Phoenix (Leicester)

• Theatre ID
  185
• Built / Converted
  1963
• Dates of use
  • 1963: continuing
• Current state
  Extant
• Current use
  Arts Centre
• Address
  21 Upper Brown Street, Leicester, Leicestershire, England

Details

After the demise of the Royal, Palace and Opera House theatres in the late 1950s, the City Council agreed to test the demand for live theatre by erecting the Phoenix as a small temporary building with a life expectancy of ten years at a cost of £21,175 (cf Coventry Belgrade £192,601 and Nottingham Playhouse £375,000). The theatre was described as a ‘standard steel-framed warehouse type building’ and has an unexciting exterior. Three banks of seats in a single rake auditorium provide good sight lines for the open end stage which has a permanent cyclorama. In 1988 a joint management project between Leicester Polytechnic and Leicester City Council was established to provide an extension and refurbishment of the temporary structure. This included turning the side elevation into a new front while reorganising and constructing new box office, bar, facilities, caféestaurant and foyers. This included a new PHOENIX neon sign with stainless steel letters across the roof of the first floor bar area.

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• Events
  • 1963 Use: continuing
  • 1963 Design/Construction:
    • City Architect’s Dept (R Bryant) - Architect
  • 1963 Owner/Management: October Leicester City Council, proprietor
  • 1963 - 1981 Owner/Management: Leicester Theatre Trust Co Ltd, lessee
  • 1981 - 1988 Owner/Management: Phoenix Arts Centre, lessee
  • 1988 Alteration: separate building housing stage manager’s office; carpenter’s shop demolished, not replaced as theatre ceased to be producing house. New entrance at side instead of at the end.
    • Burrell Foley Fischer (London) - Architect
  • 1988 Owner/Management: Leicester Arts Centre Ltd, lessee
• Capacities
  • Original: 1963: 274
  • Later: 1996: 268
  • Current: 2000: 262
• Listings
  • Grade Not listed
• Stage type
  • Flat
• Dimensions
  • Stage dimensions: Depth: 8.23m Width SL: 7.21m SR: 7.22m
  • Height to grid: No grid 6.10m head room