Duchess Theatre - Catherine Street, London - The Pitmen Painters

Near the Strand in London. Was here to see Crazy For You at the Novello Theatre.

This is the Duchess Theatre on Catherine Street. Currently home of The Pitmen Painters.

Grade II listed.

Duchess Theatre, Westminster

1900/0/10311 CATHERINE STREET
07-JUL-05 Duchess Theatre

II

Theatre. 1928-9 to the designs of Ewen Barr for Arthur Gibbons. Interios by Marc Henri and Laverdet. Neo-Tudor style. Steel framed building clad in horizontal stone panels to street frontage; roof not seen. A low parapet runs across the entire faÎade. Three central canted bays supported on console brackets, with cast panels decorated with the Tudor Rose, portcullis, Fleur de Lys, Prince of Wales feathers and carved initials for DT set between Crittall casement windows. They are linked by a large plinth that serves as a band for carrying signage. Long canopy across the entire faÎade is raised in centre over tympanum carrying the theatre's name under crown and sunburst motif by Arnold Auerbach, and three pairs of double timber doors. Pairs of windows in bays to either side over emergency circle exits.

Interior. Main doors lead to tiny entrance hall, which retains cornice details and some timber lining; ceiling laylight obscured. Stairs to left lead down to the stalls and up to private boxes; those to right lead through small crush bar to circle. Slightly octagonal crush bar in former foyer also with laylight (disused), cornices, and with moulded plasterwork to walls. Octagonal motif repeated in wall mirror. Stalls corridors lined in stippled plasterwork, foyer area with fluted cornice and laylights complete with grid of metal kames. Tall, narrow, double-height auditorium with single balcony. Ceiling with saucer dome and dentil frieze; private boxes at the rear (an unusual feature), those to left accessed only from the separate stair. Side walls with lattice window motif either side of tripartite recess set behind fluted baseless piers in antis over side exits. The recesses originally had low reliefs by Arnold Auerbach. Balustrade and seat ends survive from 1929. The stalls simpler, but with lattice-patterned laylights under the balcony. The anteproscenium has bronze relief decorative panels to either side of stage, now normally concealed, by Maurice Lambert, added at the behest of Mary Wyndham Lewis, wife of J B Priestley. The narrow stage reflects the limited space and the specialism in domestic drama for which it was devised.

The Duchess Theatre compares well with other London theatres of the years around 1930 already listed grade II, and is of a style not found or which does not survive outside the capital. It is relatively little altered, with most of its original decoration inside and out surviving, and testifying to the expertise of Henri and Laverdet, specialists in theatre decoration. The panels by Maurice Lambert are of particularly good quality, but it is as an ensemble that the Duchess succeeds, rather like the Cambridge (LB Camden) and Whitehall (City of Westminster), both of 1930 and listed grade II. The planning of this theatre, with all its exits having to be on a single facade is a surprising and remarkable achievement of clarity and concision.

Sources
Architect and Building News, 29 November 1929
The Builder, 29 November 1929
Architecture Illustrated, June 1931
Survey of London, vol. XXXVI, the Parish of St Paul, Covent Garden, 1970
The Theatres Trust, Guide to British Theatres 1750-1950, 2000

Some rights reserved

Taken in: United Kingdom / England / London / The Aldwych (show map)

Taken on: November 26, 2011

Tags:

london

greater london

united kingdom

great britain

city of westminster

london theatreland

the west end

night shots

strand

drury lane

drury lane, london

duchess theatre

the pitmen painters

grade ii listed

Grade II listed building

theatre

ewen barr

arthur gibbons

marc henri and laverdet

aldwych « less

Sets appears in: • London Theatreland • London night shots

Groups appears in: • Opera Houses & Theatres • Nightshots more » • Theater Buildings • London: Dusk 'till Dawn • Flickr Friends of The Twentieth Century Society • London's West End Theatres • London Theatre Breaks - Theatres in London • *Central London* • London Lovers « less

Camera: Fujifilm FinePix S1500, f/2.8, 1/50 sec, 5.9mm, ISO 800 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Fujifilm FinePix S1500
Aperture:	f/2.8
Exposure Time:	0.02 sec (1/50)
Focal Length:	5.9mm
ISO:	800
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Program AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Digital Camera FinePix S1500 Ver1.01
Show full info

Stats: 13,366 views

go back

Link to this photo view:
Link to this photo large view: