The Royal Shakespeare Theatre transformed

My visit to Stratford last night to see Macbeth was the first since the Royal Shakespeare Theatre had been transformed. And very impressive it is. I was amazed how well the bits that had been retained from the old theatre work with the brand new cutting edge architecture. The following photos show some example of this. The new glazed main entrance links the wall of the old entrances with the brand new Tower. Above the the doors on the left of the new main entrance, the old stone "Balcony" signs have been retained.

The exterior wall of the old entrance and public areas now opens out to the new ground floor bar and cafe areas. The refurbished windows on the right of the photo below are those to the massively improved, and now beautiful staircase to the circle and upper circle.

It is only the outside wall that has been retained, the inside face of which is still visible from the cafe. Note the line of the old staircase. A projected slide show plays on the wall. I think that the scruffy  remnants of the old wall with the perfect new balcony above somehow works incredibly well. This must have been a brave decision that to me pays off brilliantly.

From the top of the Tower, the old brick flytower remains alongside a sparkling new metal roof to the auditorium.

The link to the Swan Theatre brings together a complete complex of theatres, backstage areas and public spaces. The tower of The Swan compliments the flytower of the main theatre, and the new grey metal roofs match that above The Swan auditorium.

 All in all, this is now, in my opinion, the most wonderful theatre I have ever been to. I don't think it would have been the same if, as was suggested at the time, the whole of the old theatre had been demolished. The essence of the original is still there. Even inside, the ground floor bar feels like the old entrance. And the old brickwork that made the proscenium arch is still there. When someone decides to use the old teak floor from the stage of the 1932 theatre and puts it in the new foyer, that is class.