Curtains Tom Mallin Rosemary Theatre 1986

The Rosemary Branch Theatre is a

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

theatre located in Islington,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. It has been operating for 35 years. It was originally known as the Rosemary Theatre in 1986. In late spring of 1986 the upstairs of the Rosemary Branch was converted into a theatre. The same space has always been used but the technical area was originally between the stage left entrance corridor and the central aisle just adjacent to the entrance. The first production, starring Mark Heath and directed by James Marcus (from London's Burning and others) was "Napoleon Noir", describing the heroic feats of Toussaint L'Ouverture, who in the late 18th century fought to abolish slavery in Saint-Domingue. The next play was the well-received dark comedy "Curtains" by Tom Mallin. This had its premiere at the Edinburgh Festival in 1970 with Nigel Hawthorne as one of a couple made murderous by the introduction of a third party. Lastly, before the Theatre's initial season closed, Cavada Humphrey presented her autobiographical solo performance "Walking Papers"; a powerful and focused work. The building was previously a Victorian music hall. From 1996 to 2016 it was co-directed by

Cleo Sylvestre Cleopatra Mary Palmer (née Sylvestre; born 19 April 1945), known professionally as Cleo Sylvestre, is an English actress in film, stage and television. She was the first black woman ever to play a leading role at the National Theatre in Lond ...

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

and Cecilia Darker. From 2016 until 2020 (when London theatres closed due to lockdowns as a result of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...

) the theatre was run by the organisation Unattended Items. It has been under the artistic direction of Laura Killeen since 2021.

Awards won

* The People's Winner (2017), Off West End Theatre Awards * Best Fringe Theatre Award (2010),

Fringe Report ''Fringe Report'' was an online magazine relating to contemporary fringe theatre published in the United Kingdom.

* Best Neighbourhood Theatre Silver Award, Smooth FM * Most Welcoming Theatre (2013 & 2016), Off West End Theatre Awards

References

External links

* Pub theatres in London Pub theatres in England Theatres in the London Borough of Islington {{UK-theat-struct-stub