Building Name

Comedy Theatre Manchester

Date
1883 - 1884
Street
Peter Street
District/Town
Central, Manchester
County/Country
GMCA, England
Client
Edward Garcia
Work
New Build
Status
Demolished
Contractor
Robert Neill and Sons

 

A NEW theatre, which is to be called " The Comedy," is being built in Manchester for Mr. Edward Garcia. It is situated in Peter-street, nearly opposite the Theatre Royal, and the principal façade, 105 feet in length, and main entrances will be towards Peter-street, the gallery and stage entrances being in Bootle-street. The site is an excellent one, being adjacent to Albert Square, immediately opposite the Central Station, and within a few minutes' walk of the Oxford Road Station. The building is arranged and divided longitudinally into three parts. The front portion contains the entrances and exits, the foyer, retiring and refreshment rooms; the centre portion is occupied by the auditorium, and the back part is devoted to the stage and its appliances. The adjacent property on the western boundary has been secured by Mr. Garcia, in which will be placed the dressing-rooms, property-rooms, and the paint-room, all of which will be approached directly from the street, but conveniently connected with the stage. The means of ingress and egress have had the most careful consideration of the architect, and have been arranged in consultation with the city surveyor, who has devoted much thought to the protection of the public in case of panic in buildings which come under his juris diction as an officer of the corporation of Manchester. All public staircases are 5 feet wide, 12 inches tread, and 6.5 inches rise; they are constructed of solid concrete resting on iron supports, and without "winders" or other dangerous expedients. Every part of the auditorium is provided with an exit staircase at the opposite side of the house from the entrance staircase and leading direct into Peter-street. The pit is placed below the ground level, thus enabling the occupants of the dress circle to enter the foyer on a level with the entrance, which is raised one step above the level of Peter-street. All parts of the house are provided with cloakrooms and the necessary conveniences. The seating accommodation will be as nearly as possible as follows: — Stalls, 70 seats; pit, 667; dress circle, 200; upper circle, 264; gallery, 710; making a total of 1,920 seats, which, with standing accommodation, would realise an audience capacity of about 2,500 persons.

 

The exterior design of the building is Venetian Gothic The façade is faced with red brick, and strings, corbellings, oversails, and pointed arches are executed in terra-cotta from Mr. Edwards's works at Ruabon; and the labels, columns, balcony, &c, are in Halifax stone. The interior is carried out in keeping with the style of the exterior ; the circle tier will have a front of fibrous plaster, consisting of a small arcading filled in with gold and conventional flower decoration in colour; the other tiers are simpler in character, but the upper circle tier will have at intervals shields emblazoned with the arms of Lancashire corporate towns. The proscenium will be finished with a deeply moulded architrave, forming a sort of frame to the stage pictures. Above the proscenium will be a recessed arcade formed by three Gothic-headed panels, columns, and archivolts. In the centre compartment will be a seated figure typical of the Drama, those on the right and left being filled respectively with figures symbolic of Music and Painting. These figures will be flat and decorative in character, and in the style of the proscenium frieze executed for the Prince's Theatre by H. Stacy Marks, R.A. The proprietor has determined to furnish and appoint the theatre in the best style, and in keeping with the general character of the building, and in harmony with the scheme of colour decoration. The stage is being laid with due attention to simple but efficient working, and will accommodate any kind of production that may come within the manager's programme. The theatre will be lighted both by the electric light and gas jets, all thoroughly under control, the stage lighting being kept entirely distinct from the lighting of the front of the house.The building is now rapidly approaching completion, and will soon be handed over to the decorative artists, who will finish their work in time for a Christmas opening. The architect is Mr. Alfred Darbyshire, F.R.I.B.A., who for many years was associated with Mr. Calvert and Mr. Browne in the decorations and alterations at the Prince's Theatre, Manchester, and more recently with Mr. Irving, at the Lyceum, London. The contractors for the entire works are Messrs. R. Neill & Sons, the Government contractors, of Manchester. [British Architect 22 August 1884 page 95]

 

TRE COMEDY THEATRE, MANCHESTER - The new theatre which is to be called “The Comedy,” now erecting in Manchester for Mr. Edward Garcia, is situated in Peter-street, nearly opposite the Theatre Royal. The principal facade, 105 feet in length, and main entrances, will be towards Peter-street, the gallery and stage entrances being in Bootle-street. The new theatre will be adjacent to Albert square,immediately opposite the Central Station, and within a few minutes’ walk of the Oxford-road Station. The building is arranged and divided longitudinally into three parts. The front portion contains the entrances and exits, the foyer, retiring and refreshment rooms; the centre portion is occupied by the auditorium, and the back part is devoted to the stage and its appliances; the adjacent property on the western boundary has been secured by Mr. Garcia, in which will be placed the dressing rooms, property rooms, and the paint room, all of which will be approached directly from the street, but conveniently connected with the stage. The means of ingress and egress have, we are informed, had the most careful consideration of the architect, and have been arranged in consultation with the City Surveyor. All public staircases are 5 ft. wide, 13 in. tread, and 6.5 in. rise; they are constructed of solid concrete resting on iron supports, and without “ winders.” The seating accommodation will be as near as possible as follows Stalls, 70 seats; pit, 667; dress circle, 200; upper circle, 264; gallery, 710; making a total of 1,930 seats, which, with standing accommodation, would realise an audience capacity of about 2,500 persons. The style adopted by the architect is “Venetian Gothic.” The facade is faced with red brick, and strings, corbellings, oversails, and pointed arches are executed in terra-cotta from Mr. Edwards’s works at Ruabon; the labels, columns, balcony, etc., are executed in Halifax stone. The proscenium will be finished with a deeply-moulded architrave, forming a sort of frame to the stage pictures. Above the proscenium will be a recessed arcade. In the centre compartment will be a seated figure typical of the Drama, those on the right and left being filled respectively with figures symbolic of Music and Painting. These figures will be flat and decorative in character, and in the style of the proscenium frieze executed for the Prince’s Theatre by Mr. H. Stacy Marks, R. A. The building has been designed, the plans prepared by, and the whole of the works, including the decorations, are being carried out under the immediate superintendence of, the architect, Mr. Alfred Darbyshire, P.I.B.A., who for many years was associated with Mr. Calvert and Mr. Browne in the decorations and alterations at the Prince's Theatre, Manchester, and more recently with Mr. Irving, at the Lyceum, London. The contractors for the entire work are Messrs R Neill and Sons of Manchester. [Builder 16 August 1884 page 245]

Situated at the corner of Peter Street and Mount Street, the theatre was capable of seating 2,000 persons and the estimated cost of the building and its furniture was about £15,000. Alfred Darbyshire had consulted with the City Surveyor, Mr Allison and with Mr Tozer, the superintendent of the fire brigade and all the suggestions made had been incorporated into the scheme. .... The exit doors were so constructed that a pressure from the inside would force them open in spite of the lock, so that in case of alarm there would be no need to stay to unfasten bolts. The entrance doors opened inwards, and would be kept bolted against the walls, but in deference to a suggestion of the magistrates, these doors had also been constructed that in the event of them being closed by accident, the pressure of the people against them would force them open. [Manchester Guardian 11 December 1884]

THE COMEDY THEATRE The new theatre, which is to be called “The Comedy” now erecting in Manchester for Mr Edward Garcia is situated in Peter Street, nearly opposite the Theatre Royal. The principal facade (165 feet in length) and main entrances will be towards Peter Street, the gallery and stage entrances being in Bootle Street. The new theatre will be adjacent to Albert Square, immediately opposite the Central Station and within a few minutes’ walk of the Oxford Road Station. The building is arranged and divided longitudinally into three parts. The front portion, contains the entrances and exits, the foyer, retiring and refreshment rooms; the centre portion is occupied by the auditorium, and the back part is devoted to the stage and its appliances; the adjacent property on the western boundary has been secured by Mr Garcia in which will be placed the dressing rooms, property rooms and the paint room, all of which will be approached directly from the street, but conveniently connected with the stage. The means of ingress and egress have had the architect=s most careful consideration, and have been arranged in consultation with the City Surveyor, who has given much thought to the protection of the public in case of panic in buildings which come under his jurisdiction as an officer of the Corporation of Manchester. All public stairways are 5 feet wide, 12 inch tread and 5 inch rise; they are constructed of solid concrete resting on iron supports, and without winders or other dangerous expedients. Every part of the auditorium is provided with an exit staircase at the opposite side of the house from the entrance staircase and leading directly into Peter Street. All parts of the house are provided with cloakrooms and the necessary conveniences. The seating accommodation will be as near as possible as follows: Stalls, 70 seats; pit, 667; dress circle, 200; upper circle, 264; gallery 710; making a total of 1,920 seats, which with standing accommodation would realise an audience capacity of about 2,500 persons. The style of architecture adopted is AVenetian Gothic.@ The theatre will be lighted both by the electric light and gas jets, all under control, the stage lighting being kept entirely distinct from the lighting of the front of house. The building has been designed by Mr Alfred Darbishire (sic) FIBA, and the whole of the works, including the decorations, are under his immediate superintendence. [Manchester Guardian 14 October 1884 page 7]

A NEW MANCHESTER THEATRE. The new theatre, which is to be called "The Comedy," now erecting in Manchester for Mr Edward Garcia, is situated in Peter-street, nearly opposite the Theatre Royal. The principal facade, 105ft. in length, and main entrances will be towards Peter-street, the gallery and stage entrances being in Bootle- street. The site is the finest and most desirable in the street, which Manchester playgoers have always associated with public entertainments and dramatic performances. The new theatre will be adjacent to Albert-square, immediately opposite the Central Station, and within a few minutes' walk of the Oxford- road Station. The building is arranged and divided longitudinally into three parts. The front portion contains the entrances and exits, the foyer, retiring and refreshment rooms - the centre portion is occupied by the auditorium, and the back part is devoted to the stage and its appliances; the adjacent property on the western boundary has been secured by Mr Garcia, in which will be placed the dressing rooms, property rooms, and the paint room, all of which will be approached directly from the street, but conveniently connected with the stage. The means of ingress and egress have had the most careful consideration of the architect, and have been arranged in consultation with the city surveyor, who has devoted much thought to the protection of the public in case of panic in buildings, which come under his jurisdiction as an officer of the corporation of Manchester. All the public staircases are 5 feet wide, 12 inches tread, and 6.5 inches rise; they are constructed of solid concrete resting on iron supports, and without "winders" or other dangerous expedients. Every part of the auditorium is provided with an exit staircase at the opposite side of the house from the entrance staircase and leading direct into Peter-street. An interesting feature in the planning of this theatre, is the placing of the pit below time ground level, and thus enabling the occupants of the dress- circle to enter the foyer on a level with the entrance, which is raised one step above the level of Peter-street. All parts of the house are provided with cloak-rooms and the necessary conveniences. The seating accommodation will be as near as possible as follows:-Stalls, 70 seats; pit, 667; dress-circle, 200; upper circle, 264; gallery, 710; making a total of 1,920 seats, which, with standing accommodation, would realise an audience capacity of about 2,500 persons. A new departure has been made in the style and design of the building, the architect having decided to adopt that phase of Gothic architecture only to be found in Venice, or, in other words, the theatre is being carried out in ''Venetian Gothic." The facade is faced with red brick, and strings, corbelling, oversails and pointed arches are executed in the beautiful terra-cotta from Mr Edwards's works at Ruabon; the labels, columns, balcony, etc., are executed in Halifax stone, which forms a pleasing contrast to the red brick facing. The interior is carried out in keeping with the style of the exterior; the circle tier will have a handsome front of fibrous plaster, consisting of a small arcading filled in with gold and conventional flower decoration in colour; the other tiers are simpler in character, but the upper circle tier will have at intervals shields emblazoned with the arms of Lancashire corporate towns. The proscenium will be finished with a deeply moulded architrave, forming a sort of frame to the stage pictures. Above the proscenium will be a recessed arcade formed by three Gothic-headed panels, columns, and archivoets. In the centre compartment will be a seated figure typical of the Drama, those on the right and left being filled respectively with figures symbolic of Music and Painting. These figures will he flat and decorative in character, and in the style of the proscenium frieze executed for the Prince's Theatre by H. Stacy Marks, R.A. The proprietor has determined to furnish and appoint the theatre in the best style, and in keeping with the general character of the building, and in harmony with the scheme of colour decoration. The stage is being laid with due attention to simple but efficient working, and will accommodate any kind of production that may come within the manager's programme. The theatre will be lighted both by the electric light and gas jets, all thoroughly tnder control, the stage lighting being kept entirely distinct from the lighting of the front of the house. The building is now rapidly approaching completion, and will soon be handed over to the decorative artists, who will finish their work in time for a Christmas opening. The building has been designed, the plans prepared by, and the whole of the works, including the decorations, are being carried out under the immediate superintendence of the architect, Mr Alfred Darbyshire, FRIBA., who for many years was associated with Mr Calvert and Mr Browne in the decorations and alterations at the Prince's Theatre, Manchester, and more recently with Mr Irving, at the Lyceum, London. The contractors for the entire work are Messrs R. Neill and Sons, the Government contractors, of Manchester. [The Era 9 August 1884 page 9]

THE COMEDY THEATRE - The new theatre in Peter Street, to be known as the Comedy Theatre, is now out of the builders’ hands, and the decorator and others are putting their last touches on it. It is indeed in such a complete state that the Manchester Amateur Dramatic Society were able last night, without any particular inconvenience, to produce a comedy. Mr Garcia opens the theatre on Monday. Externally it does not make much show. Though it has a front to Peter Street of over 100 feet, one gets from the outside an inadequate idea of the interior space. This is mainly because the theatre goes considerably below the street level; the street runs along the theatre on a level with the dress circle. It is an extremely handsome interior. The stage is in comfortable view from every point in the house. Even the remote “gods” will see and probably hear well. The auditorium is in the shape of a half-circle, and seems in every way well arranged. It is divided into pit, dress circle, upper circle and gallery, the seating capacity of the house being about 2,000. The pit, which is to hold about 700, is a very comfortable part of the house, and it is to be “chaired” throughout. There are only 70 stalls. The dress circle and the upper circle are each to hold 300. The decoration of the theatre has been done with great taste. The main body of colour is old gold. It is relieved with cream colour and a thin element of red. A great deal of attention has been given to the small details of the theatre. The entrances and exits have been carefully looked to by Mr Allison, the city surveyor, while Mr Tozer, the superintendent of the fire brigade, has been consulted as to the precautions against fire. The electric light has been fitted up along with the gas and the illumination is mainly to be done by the former. Even the stage is to have the electric light. A handsome crush-room is provided on the level of the dress circle. An unusually large amount of space has been devoted to the stage people. There are about twenty dressing rooms, averaging 20 feet by 15 feet. The theatre has been built by Messrs R Neill and Sons from designs by Mr Alfred Derbyshire. [Manchester Guardian 20 December 1884, page 5]

Reference    The Era 9 August 1884 page 9
Reference    Manchester Guardian 14 October 1884 page 7
Reference    Manchester Guardian 11 December 1884 - application for licence
Reference    Manchester Guardian 20 December 1884, page 5 – opening
Reference    The Builder, v47 16 August 1884, page 245
Reference    British Architect 22 August 1884 page 95