RADA Studios (formerly The Drill Hall) is a theatrical venue in

Chenies Street Chenies Street is a street in Bloomsbury, London, that runs between Tottenham Court Road and Gower Street. It is the location of a number of notable buildings such as Minerva House, the Drill Hall (now RADA Studios), and a memorial to The Range ...

Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural, intellectual, and educational institutions. Bloomsbury is home of the British Museum, the largest mus ...

, just to the east of

Tottenham Court Road Tottenham Court Road (occasionally abbreviated as TCR) is a major road in Central London, almost entirely within the London Borough of Camden. The road runs from Euston Road in the north to St Giles Circus in the south; Tottenham Court Road tub ...

in the

West End of London The West End of London (commonly referred to as the West End) is a district of Central London, west of the City of London and north of the River Thames, in which many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buil ...

. Owned by the

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Sen ...

(RADA), the building contains rehearsal rooms, meeting rooms, and the 200-seat Studio Theatre.

History

The building was designed by Samuel Knight as the headquarters of the St Giles's and St George's Bloomsbury Rifles and completed in 1882.Andrew Girvan
"RADA Acquires Lease on the Drill Hall, Now RADA Studios"
''Whatsonstage.com'', 9 January 2012. Retrieved 2013-05-06. It has a notable artistic history: in the 1900s,

Sergei Diaghilev Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev ( ; rus, Серге́й Па́влович Дя́гилев, , sʲɪˈrɡʲej ˈpavləvʲɪdʑ ˈdʲæɡʲɪlʲɪf; 19 August 1929), usually referred to outside Russia as Serge Diaghilev, was a Russian art critic, pat ...

and the

Ballets Russes The Ballets Russes () was an itinerant ballet company begun in Paris that performed between 1909 and 1929 throughout Europe and on tours to North and South America. The company never performed in Russia, where the Revolution disrupted society. A ...

rehearsed there. The Bloomsbury Rifles amalgamated with the 1st Middlesex (Victoria and St George’s) Volunteer Rifle Corps and moved out to the Davies Street drill hall in 1908. In their place the 12th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (The Rangers) took over the Drill Hall in Chenies Street on 25 June 1908. The battalion was mobilised at the Drill Hall in August 1914 before being deployed to the Western Front. When the London Regiment was broken up and the battalions reallocated to other units in August 1937, the hall became the home of The Rangers, The King’s Royal Rifle Corps. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

the hall was used for

Ralph Reader William Henry Ralph Reader (25 May 1903 – 18 May 1982), known as Ralph Reader, was a British actor, theatrical producer and songwriter, known for staging the original Gang Show, a variety entertainment presented by members of the Scouti ...

's ''

Gang Show A Gang Show is a theatrical performance by members of Scouts and Guides A guide is a person who leads travelers, sportspeople, or tourists through unknown or unfamiliar locations. The term can also be applied to a person who leads others t ...

s''. In 1947, following another re-organisation, the unit based at the drill hall was renamed The Rangers, The Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort’s Own). However, in 1960, after the Rangers amalgamated with the

London Rifle Brigade The London Rifle Brigade was a volunteer regiment of the British Army. History The regiment was first raised in the City of London on 14 December 1859 as 1st London (City of London Volunteer Rifle Brigade) Rifle Volunteer Corps, a rifle volunt ...

the hall fell vacant. In the 1960s the building was used as an art gallery for the

Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

’s exhibition of the ''McAlpine Collection''. It started to be used as an arts centre for Bloomsbury and Fitzrovia in 1977, and became a theatre, the Drill Hall, in the 1980s after many years of being used as a rehearsal hall. From 1984, the Drill Hall particularly supported production of theatrical and artistic works with gay and lesbian themes. In 2007, the Drill Hall, with an annual turnover of £1.25 million, was supported with £250,000 of Arts Council funding, but late in 2007, the Arts Council announced it was withdrawing this funding to concentrate its funding on other ventures. (Similar fates befell 194 other arts organisations.)''The Drill Hall's future in doubt'' Rupert Smith, 7 January 2008
'' Time Out'' accessed 15 Jan 2008 The Drill Hall was home to The

Musical Theatre Academy The Musical Theatre Academy (The MTA) was a drama college based in Islington, London. Founded in 2009, the school closed at the end of the 2021–2022 academic year. The principal, Annemarie Lewis Thomas, announced that students in their final t ...

from 2009 to 2011. The triple threat theatre college is now located at

Bernie Grant Arts Centre The Bernie Grant Arts Centre (BGAC) is a £15 million purpose-built multi-arts centre, which includes a 274-seat auditorium, studio/rehearsal space, café/bar, enterprise centre and open spaces. It is located next to the Town Hall in Tottenham, ...

. In January 2012, RADA acquired the lease of the venue from Central London Arts Ltd, who had run The Drill Hall for 30 years. RADA's objectives in acquiring the lease included the possibility of hiring out the central London rehearsal and studio space as a "further opportunity for income generation and sustaining the charity as it continues into its second century of operation." Central London Arts then began trading as Outhouse London, with the intention of continuing to produce large-scale theatre and community-theatre events across London and the UK. The entire venue is available for hire from RADA. The 200 seat Studio Theatre has been utilised by the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

as a studio for recording radio shows, such as ''

Cabin Pressure Cabin pressurization is a process in which conditioned air is pumped into the cabin of an aircraft or spacecraft in order to create a safe and comfortable environment for passengers and crew flying at high altitudes. For aircraft, this air is ...

'', in front of a live audience.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:RADA Studios Royal Academy of Dramatic Art BBC Radio Theatres in the London Borough of Camden 1882 establishments in England Buildings and structures in Bloomsbury Drill halls in London