Intimate Theatre
The Intimate Theatre was a repertory theatre in Palmers Green, London from 1937 to 1987, and is the name commonly used for St. Monica's Church Hall.
History
[edit]St. Monica's Church Hall was built in 1931, and the actor John Clements turned the building into the Intimate Theatre in 1935.[1] It became a full-time professional repertory theatre in 1937.[2]
After he was demobbed, Roger Moore was a member of the repertory company, and earned about £10 per week.[3] In the late 1940s, the BBC televised 14 plays from the theatre.
During the 1960s, the repertory company put on a new play each week,[4] although Max Rietmann's Hot and Cold in all Rooms played to a capacity audience for three weeks in 1962.[5]
In March 1968, David Bowie acted the role of Cloud in Lindsay Kemp's Pierrot In Turquoise at the theatre.[6]
In August 1968 Richard Todd starred in Man with a Load of Mischief with Dilys Laye.[7]
In 1969, the building reverted for a short time to its use as a church hall before returning to its use as a theatre.[8]
In 1987, the usage as a theatre was reduced to allow the church to hold other events.[9]
Current use
[edit]It has a current capacity of 435 Today (2012) the theatre was used by Protos Theatre & Arts Group, The London Pantomimers,[10] Acorn Theatre Company,[11] Saint Monica's Players,[12] and other amateur drama groups. It is located on Green Lanes.[2] In January 2019, it was placed on the Heritage at Risk Register after the church owners said they wanted to demolish the building to replace it with a new parish hall.[13]
Building scheduled for demolition
[edit]On 8 March, Enfield Council's Planning Committee voted unanimously to grant planning permission to the redevelopment scheme.[14]
References
[edit]- ^ Chambers, Colin (2006). "Continuum Companion to Twentieth Century Theatre". p.165. Continuum International Publishing Group. Retrieved 31 March 2011.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "Intimate (London)". Theatres Database. The Theatres Trust. Retrieved 31 March 2011.
- ^ Moore, Roger. "Roger Moore from 1972 - page 4". Roger Moore - The Early Days. The Roger Moore Web Team. Retrieved 31 March 2011.
- ^ Shellard, Dominic (4 September 2006). "Interview with Stephen Wischhusen". Theatre Archive Project. British Library. Retrieved 31 March 2011.
- ^ Wischhusen, Stephen (6 September 2006). "Comment". Conference 'More Than Just Osborne?' 5 September 2006, 18.30-21.00. Theatre Archive Project. Retrieved 31 March 2011.
- ^ Kinder, P. "1958-1969 Concert Performances". Tours. BowieWonderworld. Retrieved 31 March 2011.
- ^ Man with a Load of Mischief, production details: West End Broadway: The Golden Age of the American Musical in London By Adrian Wright 2012
- ^ T F T Baker, R B Pugh (Editors), A P Baggs, Diane K Bolton, Eileen P Scarff, G C Tyack (1976). "Edmonton: Social life". A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 5: Hendon, Kingsbury, Great Stanmore, Little Stanmore, Edmonton Enfield, Monken Hadley, South Mimms, Tottenham. British History Online. Retrieved 31 March 2011.
{{cite web}}:|last=has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "A Brief History of Risley Musical Theatre Company (Formerly Risley Operatic Group)". Risley Musical Theatre Company. Archived from the original on 4 March 2011. Retrieved 31 March 2011.
- ^ The London Pantomimers Archived 2012-08-14 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 29 May 2012
- ^ Acorn Theatre Company Retrieved 29 May 2012
- ^ St Monica's players Archived 2011-10-07 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 10 May 2011
- ^ Dex, Robert (22 January 2019). "The Intimate Theatre: Venue where Richard Attenborough made stage debut placed on 'at risk' list". Evening Standard.
- ^ "The Intimate Theatre: Planning permission approved for Theatre at Risk Intimate Theatre".
Further reading
[edit]- Intimate Memories: The History of the Intimate Theatre, Palmers Green by Geoff Bowden, Badger Press, 2006 ISBN 978-0-9526076-3-2
