Workington Opera House : History, Current owners, The future of the theatre, Specifications Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Workington Opera House

The Workington Opera House, or The Opera as it was known, is a purpose built theatre located in Workington, Cumbria, England. Originally built as the Queen’s Jubilee Hall & Opera House it was gutted by fire in 1927 and rebuilt with a fine wide auditorium, and Ornamental ceiling with seating for 1200. The theatre has good sightlines and a large stage and currently sits empty after its former use as a bingo hall ended in 2004.

History

The theatre was designed by T. L. Banks & Townsend and had a small auditorium with two balconies accommodating 1,130 people. The theatre was also equipped with a small stage with a proscenium width of 11 metres, a depth of 9.14 metres and a grid height of 14 metres. An orchestra pit for 16 musicians was also included.^[1]

Other names:
- Queen's Jubilee Hall
Dates:
- Opened 1888. Date of first use not known.
- 1888 - Design/Construction:
  - T.L. Banks & Townsend - Architect
- 1897-1900 - Alteration: reconstructed after explosion (architect unknown)
- 1927-1930 - Alteration: reconstructed after fire (architect unknown)
- 1963-1970 - Alteration: façade rebuilt (architect unknown)

Current owners

Graves (Cumberland) Ltd currently own the building and have planning permission for 5 years to replace the theatre with retail and residential units. Graves own many different assets across Cumbria including cinemas, bingo halls and in the past they owned and ran a number of theatres.^[2]

The future of the theatre

The Workington Opera House is now under threat of demolition to be replaced with retail units and flats.^[3] The Save Workington Opera House group are fighting to have this building made available to the town of Workington as a working civic theatre that the community can be proud of.^[4]

Specifications

Capacities:
- Original: 1,330
- After 1950: 1,219
Listings:
- Grade not listed
Stage type:
- Proscenium
Dimensions
- Stage dimensions:
  - Depth: 9.14m
  - Proscenium width: 11m
  - Height to grid: 14m
  - Orchestra pit: Original, for 16 musicians^[5]

References

^ "The Opera House, Pow Street, Workington, Cumbria". arthurlloyd.co.uk. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
^ "GRAVES (CUMBERLAND) LIMITED". Companies in the UK. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
^ "Civic trust backs plans to demolish Workington's Opera House". News and Star. Retrieved 6 April 2010.
^ "Save Workington Opera House". Workington Opera House. Retrieved 6 April 2010.
^ "Opera House (Workington)". Theatres Trust. Retrieved 2 May 2010.