North West

First phase of Royal Court Theatre refurbishment is complete

Nobles Construction has completed the first phase of a £10.6 million project to refurbish Liverpool’s Royal Court Theatre.

The project began onsite in February 2012 and saw the complete redecoration of the 15-metre high auditorium. Cabaret-style seating has been remodeled, whilst lighting has been improved and new seating has been installed in the Grand Circle. Visitors will now be able to use the new bar and toilet facilities, whilst further works included the installation of a permanent ramp into the stalls area in order to improve access to the theatre.

 

The first phase was made possible by a £867,800 Heritage Lottery Fund grant and more than £200,000 raised by eager theatergoers, with the theatre re-opening to the public in June 2012.

Gillian Miller, founder and chief executive of the Royal Court Liverpool Trust, commented:

“It has long been our aim to restore the theatre to its rightful place as the city’s premier performing arts destination and to create somewhere that the people of Liverpool can be truly proud of. It’s a great honour to be able to head up the campaign to renovate one of the city’s best-loved buildings.

“The colour scheme before was a real mish-mash, but this new one is simple and classical and draws attention to the stage. Downstairs is our own design of what we had before but better in terms of sightlines, and the seats in the circle and balcony are much more comfortable. We were going to simply refurbish the balcony seats, but all the mechanisms had gone so we replaced them.

“We now need to make sure we get it right for all those who are served by the building – from the older members of our community who enjoy the Royal Variety Lunch Club to the young people who take part in our annual Access All Areas project and perform on the same stage as the Trust’s patron, Dame Judi Dench, who made her acting debut at the Royal Court in 1957.”

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