The Early History of Londons Adelphi Theatre
The Early History of Londons Adelphi Theatre
The Adelphi Theatre is one of London's famous theatres. The Adelphi Theatre London goes right back to 1806, this blog looks at the very early history of the Adelphi Theatre and who helped shape it into what it is today.
Until the middle of the 16th century the Strand was an unpaved Thames-side path, bordering on one side a wider, unembanked river and on the other the gardens of grand houses. By the early 17th century those buildings had been demolished, to be replaced by smaller houses and fashionable shops; and during the 1830s the Strand's western end was remodelled by architect John Nash. But it was in the latter half of the 19th century and the early decades of the 20th that the greatest transformation took place, as a comprehensive redevelopment programme removed many of the early buildings.
Changes on a colossal scale, including the building of Shaftesbury Avenue and Charing Cross Road, altered the face of the West End, in the process providing sharp-witted entrepreneurs with an opportunity to buy or lease vacant plots upon which to build theatres. The Adelphi was not part of this rush to secure money-making sites, as the theatre, in a variety of configurations, had been in place since 1806. It was founded by John Scott, who made his fortune with his invention of a washing blue, known as Old True Blue', which he sold along with magic lanterns in his shop in the Strand. It was Scott's talented, stage-struck daughter, Jane Margaret, who encouraged her father to establish a well-appointed house' at the rear of his shop. Seats were not cheap: Scott asked 5 shillings for box seats and 3 shillings in the pit (though both prices were subsequently reduced by 1 shilling).
The theatre was such a great success that Scott enlarged the auditorium in 1813-14 by the purchase of adjacent plots of land, and built a columned portico on the Strand. In 1819 he sold the building to T. Willis Jones and the playwright J. T. G. Rodwell, and, renamed the Adelphi, it continued to prosper. The frontage was rebuilt in 1840 to the designs of Samuel Beazley, architect of the Royal Lyceum (1816; burnt down 1830) and the interior of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane (1822). Over the ensuing years the building was remodelled. In 1834 No. 18 Maiden Lane (built around 1635) had been acquired to accommodate enlargement of the stage by the owners Frederick Yates and Daniel Terry; and additional boxes were added. In 1858 another rebuilding programme produced a three-tier auditorium with a capacity of 1,400. In 1878 restaurateurs Agostino and Stefano Gatti bought the theatre lease from Benjamin Webster and F. B. Chatterton, also acquiring in 1885 the adjacent properties Nos. 409 and 410 Strand where architect Spencer Chadwick built the Adelphi Theatre Restaurant, which opened in 1887 and in 1891 No. 20 Maiden Lane, dating from c.1635; a plaque on this house records the murder by a stagehand of the famous actor William Terris on 16 December 1897. Timber Flooring Perth installers and the benefits Creepy Graveyard Ideas for Halloween Save Money on Travel Expenses with Cheap flights! Arbonne Reviews: Is This Company Any Different From The Rest? Augmented reality and the tourism industry My Journey to Meet People Washington DC Enjoy, Pass the time and Show up This Summer at Ibiza How to Get FREE Publicity OFFLINE - Get Noticed, Drive More Traffic, and Become a Local Celebrity! Motivations For Folks To Use A Phoenix CPA How To Have Breasts Like The Celebrities Ideas For a Summer Garden Landscape London's Secret Cinema's Travel Guide To Mahabaleshwar