The Parc and Dare Hall, now known as the Park and Dare Theatre ( cy, Theatr y Parc a'r Dâr), is a former

Miners' institute Miners' institutes, sometimes known as ''workingmen's institutes'', ''mine workers' institutes'', or ''miners' welfare halls'' are large institutional buildings that were typically built during the height of the industrial period as a meeting and ...

but now serves as a large entertainment venue in the

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

Treorchy Treorchy ( cy, Treorci; ) is a town and community (and electoral ward) in Wales. Once a mining town, it retains such characteristics. Situated in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf in the Rhondda Fawr valley. Treorchy is also one of the 16 ...

, in the

Rhondda Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley ( cy, Cwm Rhondda ), is a former coal mining, coalmining area in South Wales, historically in the county of Glamorgan. It takes its name from the River Rhondda, and embraces two valleys – the larger Rhondda Fa ...

Valley 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 ...

. Since the demolition of the Abercynon Workingmen's Hall, the Parc and Dare Workingmen's Hall is the largest in the

South Wales Coalfield The South Wales Coalfield ( cy, Maes glo De Cymru) extends across Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Swansea, Neath Port Talbot, Bridgend, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Merthyr Tydfil, Caerphilly, Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen. It is rich in coal deposits, espe ...

. It is a Grade II* listed building.

History

The Parc and Dare Hall was built in 1892, and began its life as a working men's library and institute. The workers of the Park and the Dare Collieries funded the building by a donating a penny from each pound of their wages.Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council Cultural Services department
/ref> It was a place where the miners could meet and socialise and featured a bar and a library. In the early twentieth century work began on the Parc and Dare Hall, adding a large

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

, initially to be used as a

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a comp ...

venue. In 1913 the theatre was completed, the external style of the building being influenced by the contemporary

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

of Welsh Nonconformist chapels. Due to the declining popularity of theatre and the emergence of

cinema Cinema may refer to: Film * Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography * Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image ** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking ...

, by 1920 a cinema screen was installed. In 1930, the first '

talkie A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades passed before ...

' picture to be screened was ''

The Broadway Melody ''The Broadway Melody'', also known as ''The Broadway Melody of 1929'', is a 1929 American pre-Code musical film and the first sound film to win an Academy Award for Best Picture. It was one of the first musicals to feature a Technicolor seque ...

,'' and people flocked from miles around to hear this innovation. In 1975, the theatre was in such a state of disrepair that its closure was inevitable. The Parc & Dare Workmen's Institute Committee, faced with this daunting possibility, donated the building to the then Rhondda Borough Council. Today the Parc and Dare is still used as a functioning theatre and cinema. Most theatre productions tend to be locally produced, for example by The Rhondda Theatre Group, but the venue is also used by touring musicians and comedians. Over the years it has been graced by the biggest stars in show business including the likes of

Max Boyce Maxwell Boyce, (born 27 September 1943) is a Welsh comedian, singer and entertainer. He rose to fame in the mid-1970s with an act that combined musical comedy with his passion for rugby union and his origins in a South Wales mining community ...

Ken Dodd Sir Kenneth Arthur Dodd (8 November 1927 – 11 March 2018) was an English comedian, singer and occasional actor. He was described as "the last great music hall entertainer", and was primarily known for his live stand-up performances. A lifel ...

and the

Kinks The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, north London, in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhythm ...

Ray Davies Sir Raymond Douglas Davies ( ; born 21 June 1944) is an English musician. He was the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, and main songwriter for the rock band the Kinks, which he led with his younger brother Dave on lead guitar and backing voc ...

. In 2007 the Parc and Dare was used in filming the theatre stage scenes in "

Daleks in Manhattan "Daleks in Manhattan" is the fourth episode of the third series of British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast on BBC One on 21 April 2007. It is part one of a two-part story. Its concluding part, "Evoluti ...

" and " Evolution of the Daleks", the fourth and fifth episodes of series 3 of the BBC's revived '' Doctor Who'' series.

Architecture and design

The former Parc and Dare Institute is now connected at various levels to the Hall and provides the rehearsal rooms, offices and public areas. The façade conceals an unexpectedly ambitious auditorium that, as with most of its kind in Wales, is at first floor level. It is a fine hall with two curved galleries, the slips of each extending to and meeting the proscenium wall. Each gallery front retains its original decorative plasterwork. The proscenium arch is attractively decorated over its entire length with plasterwork representing fruit and flowers. The Parc and Dare is still an

Edwardian The Edwardian era or Edwardian period of British history spanned the reign of King Edward VII, 1901 to 1910 and is sometimes extended to the start of the First World War. The death of Queen Victoria in January 1901 marked the end of the Victori ...

proscenium-arched theatre that acts as a venue for live performance, cinema and community events. The Parc and Dare is a Grade II* listed building and stands as the tallest building in

. The Parc and Dare Workingmen's Hall once had a clock above its entrance. The clock, on Station Road, was added around the same time as the theatre hall, but was removed in the 1970s during renovations and was never replaced.

Notes

{{coord, 51.6590, -3.5063, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Theatres in Wales Buildings and structures in Rhondda Cynon Taf Tourist attractions in Rhondda Cynon Taf Grade II* listed buildings in Rhondda Cynon Taf