Information for record number MWA13523:
The Shakespearean Theatre, Chapel Lane, Stratford-upon-Avon

Summary The site of The 19th century Shakespearean Theatre, Chapel Lane, built 1827 and demolished 1872 by Halliwell Phillips.
What Is It?  
Type: Theatre
Period: Unknown
Where Is It?  
Parish: Stratford upon Avon
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 20 54
(Data represented on this map shows the current selected record as a single point, this is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent an accurate or complete representation of archaeological sites or features)
Level of Protection Local
Description

  
Source Number  

1 The Shakespearean Theatre in Chapel Lane is the only one of the early Stratford Theatres with any continuous history. It was built by a company formed in 1826, which included several members of the corporation and of the Shakespeare Club. The site, purchased from the landlord of the Shakespeare Inn, was at the west end of what are now the public gardens of New Place. The foundation stone was laid at the Gala Festival on 23 April 1827, and the Theatre was opened, with a performance of As You Like It, on 12 December following. It was leased by the proprietors for seven years to Francis Raymond, who was entitled to use it as a Theatre for not more than three months in each year. For the first three years the new venture was a success. Madame de Vestris appeared here in 1828 and Charles Kean during the Gala Festival of 1830, in which Raymond was one of the moving spirits, though it seems to have marked the beginning of his financial misfortunes. In 1831 his lease became forfeit and in the following year he went bankrupt. For the next few years the Theatre was let by the season and kept open more or less regularly; the lessee in 1837 being C. W. Elliston, probably a son of the famous manager of Drury Lane. In 1844 the building having become delapidated, it was extensively repaired and reopened as the New Royal Shakespearean Rooms, and the Company of Proprietors was reorganized soon afterwards. After 1846 the County Court sat at the Theatre, though it was still used from time to time for its original purpose. Jakeman and Morgan were the lessees between 1849 and 1862, and in 1869 it was refitted for the last time and opened by Alfred Walmisley as the Theatre Royal. Three years later it was bought by Halliwell Phillipps, who demolished it and threw the site into the New Place gardens. The last performance, of Hamlet, took place on 30 April 1872.
2 Excavations, as part of the 'Dig for Shakespeare' Community Excavations, recorded a series of structures on the site of the Theatre, in an area now used as gardens following the demolition of the Theatre by Halliwell Phillipps. Photographs taken of the Theatre before it was demolished reveal it had a basement with outside access, windows on the ground and first floor, and the front of the Theatre was graced by a portico (which now stands, relocated, as the entrance to Marks and Spencers, High Street, Stratford-on-Avon. A programme of GPR survey was also undertaken over the site.
3 Theatre, and adjacent cottages (also demolished by Halliwell Phillipps) is shown on Stratford's Board of Health Map of 1851.
 
Sources
Source No: 2
Source Type: Excavation Report
Title: 'Dig for Shakespeare', New Place, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, Archaeological Excavation Season 3 - 2012
Author/originator: Mitchell W
Date: 2013
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Internet Data
Title: Victoria County History: A History of the County of Warwick: Volume 3: Barlichway Hundred
Author/originator: Salzman L F (ed)
Date: 1947
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Map
Title: Board of Health map of Stratford-upon-Avon
Author/originator: Board of Health
Date: 1851
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
technique excavation Archaeologists excavate sites so that they can find information and recover archaeological materials before they are destroyed by erosion, construction or changes in land-use.

Depending on how complicated and widespread the archaeological deposits are, excavation can be done by hand or with heavy machinery. Archaeologists may excavate a site in a number of ways; either by open area excavation, by digging a test pit or a trial trench.
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monument INN * A public house for the lodging and entertainment of travellers, etc. back
monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument HAMLET * Small settlement with no ecclesiastical or lay administrative function. back
monument CLUB * A building used by an association of persons for social and recreational purposes or for the promotion of some common object. back
monument BUILDING * A structure with a roof to provide shelter from the weather for occupants or contents. Use specific type where known. back
monument COUNTY COURT * A court established in England and Wales by Parliament in 1846 to decide minor civil disputes. back
monument STONE * Use only where stone is natural or where there is no indication of function. back
monument FLOOR * A layer of stone, brick or boards, etc, on which people tread. Use broader site type where known. back
monument CHAPEL * A freestanding building, or a room or recess serving as a place of Christian worship in a church or other building. Use more specific type where known. back
monument GARDEN * An enclosed piece of ground devoted to the cultivation of flowers, fruit or vegetables and/or recreational purposes. Use more specific type where known. back
monument STRUCTURE * A construction of unknown function, either extant or implied by archaeological evidence. If known, use more specific type. back
monument BASEMENT * Component. Use wider site type where known. back
monument THEATRE * A building used primarily for the performing of plays. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record