News / Arts
Old Vic begins next stage of transformation
Visitors to the Bristol Old Vic are being directed to a temporary new entrance, box office and backstage bar as work begins on a major, £12.5m redevelopment of the front-of-house space, set to be completed by 2018. It’s part of an overall £25m refurbishment that began with the auditorium refurb in 2012.
Open-as-usual while the building work is carried out, theatre goers will enter for performances through the actors’ side entrance by Unite Students on Queen Charlotte Street, and be able to enjoy pre-show and interval drinks in the prop shop that has been transformed into an arty, industrial looking bar for the duration of the works. Number 16 King Street, just opposite Renato’s, will house the theatre’s day time Box Office during the build.
is needed now More than ever
Hoarding up in King Street conceals building works that are to transform the space into an international heritage destination, a glass-fronted entrance foyer uncovering the original theatre walls to the street, and renovated Coopers’ Hall alongside bringing a new, contemporary events space, studio theatre and restaurant/bar.
“We’ve been thinking for a long time about how best to use this space that people often don’t know is here to our best advantage,” said chief executive of Bristol Old Vic Emma Stenning. “Then it was pretty obvious that we’d turn it into a bar and we can keep the theatre going throughout the refurbishment.
“By 2018, coming to Bristol Old Vic will be a very different experience. It’s about letting the historic spaces really shine. At the moment the theatre spaces are very hidden and Coopers’ Hall – that big palladian building on the street – is just an entrance and a weird stair case.”
When complete, she hopes that “the combination of historic and new architecture will provide visitors with a terrific welcome throughout the day, with fantastic facilities for the whole of Bristol to enjoy”.
Main image – Jon Craig
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