Market Theatre (Ledbury)

The Market Theatre (Ledbury) is in Ledbury, Herefordshire, UK. It is believed to be the first theatre in the world to open in the new millennium.

History

The building originally on this site was a hall built in about 1910, called The Church Room. It was a typical 'tin tabernacle' of that era, constructed from wood and clad in corrugated steel. The interior was lined throughout with tongue and grooved planking. The building was adopted by Ledbury Amateur Dramatic Society (LADS), a registered Charity^[1], in the early 1950s. During this period very little changed to the structure of the building except for raking of the auditorium and fixed seating being installed, this having been salvaged from the closure of the local cinema in the early 1960s.

Following the demolition in 1963 (the last show was in 1961) of the Kemble Theatre in Hereford ^[2][3], this little building was the only theatre left in Herefordshire until 1979, when the Nell Gwynne Theatre, converted from the old swimming baths in Edgar Street, gave the city of Hereford back its own theatre.

LADS changed the name to The Market Theatre in the 1970s: the building was located on the other side of Market Street from the then livestock market. (Market Street runs between New Street and Bye Street, but is closed to motor traffic at the New Street end.) The livestock market closed in 2000 and the Ledbury Community Hospital has since been built on that site.

In 1986 a fire broke out at the rear of the theatre, which affected the backstage areas.

The New Market Theatre

In 1999, LADS obtained grants and raised sufficient funds to replace the building with a purpose-built theatre. Just after the site had been handed over to the demolition contractor, in February 1999, a second fire destroyed the entire structure. LADS wonders if it might have been their old poltergeist refusing to be upstaged and wanting to go out in style!

The keys to the new theatre were handed to LADS patron, Richard Briers, in November 1999. The building was fitted out internally by LADS and was opened in January 2000 by Spencer Lane, Ledbury's Mayor at the time.

The theatre building won Ledbury's annual Design Awards competition ^[4] for the best contribution to the town's built environment during 1999. It is a member of The Little Theatre Guild of Great Britain.^[5]

Facilities

The theatre seats 128 in 8 rows with a staggered layout. It has a bar, toilets and foyer area for the audience, which were lacking in the old building. The stage is approximately 7.5 metres by 8 metres. There are two dressing rooms, a costume store and a small workshop backstage. A cinema screen and DVD projection system (with Dolby Digital 5-channel sound) were installed in 2002. This was upgraded to full High Definition (1080p), complete with Dolby Surround 7.1 sound, in 2011. Just over 40 years since the town's cinema closed, films were again being shown on a regular basis in Ledbury.

Notes and references

1. ^ Charity Commission - Ledbury Amateur Dramatic Society
2. ^ Herefordshire Through Time - Herefordshire Council
3. ^ Hereford Musical Theatre Company - Hereford's Theatres
4. ^ Hereford Times - 5th May 2000
5. ^ Little Theatre Guild - Market Theatre

External links

• The Market Theatre

Coordinates: 52°02′10″N 2°25′32″W / 52.0360°N 2.4256°W / 52.0360; -2.4256