a site that was used as a cinema and had become derelict. Hornchurch Urban District Council was one of the first councils to use powers of the Local Government Act 1948 to purchase the building in 1948. The 379-seat theatre opened in 1953, the same year as the Coronation of Elizabeth II. Threatened with demolition to make way for a road scheme, it was relocated to a new purpose-built theatre on Billet Lane in 1975.

History

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Station Lane site

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The first site was located on Station Lane, Hornchurch. It had operated as a cinema from 1913 to 1935 under the names Hornchurch Cinema and Super Cinema.[1] The building fell into disuse in 1935.[2] During World War II, it was used first for storage of drugs and medical supplies and then to store furniture.[2]

The Local Government Act 1948 permitted councils to operate or contribute to the running of entertainment and cultural venues.[3] Hornchurch Urban District Council was one of the first councils to take up these powers.[3] It purchased the derelict cinema in 1948 in order to convert it into a theatre.[2]

The 379-seat theatre was opened by Ralph Richardson on 21 September 1953 and the inaugural production was See How They Run.[3] The theatre was named to reflect its opening in the same year as the Coronation of Elizabeth II.[2]

It was incorporated as a charity called the Hornchurch Theatre Trust on 19 October 1953.[2] The eight directors were made up of two members from each political party represented on the council.[4]

After opening, the Hornchurch Council purchased additional land adjacent to the theatre in order to provide a car park, workshops and dressing rooms.[2]

It was anticipated that the theatre could break even if attendance did not fall below 60%.[3] It was successful in its opening year and was able to pay its running costs and rent, and repay a £500 loan (equivalent to £17,634 in 2023).[5] After three years and seventy productions, including an annual pantomime, the theatre had maintained an average of 70% attendance.[2]

Ian Curteis was director of productions for eight months in 1963, until he quit due to a disagreement with the directors.[6] His last production was Candida.[7]

Hornchurch Urban District Council was replaced by Havering London Borough Council on 1 April 1965 when Hornchurch became part of the London Borough of Havering. Havering Council planned to demolish the theatre in 1970 to make way for a road scheme.[8]

The last performance at the theatre was the closing night of a pantomime on Saturday 8 February 1975.[9]

Billet Lane site

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The Queen's Theatre Auditorium 2018

Havering Council was considering a new site for the theatre in 1968 and commissioned a study to evaluate the likely attendance if the theatre moved to an alternative site in Hornchurch or was relocated to Romford. The study showed that if the theatre was located in Romford it would likely have 25% greater attendance than in Hornchurch.[10]

The new theatre on Billet Lane, Hornchurch, was designed by Havering borough architects Hallam and Brooks.[11] It was officially opened by Peter Hall on 2 April 1975, with an initial production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat.[12]

Performances spaces include a 507-seater Main House end-on theatre and a 100+ seater The Other Stage.

The Theatre received a visit from the Queen in 2003, the Theatre's fiftieth anniversary, and in 2013 the Theatre celebrated its Diamond Jubilee.

The Theatre won the UK Theatre Award for Most Welcoming Theatre (East region) in 2016, 2017 and 2018.

In 2018 the Theatre fundraised £1 million for a small scale capital refurbishment creating a new rehearsal room, a learning space, an artist space and a new bar. It also won the Clothworkers' Foundation Theatre Award at the UK Theatre Awards for its innovative Essex on Stage programme.

In 2019 the Theatre, as the lead in a consortium, won an Arts Council England Creative People and Places funding award of £1 million for a four-year programme of arts engagement in Havering.

In 2020 the Theatre won the prestigious London Theatre of the Year Stage Award.

Notable productions and artists

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Because of the high quality facilities and London location, the Theatre has been able to attract top productions and artists. The Theatre has been a home to the award-winning productions Blood Brothers, Return to Forbidden Planet, a major revival of Made in Dagenham, the second iteration of the National Theatre Public Acts programme As You Like It and a homecoming for David Eldridge's In Basildon. Artists who have worked at the theatre include Ian McKellen, Maggie Smith, Martin Shaw, Joan Plowright, Prunella Scales, Nigel Hawthorn, Lucy Benjamin, Richard Eyre, Bernard Cribbins, Conn O’Neill, David Eldridge, Chris Bond, Sadie Hasler, Bob Eaton, Glen Walford, Nichola McAuliffe, Charlie Condou, James Sutton, Tim Firth, Brian Cant and Richard O'Brien. Ian Hendry started his professional acting career at the old Queen's theatre. in Over its 65 plus year history, it has built a track record in creating the best[13] in live entertainment.

The Theatre is currently run by Artistic Director Douglas Rintoul and Executive Director Mathew Russell. Previous directors include Stuart Burge, Bob Carlton, Anthony Carrick, Ian Clarke, Marina Calderone, Peter Coe, Ian Curteis, Henriette Duckworth, James Gillhouley, Jane Howell, David Phethean, Nancy Poultney, Anthony Richardson, Paul Tomlinson, Bob Tomson and Clifford Williams.

The Queen's Theatre Hornchurch produces over eight shows a year and has a vibrant learning and participatory programme engaging over 11,000 participants annually, enabling people to express themselves and their stories through the arts.

The Theatre works with educational institutions, amateur theatre groups, professional arts groups and wellbeing organisations, but is also connected to the wider theatre ecology in the UK and abroad. Recent partnerships include projects with the National Theatre, the New Wolsey Theatre Ipswich, Derby Theatre, Fiery Angel, Spare Tyre, Leeds Playhouse, Curve Theatre Leicester and The Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg.

Funding

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The Queen's Theatre is a registered charity and receives regular funding from the London Borough of Havering and the Arts Council England.

Queen's Green

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Adjacent to the theatre is an open space called Queen's Green.

References

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  1. ^ "Queen's Theatre". Cinema Treasures. Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Merryn, Anthony (27 September 1956). "Hornchurch Celebrates". The Stage.
  3. ^ a b c d "A New Civic Theatre". The Stage. 24 September 1953. p. 16.
  4. ^ "How Reading Might Run a Civic Theatre". Reading Standard. 10 January 1958. p. 10.
  5. ^ "Theatre Grid: An Arts Council Suggestion". The Scotsman. 12 November 1954. p. 10.
  6. ^ "Curteis Quits Hornchurch". The Stage. 22 August 1963. p. 1.
  7. ^ "On This Week at Hornchurch". The Stage. 22 August 1963. p. 16.
  8. ^ "Have you had a cuppa?.". Brentwood Gazette. 31 January 1969. p. 2.
  9. ^ Plumley, C. Murray (13 February 1975). "Regional Theatre". The Stage. p. 20.
  10. ^ Whitaker, R. A.; Rhodes, T. (1968). "A Quantitative Analysis of Alternative Theatre Locations". Urban Studies. 5 (2): 121–131. ISSN 0042-0980.
  11. ^ Cherry, Bridget; O'Brien, Charles; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2007). London. 5: East / by Bridget Cherry, Charles O'Brien and Nikolaus Pevsner ; with contributions from Elizabeth Williamson, Malcolm Tucker and Pamela Greenwood (Reprinted with corrections ed.). New Haven London: Yale Univ. Press. ISBN 9780300107012.
  12. ^ "Hornchurch". The Stage. 10 April 1975. p. 15.
  13. ^ Stage, The (12 December 2019). "The Stage Awards 2020 shortlist: London theatre of the year". The Stage. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
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