January 2007
Goodbye Theatre Museum
Monday, January 01, 2007 by Mark Thorburn

With thanks to The Stage for information herewith.

STATUS OF THE V&A THEATRE MUSEUM

The Covent Garden premises will close to the general public on 7 January, 2007

The Museum will continue to run its usual education workshops and other activities for groups at its Covent Garden site until August 2007. (tmgroups@vam.ac.uk for information and bookings)

The Museum’s collections will be maintained as usual at the V&A Collections Centre at Blythe Road, W14 (tube: Olympia), where research facilities are provided. (tmenquiries@vam.ac.uk for appointments)

The Theatre Museum will continue to fulfil its remit as the national collection of the performing arts and to seek acquisitions and donations to enhance the collections, which are of international importance.

The V&A will be developing a new performance display at South Kensington and the Theatre Museum will also be ensuring greater access to the collections (including the National Video Archive of Performance) through national touring exhibitions, on-line publications and digital projects, and maintenance of research facilities.

For general information relating to the Theatre Museum’s operations, contact 020 7943 4700

An independent Theatre Museum, divorced from parent institution the Victoria and Albert Museum. A permanent gallery for theatrical exhibitions buried in the V&A, but this would not be in place before the end of 2009, one-off exhibitions in Kensington, as well as touring material are all possibilities. And now Blackpool has launched a surprise bid to become the new home. All are alternatives to the closure of the Theatre Museum in the heart of Theatreland in London, the Theatre Capital of the world. It shouldn’t be possible, but these, and no doubt other alternatives, will and are being discussed, it appears.

Vanessa Redgrave called on the minister for museums to step in and halt the closure, “The Theatre Museum does not and cannot belong to the V&A to dispose of as they see fit. It should immediately join into partnership with those of us who perform, so that even the paltry funding that they have to dispose of can be added to by performers who will set about raising funds.”

A question mark remains over the future of the Theatre Museum’s research collection housed at the V&A’s Blythe House reading rooms, where they would need to examine “how the archive is managed… to allow maximum accessibility and access to those who use it most”.

Peter Hall has added his voice to those opposing the closure, “When I think of the money spent on the Dome and various other government initiatives that have cost a fortune and come to nothing, I begin to feel we are fast becoming a land of missed opportunities as far as our cultural heritage is concerned. Our theatre is the envy of the world and the Government and the Department of Culture should be fighting to keep the Museum open, not seeking ways to reduce its importance and stature.”

THEATRE MUSEUM OPENS

A Report by Roy Stacey (edited from June 1987 edition of Amateur Stage)

At last! The Theatre Museum exists, not merely as a stored collection, but as a space, housed and on public display in the heart of theatreland. It was officially opened by Princess Margaret on Shakespeare’s birthday, 23rd April, 1987, and is housed in part of the former Covent Garden flower market, in the block bounded by Tavistock, Wellington and Russell Streets.

There are, of course, many other libraries and archives, which have collections of theatrical material, but now in the capital we have a specialist museum devoted to all the live theatre arts, which will undoubtedly be a mecca for theatregoers from all over this country and the world, when visiting London.

Inevitably, it has had a very chequered history, fully recorded in Jean Scott Rogers’ book, Stage by Stage : The Making of the Theatre Museum (published by the Stationary Office in 1985), a longer gestation period, in fact, than the National Theatre! Edward Alleyn in the 16th century and David Garrick and others in the 18th made efforts to preserve theatrical material for posterity, and before the First World War The Stage published a letter from Ellen Terry advocating the setting up of such a museum. In 1950 the British Drama League (under director Martin Browne), the Arts Council, the Society for Theatre Research, and Westminster and St. Pancras Public Libraries held a meeting to consider the setting up of a theatre research centre and library, but nothing came of this. It was in 1955 that the Society for Theatre Research organised the first-ever Conference of International Theatre History in London, which finally triggered off positive and practical steps towards the establishment of the present Theatre Museum. On 30th January, 1984 worked commenced on the conversion of the skeleton of the old flower market, but even as late as 1985, in an orgy of cost-cutting, the Government put a stop to further work and announced the abandonment of the project. Fortunately, widespread protest caused a change of heart and work was resumed, but it is likely that without a rescue donation of £349,000 from the Rayne Foundation, the Theatre Museum would have become another shattered dream. In the event Government funding amounted to £4.2 million for the restructuring of the building, plus a mere £250,000 for the interior.

The entrance, on the ground floor, is certainly evocative and strikingly dramatic : flying overall a 17ft high golden angel, ‘Spirit of Gaiety’, rescued from the top of the Gaiety Theatre in the Aldwych, when it was demolished; elephant-decorated boxes from the former Palace Theatre, Glasgow; the former Box Office from the Duke of York’s Theatre, London and a mural by Anthony Holland of a theatre auditorium, providing a backdrop to the café.

The exhibition rooms are located in the basement, reached by ramps (with the disabled well in mind). Housed in the main galleries is a permanent exhibition, which traces the history of the performing arts from the late 16th century to the present day – not only theatre, but all the performing arts, from circus to pop, grand Opera to mime. Punch and Judy to pantomime.

Temporary exhibitions will be presented in two other galleries, named to commemorate Sir John Gielgud and Sir Henry Irving.

All these exhibitions are within protective glass cases, which is obviously necessary for security and to maintain the irreplaceable exhibits in a good state of preservation. One might have hoped for a more dynamic and dramatic approach in such a museum – but presumably severe restraints were imposed by time and money, And one hopes that the eye strain on future visitors will be lessened by improved lighting on the detailed and informative captions to the numerous exhibits.

However, of great potential is the small theatre, seating 85, which will be used for educational purposes, including audio-visual presentations, lectures, demonstrations, sound shows and available for evening hire by outside organizations.