The playhouse Weston Super Mare hosts a variety of entertainments to go well with everybody's tastes!
Weston Super Mares main theatre and entertainment centre is the Playhouse. However, it's not the only theatre in Weston Super Mare as situated just around the corner is the Blakehay amateur theatre which seats an audience of up to 199. At the conclusion of this article I'll provide more information on the Blakehay theatre.
The playhouse in Weston Super Mare is situated in one of the oldest parts of Weston Super Mare which was the original village centre. The site on which the playhouse theatre now stands was initially the market place and was first established as a produce market in 1825.
In1869 the market hall was replaced by a much larger market building and then in 1899 a local architect named Hans Price. Who now has a both a street and a local college named after him and it was he redesigned the outer appearance of the market hall and constructed a row of retailers in the entrance of the hall.
By 1946 the market hall was no longer being used as a market and the town council took the decision to convert its use to that of a theatre. A false ceiling was installed and the walls had been dressed with cloth and the brand new theatre was named the playhouse and became Weston Super Mares SECOND theatre after the popular Knightstone Pavilion theatre.
By 1960 the theatre was in need of an upgrade and so a brand new ceiling was put in and the material on the walls was replaced with panelling. It catered for a wide taste of entertainments from conventional theatre and drama, classical music, ballet and lots of, well-known one-man shows. It has hosted many famous celebrities such as: Ken Dodd, Leslie Crowther, Frankie Howard and Bob Monkhouse.
Then in mid-August 1964 disaster struck when the building was engulfed in a devastating fire which utterly destroyed the building aside from the outside was which also latter needed to be knocked down. The new playhouse Weston Super Mare was constructed at a price of £230,000 and was reopened in 1969. Many enhancements were included with the brand new stage being nearly 60 foot in width and it could comfortably seat an audience of 664 visitors.
The fashionable playhouse Weston Super Mare theatre stages an exceptionally wide range of productions to suit all tastes and of course entertain summer visitors and holiday makers.
Finding the playhouse Weston Super Mare
It could not be less complicated as its situated on the north end of the high street so if you are on foot find the High Street and walk north and it'll ultimately appear on the right hand side of the street. However, if you are coming by automotive get on to the Boulevard going in direction of the ocean front and just before Weston college turn right into West street and carry on straight ahead as this will lead you into the high street right by the theatre.
The Blakehay theatre
As there are only the two theatres in Weston Super Mare I didn't think this page could be complete without giving the Blakehay a mention. It was originally built in 1850 as Weston Super Mares first Baptist church. During world war 11 the building was hit by bombs but after the war the bombed out shell was rebuilt and stayed a church until 1985 when it was transformed into flats.
In 2004 the building was purchased by Weston Super Mare council and it was converted into a venue for both amateur and professional events as well as public meetings.
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