Theatre decoration
Elizabethan and Jacobean theatres were open to the sky. However, their stages were covered and usually painted underneath with the sun, moon and stars to represent the heavens. Any architectural embellishment was painted, often in perspective.
In eighteenth-century theatres, interiors were usually elegant and simple, though their quality would depend upon how much the theatre’s owners were prepared to spend. Sometimes scene painters, skilled at creating illusion and special effects, were employed to adorn interiors.
During the nineteenth century, architects began to work closely with interior designers to create the increasingly opulent interiors expected of them by theatre owners for the delight of their audiences. These were often an amalgam of past styles. Exotic elements, too, became fashionable, especially Indian, Chinese and Arabic, sourced from books and specialist catalogues that would transport audiences to imagined worlds. Also, the renewed patronage of the middle classes, many of whom had an interest in archaeology, was to influence theatre interiors.
To appeal to them, some interiors replicated buildings of ancient Rome, Greece or Egypt. Other interior designers were influenced by the decoration of hippodromes or circuses, which were often adorned with motifs of animals from other continents. Variety theatre was to develop its own form of decoration. Often frivolous and ostentatious, it echoed the gaiety of its productions and drew heavily on the baroque.
Towards the end of the nineteenth century, gas, and then later electric lighting significantly influenced theatre interior decoration. Both were able to illuminate interiors far better than candles or oil lamps and could be dimmed to darken the auditorium during the performance. Designers created more dramatic, sculptural decoration using carved and moulded plaster forms that had deeper shadows and more pronounced surfaces. Gilded plasterwork was also popular: its reflective and jewel-like quality enhanced by lighting in the auditorium and public spaces.
The use of mirrors and glass, now cheaper through mass production, became fashionable. They increased the opulence of public spaces and magnified the brilliance of expensive crystal chandeliers. A flattering backdrop was created that magnified the presence and wealth of the theatre’s patrons who attended in their best finery and jewellery.
After World War I, theatre interiors, either new or refurbished, began to be influenced by the United States, where plush new cinemas were being built for the emerging medium of film in the art deco style. This was characterised by strong geometric forms, flat shapes, streamlined images and polished veneers and lighting effects.
Theatres built after World War II would have comfortable and functional interiors, but less ostentatious décor, which was then not to public taste and no longer felt necessary.
The 1970s and 80s saw a radical type of functional interior. These were the black box theatres, whose interiors were stripped bare and blacked out to allow for maximum flexibility of space to accommodate different types of performances.
A more recent trend, exemplified by the Wales Millennium Centre, is to create a theatre interior that celebrates and promotes distinctiveness. The Millennium Centre is constructed of locally-sourced, renewable and environmentally-friendly materials. Its interior has also been decorated by local artists and craftspeople. Other new theatres such as the Edinburgh Festival Theatre have large windowed atria, easily accessible from the street. These new cultural venues encourage the public to enter, as they can easily see inside, inviting them to use their many facilities and welcoming them into the world of theatre.
Theatre façades
The façade of a theatre was usually important to its owners. More attention was paid to the front than to any other side of the building. An elaborate frontage was often seen as a symbol of pride and status. It attracted and delighted paying customers passing through its doors. However, this often depended upon how much street frontage had been purchased, prevailing architectural trends and how much the owners were prepared to pay for embellishment.
Many façades were intended to be imposing, with opulent and ostentatious adornment. They might be topped with pediments, balustrades, turrets and domes, or adorned with statues and sculptures, columns and pilasters. They were skilfully lit to create dramatic sets equal to those inside and offering a tempting glimpse of the theatrical splendour behind their doors.
The presence of a large theatre with an ornamented façade in towns and cities could also impact on any future development nearby. New buildings would often be designed to complement the theatre’s architecture which in turn would enhance the surrounding area. This is also an important feature of theatres built today.
