The Old Repertory Theatre

The Old Repertory Theatre is a theatre dating from 1912-13, designed by S.N. Cooke for Sir Barry Jackson, with a smaller extension by the same architect in 1920. Constructed in red brick with stone dressings and a parapeted roof, it is built in an austere classical style. The building is four storeys high. The ground floor has a pair of 20th-century glazed doors with pillars, alongside a pair of original double doors to the far left and right. Above this is a Greek key pattern frieze supporting a projecting glass and iron canopy. A wide quilloche frieze forms a base for four tall Ionic pilasters, slightly recessed and with only the outer ones half revealed. Between the pilasters are three windows with architraves and pediments, and three smaller windows above. Brick walling with two small windows flanks the front. The entire facade supports an entablature with four wreaths in the frieze, a dentilled cornice, and a further storey above featuring two panels to the sides and a Chinese fretwork balustrade in the centre, with a polygonal extension set behind. The rear elevation, facing Hinckley Street, has a tall fly tower with three blank arches and a three-window range of 16-pane horned sash windows on the three upper floors. Various doors, double doors, and windows are found below.

The interior features a foyer in an austere classical style, with some modifications from the 1960s, retaining marble-faced piers, framed panels, and a modillioned cornice. Marble-faced stairs with a two-tone marble dado and a marble balustrade lead to the stalls foyer, which also has a marble dado and further mouldings with a modillion cornice. The auditorium has a slightly curving balcony, a cross-beamed ceiling with plaster enrichments, and an austere classical proscenium arch.

The theatre was built at a cost of £17,000, constructed by day and night shifts in just four months. Sir Barry Jackson used his private fortune to provide high-quality theatre in simple surroundings. It was the first purpose-built repertory theatre in the country, and in 1923, Shaw’s ‘Back to Methuselah’ was premiered here. Numerous famous actors and actresses were members of, or appeared at, the theatre.