Haymarket Theatre (Leicester)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Leicester Haymarket Theatre is a
theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...
in
Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...
,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, next to the
Haymarket Shopping Centre The Haymarket Shopping Centre is a shopping centre in the Leicester City Centre, city centre of Leicester, England. It was opened on 4 June 1973 as part of the Haymarket Centre and was the country's second shopping centre after the Bull Ring, ...
on Belgrave Gate in Leicester City centre.


History

The Haymarket Theatre was opened by Sir Ralph Richardson and the opening season started with ''
The Recruiting Officer ''The Recruiting Officer'' is a 1706 play by the Irish writer George Farquhar, which follows the social and sexual exploits of two English Army officers, the womanising Plume and the cowardly Brazen, in the town of Shrewsbury (the town where ...
'' on 17 October 1973, ''Economic Necessity'' on 24 October and ''
Cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...
'' on 21 November.
Leicester City Council Leicester City Council is the local authority for the city of Leicester, in the ceremonial county of Leicestershire, England. Leicester has had a council from medieval times, which has been reformed on numerous occasions. Since 1997 the council ...
purchased a 99-year lease of the theatre in 1974. Between 1974 and 2007 the theatre was operated by The Leicester Theatre Trust. The trust vacated the theatre in 2007 when it moved to the newly built Curve Theatre, Leicester in Leicester's Cultural Quarter. The last show held at the Haymarket by the Leicester Theatre Trust was '' Wizard of Oz'' starring Helena Blackman and Ceri Dupree in 2006. The theatre was closed in 2007 and remained so for the next 10 years. In June 2016 the management of the theatre was taken over by an organisation known as the Haymarket Consortium who undertook that it would be re-opened as a performance, training and
e-sports Esports (), short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, played individually or as teams. ...
venue. The theatre was re-opened for performances on 2 March 2017 and a formal opening ceremony took place later that year. The theatre closed again in March 2020, during the Coronavirus pandemic and entered liquidation on 22 May 2020. In 2023 it reopened as a teaching and performing base for a dance school.


Metal Tree sculpture

The ''Metal Tree'' sculpture by Hubert Dalwood, at the front of the entrance to the Haymarket Theatre, was the only major piece of abstract sculpture in the city centre for many years. It was unveiled in 1974.


Notable productions

* '' Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' in 1974 directed by Robin Midgley and featuring Maynard Williams as Joseph * ''
Oliver! ''Oliver!'' is a stage musical, with book, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the 1838 novel ''Oliver Twist'' by Charles Dickens. It premiered at the Wimbledon Theatre, southwest London in 1960 before opening in the W ...
'' in 1977 directed by Robin Midgley and featuring Roy Hudd * '' The Ghost of Daniel Lambert'' in 1981 written by Sue Townsend and starred Leicester actor Perry Cree * ''
Me and My Girl ''Me and My Girl'' is a musical with music by Noel Gay and its original book and lyrics by Douglas Furber and L. Arthur Rose. The story, set in the late 1930s, tells of an unapologetically unrefined Cockney gentleman named Bill Snibson, wh ...
'' in 1984 directed by Mike Ockrent and featuring Robert Lindsay,
Emma Thompson Dame Emma Thompson (born 15 April 1959) is a British actress and screenwriter. Emma Thompson on screen and stage, Her work spans over four decades of screen and stage, and List of awards and nominations received by Emma Thompson, her accola ...
, and
Frank Thornton Frank Thornton Ball (15 January 192116 March 2013), professionally known as Frank Thornton, was an English actor. He was best known for playing Captain Peacock in the TV sitcom ''Are You Being Served?'' and its sequel '' Grace & Favour'' (''A ...
* ''
Macbeth ''The Tragedy of Macbeth'', often shortened to ''Macbeth'' (), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambiti ...
'' in 1984 directed by Nancy Meckler and featuring Bernard Hill and
Julie Walters Dame Julia Mary Walters (born 22 February 1950), known professionally as Julie Walters, is an English actress. She is the recipient of four British Academy Television Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, two International Emmy Awards, a Go ...
* '' M Butterfly'' in 1989 directed by John Dexter and featuring Sir Anthony Hopkins * '' Murders in the Rue Morgue'' in 1989 directed by Simon Usher


Image gallery

File:Leicester Haymarket Theatre exterior.jpg, Red-brick exterior to the theatre File:Leicester Haymarket Theatre interior.jpg, Foyer area demonstrating Brutailst architecture File:Leicester Haymarket Theatre auditorium.jpg, The main auditorium has 901 seats File:Leicester Haymarket Theatre stage.jpg, alt=The main stage is the largest in England, The main stage is the largest in England File:Leicester Haymarket Theatre Metal Tree Sculpture.png, ''Metal Tree'' sculpture


See also

* Curve (theatre) * Little Theatre (Leicester) *
Sue Townsend Theatre Sue Townsend Theatre (formerly the Phoenix Theatre, Phoenix Arts Centre and the Upper Brown Street Theatre) is a theatre in the city of Leicester, England. The centre hosts live shows and films of the arthouse and world cinema genres. Julian ...
* De Montfort Hall


References

Theatres in Leicester Culture in Leicestershire {{UK-theat-struct-stub