Middlesbrough Theatre

Coordinates: 54°33′22″N 1°14′28″W / 54.556°N 1.241°W / 54.556; -1.241

Middlesbrough Theatre (formerly the Little Theatre) was opened by Sir John Gielgud in 1957 and was one of the first new theatres built in England after the Second World War. It is at the Avenue, Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire.

History

The history of Middlesbrough Theatre begins with the closure of the Opera house in the 1920s and its conversion to the Gaumont cinema in the 1920s.

“It was, in the main, the Opera House which provided the town and district with drama and opera, and it was a tragedy far surpassing any that appeared on its stage when the decision was made to close it down. Middlesbrough could not merely travel to Stockton to satisfy its longing for the drama, for much the same process had been busy there and the closing of the Opera House bereaved a vast area with a massive population of all opportunity for participating in one of the oldest arts of mankind. As the Middlesbrough Opera House lay dying, Miss Leah Bateman of the Macdona Players gave advice as follows: “Keep the legitimate stage alive in your town by every means in your power. The stage is not yet dead, it is temporarily submerged by a wave of celluloid from the west. With the help of good, well-managed amateur societies the torch can be kept burning until such time as the theatre will once more take its rightful place in a society of thinking people.” (from the programme for “Our Town” 1948).

In response, representatives from over forty dramatic societies met in 1923 to consider forming a company to keep live theatre active in the area.

As a result, a town’s meeting was held on February 5, 1930 and a large committee elected which met for the first time on April 24. From these members, 10 were chosen to be the first committee of Middlesbrough Little Theatre.

The most recent step in the theatre’s history came on 17 July 1996, when, following a feasibility study by Richard Bell, a recommendation was made to change its name to Middlesbrough Theatre, not least because, with 484 seats and a stage 70’ wide by 40’ deep, it isn’t that little! Today, the theatre continues as a charitable trust, with Middlesbrough Council as sole trustees and is managed by Culture and Tourism.

50th birthday

Middlesbrough Theatre celebrated their 50th Golden Anniversary on the 21st October 2007, a Golden Anniversary Gala Concert was held and a souvenir programme was produced.

Toft House

Toft House is the main base for the amateur company Middlesbrough Little Theatre Ltd, who, built Middlesbrough Theatre, from the late 70's MLT Ltd. ceased running the theatre. Toft House facilitates the companies rehearsals for their productions and houses a theatre bar for paying members.

Middlesbrough Youth Theatre

Middlesbrough Youth Theatre is an umbrella company consisting of Middlesbrough Junior Theatre, earlier known as MLT Juniors (aged 11–16), together with a 'Kidstage' group of 7-10 year olds, and an older 'Youth Theatre' of 17-25 year olds.

The company performs in Middlesbrough Theatre, and has run for many years with many of its members continuing to work in drama and the performing arts. The group is a member of the National Association of Youth Theatres (NAYT). The company has also taken part in the Edinburgh Fringe, and is a regular at the Middlesbrough Youth Drama Festival.

The company has recently celebrated its 15th anniversary, and is noted as one of the largest voluntarily-run youth theatres in the country.

Other notable buildings

Middlesbrough Town Hall, designed by George Gordon Hoskins and built between 1883 and 1887 is a Grade II listed building, and a very imposing structure. Of comparable grandeur alongside these municipal buildings is the erstwhile Empire Palace of Varieties of 1897, the finest surviving theatre edifice designed by Ernest Runtz in the UK. The first artist to star there in its guise as a music hall was Lillie Langtry. Later it became an early nightclub (1950s), then a bingo hall and is now once again a nightclub in the form of 'The Empire'. It has recently, as of 2005, had the missing ornate glass and steel over-canopy to the front entrance fully restored. It works closely with the Middlesbrough Theatre to promote and buy tickets to both venues shows as well as the Hexagon Theatre.