New Theatre (Cardiff)
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The New Theatre ( cy, Theatr Newydd) is one of the principal theatres of
Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...
, capital city of
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
. It is located in the city centre on Park Place, close to
Cathays Park Cathays Park ( cy, Parc Cathays) or Cardiff Civic Centre is a civic centre area in the city centre of Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, consisting of a number of early 20th century buildings and a central park area, Alexandra Gardens. It i ...
. The theatre has a capacity of 1,144, and hosts a number of touring productions including musicals, plays and children's shows and also presents an annual
Christmas pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...
.


History

The building was designed by the London-based theatre architects Ernest Runtz and Ford and constructed from brick and Bath Stone. It opened to the general public on 10 December 1906. It was constructed under order by Robert Redford, who had rented the Theatre Royal for the previous nine years. At the time of the initial build, the stage was one of the largest in the country, measuring wide, by deep and between the stage itself and the pulley grid hanging above. The first public performance was a performance of
William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
's
Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night'', or ''What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night's entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins Vi ...
, conducted by the company of
Herbert Beerbohm Tree Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree (17 December 1852 – 2 July 1917) was an English actor and theatre manager. Tree began performing in the 1870s. By 1887, he was managing the Haymarket Theatre in the West End, winning praise for adventurous progr ...
. The company had been brought from His Majesty's Theatre, London, and repeated the performance at the New Theatre on 13 December, and again for a matinee on 15 December. Also performed during the first week were the plays '' Colonel Newcome'', ''
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'', ''
The Man Who Was ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
'' and a further Shakespeare performance of ''
Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
''. Early performances included the
Charles Klein Charles Klein (January 7, 1867 – May 7, 1915) was an English-born playwright and actor who emigrated to America in 1883. Among his works was the libretto of John Philip Sousa's operetta, ''El Capitan''. Klein's talented siblings includ ...
play ''
The Lion and the Mouse The Lion and the Mouse is one of Aesop's Fables, numbered 150 in the Perry Index. There are also Eastern variants of the story, all of which demonstrate mutual dependence regardless of size or status. In the Renaissance the fable was provided w ...
'' by Walter Maxwell's company, and the return of Tree's company with performances of an adapted version of
Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
's ''
The Mystery of Edwin Drood ''The Mystery of Edwin Drood'' is the final novel by Charles Dickens, originally published in 1870. Though the novel is named after the character Edwin Drood, it focuses more on Drood's uncle, John Jasper, a precentor, choirmaster and opium ...
'' as a warm up to their season in London. The theatre's first film was shown in 1917 called ''
The Birth of a Nation ''The Birth of a Nation'', originally called ''The Clansman'', is a 1915 American silent epic drama film directed by D. W. Griffith and starring Lillian Gish. The screenplay is adapted from Thomas Dixon Jr.'s 1905 novel and play ''The Clan ...
'', it was accompanied by a full orchestra. In the early years of the
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...
's radio broadcasts in the late 1920s, performances and concerts were conducted live on air from the New Theatre. This included the third act of ''
Faust Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust ( 1480–1540). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a pact with the Devil at a crossroa ...
'' by the
Carl Rosa Opera Company The Carl Rosa Opera Company was founded in 1873 by Carl Rosa, a German-born musical impresario, and his wife, British operatic soprano Euphrosyne Parepa-Rosa to present opera in English in London and the British provinces. The company premiered ...
on 17 October 1928. By 1931 the theatre had made plans for regular cinema performances. Structural alterations to accommodate projectors, sound equipment and a large screen were made and for the next four years it was used mainly as a cinema, with the occasional live show. In 1935 the theatre was purchased
Prince Littler Prince Frank Littler CBE (25 July 1901 – 1973) born Prince Frank Richeux, was an English theatre proprietor, impresario, and television executive. Life and career Littler was born in Ramsgate, Kent, in the south east of England, the elder son ...
and it returned to full-time live shows again. The artists that have performed on stage at the New Theatre have included Sarah Bernhardt,
Anna Pavlova Anna Pavlovna Pavlova ( , rus, Анна Павловна Павлова ), born Anna Matveyevna Pavlova ( rus, Анна Матвеевна Павлова; – 23 January 1931), was a Russian prima ballerina of the late 19th and the early 20t ...
, Laurel and Hardy, Tom Jones, Tommy Cooper,
Tessie O'Shea Teresa Mary "Tessie" O'Shea (13 March 1913 – 21 April 1995) was a Welsh entertainer and actress. Early life O'Shea was born in Plantagenet Street in Riverside, Cardiff to newspaper wholesaler James Peter O'Shea, who had been a soldier and ...
and Shirley Bassey. Harold Pinter's play ''
The Homecoming ''The Homecoming'' is a two-act play written in 1964 by Harold Pinter and first published in 1965. Its premières in London (1965) and New York (1967) were both directed by Sir Peter Hall. The original Broadway production won the 1967 Tony A ...
'' had its world première here on 26 March 1965. In 1954
Welsh National Opera Welsh National Opera (WNO) ( cy, Opera Cenedlaethol Cymru) is an opera company based in Cardiff, Wales; it gave its first performances in 1946. It began as a mainly amateur body and transformed into an all-professional ensemble by 1973. In its ...
made the New Theatre its home and principal base, however they have subsequently moved and taken up permanent residence in
Wales Millennium Centre Wales Millennium Centre ( cy, Canolfan Mileniwm Cymru) is an arts centre located in the Cardiff Bay area of Cardiff, Wales. The site covers a total area of . Phase 1 of the building was opened during the weekend of the 26–28 November 2004 an ...
. By the early 1960s, audiences declined and the theatre was threatened with demolition. After a temporary closure, the theatre was leased by the Cardiff City Corporation and re-opened in September 1963. In 1969 the Council purchased the theatre outright. In July 1969, the
Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...
' post-
investiture Investiture (from the Latin preposition ''in'' and verb ''vestire'', "dress" from ''vestis'' "robe") is a formal installation or ceremony that a person undergoes, often related to membership in Christian religious institutes as well as Christian k ...
tour of Wales ended with a concert at the New Theatre. The theatre closed in 1970 for refurbishment and a new stage was built in 1976. It later went through an extensive refurbishment in 1988 and 1989. In 1993, Sir Anthony Hopkins unveiled a bronze bust of writer Gwyn Thomas in the foyer. In 2006 the theatre was refurbished and the outside was given a facelift. By 2012 the theatre closed three months to install new seating, the installation of a customer lift and the repainting of the auditorium. The New Theatre has been a
grade II listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ir ...
since 1975.


Present day

Following the Covid 19 pandemic, the theatre re-opened in September 2021, after the longest closure in its history, with a week-long run of ''Priscilla, Queen of the Desert''. The Autumn 2021 season included musicals, drama, concerts and comedy, culminating in the 2021-22 pantomime ''Aladdin'' starring Paul Chuckle, Gareth Gates, Gareth Thomas and Mike Doyle which came to an early close on Christmas Eve following a further Covid-related lockdown in Wales. New Theatre re-opened again at the end of January 2022 with the concert ''A Beautiful Noise'', followed by near-capacity performances of musicals ''The Rocky Horror Show'' and ''Hairspray''.


HQ Theatres / Trafalgar Entertainment

In 2020, the New Theatre became part of HQ Theatres on a new 25 year lease from Cardiff Council, with all existing staff transferred to the company and significant new investment planned for the theatre. The group then became part of Trafalgar Entertainment who now manage the venue. Cardiff Councillor Peter Bradbury stated at the time; "I’m delighted that its future has been secured through this agreement with HQ Theatres and Hospitality, one of the UK’s leading theatre operators. This arrangement will see the theatre operated without subsidy".


References


External links

* * {{Coord, 51.483662, -3.175532, type:landmark, display=title Theatres in Cardiff Grade II listed buildings in Cardiff Buildings and structures completed in 1906 1906 establishments in Wales