The Theatre Royal was a theatre in

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alders ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

which opened in 1891 and was demolished in 1959. The teenage

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is consider ...

appeared there in 1904 and the actor

James Mason James Neville Mason (; 15 May 190927 July 1984) was an English actor. He achieved considerable success in British cinema before becoming a star in Hollywood. He was the top box-office attraction in the UK in 1944 and 1945; his British films inc ...

is believed to have made his stage début at the theatre in 1931.Sweeney, Kevin
''James Mason: A Bio-bibliography''
Greenwood Press (1999) pg 5 ''

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...

Early years

Located on the corner of Gordon Road and Birchett Road in Aldershot, the Theatre Royal replaced the Apollo Music Hall which had been on the corner of Union Street and Grosvenor Road in Aldershot from 1856 until it was destroyed by a fire in February 1889 during a performance of ''Monte Cristo & Co''. Originally a

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Bri ...

, the Theatre Royal was regularly visited by touring companies of the

D'Oyly Carte Opera Company The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company is a professional British light opera company that, from the 1870s until 1982, staged Gilbert and Sullivan's Savoy operas nearly year-round in the UK and sometimes toured in Europe, North America and elsewhere. Th ...

. From 1887 this theatre was run by Clarence Sounes. The new theatre was designed by the theatre architects

Bertie Crewe William Robert 'Bertie' Crewe (1860 – 10 January 1937) was one of the leading English theatre architects in the boom of 1885 to 1915. Biography Born in Essex and partly trained by Frank Matcham, Crewe and his contemporaries W.G.R. Sprague an ...

and

W. G. R. Sprague William George Robert Sprague (1863 – 4 December 1933) was a theatre architect. Biography He was born in Australia in 1863 the son of actress Dolores Drummond who returned with acclaim to London in 1874. Sprague was an articled clerk ...

.The Theatre Royal on the Arthur Lloyd Music Hall and Theatre History Website
/ref> The singer and comedian

Arthur Lloyd Arthur Lloyd may refer to: * Arthur Lloyd (rugby league), rugby league footballer of the 1930s for Wales, and York * Arthur Lloyd (musician) (1839–1904), Scottish singer, songwriter, comedian and stage producer * Arthur Lloyd (bishop) (1844–19 ...

appeared at the theatre in a tour of his play ''Ballyvogan'' in 1891, while the

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

actor

Frank Westerton Francis Henry Westerton (6 April 1866 – 25 August 1923) was a British stage and silent film actor of the 19th and early 20th centuries who carved a successful career on Broadway theatre, Broadway from 1905 to 1922. Early career Frank Wes ...

appeared there in 1896. The theatre was extensively rebuilt and remodelled by Sounes and opened on 15 October 1900 as the New Theatre Royal with a production of ''

The Private Secretary ''The Private Secretary'' is an 1883 farce in three acts, by Charles Hawtrey (actor born 1858), Charles Hawtrey. The play, adapted from a German original, depicts the vicissitudes of a mild young clergyman, innocently caught up in the machinatio ...

''.

, who had made his first stage appearance in Aldershot in 1894 returned to the town in May 1904 as a professional actor to play Billy the Page Boy in a tour of

William Gillette William Hooker Gillette (July 24, 1853 – April 29, 1937) was an American actor-manager, playwright, and stage-manager in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He is best remembered for portraying Sherlock Holmes on stage and in a 1916 ...

's play ''

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...

'', with

Harry Arthur Saintsbury Harry Arthur Saintsbury, usually called H. A. Saintsbury (18 December 1869 – 19 June 1939), was an English actor and playwright. A leading man, he became well known for his stage interpretation of Sherlock Holmes, was an early mentor of Charli ...

in the title role. The

star

Albert Chevalier Albert Chevalier (often listed as Albert Onésime Britannicus Gwathveoyd Louis Chevalier); (21 March 186110 July 1923), was an English music hall comedian, singer and musical theatre actor. He specialised in cockney related humour based on life ...

played the theatre in ''My Old Dutch'' in 1908 followed shortly after by

George Robey Sir George Edward Wade, Commander of the Order of the British Empire, CBE (20 September 1869 – 29 November 1954),James Harding (music writer), Harding, James"Robey, George" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University P ...

Seymour Hicks Sir Edward Seymour Hicks (30 January 1871 – 6 April 1949), better known as Seymour Hicks, was a British actor, music hall performer, playwright, actor-manager and producer. He became known, early in his career, for writing, starring in and p ...

and

Ellaline Terriss Mary Ellaline Terriss, Lady Hicks (born Mary Ellaline Lewin, 13 April 1871 – 16 June 1971), known professionally as Ellaline Terriss, was a popular British actress and singer, best known for her performances in Edwardian musical comedies. Sh ...

Fred Karno Frederick John Westcott (26 March 1866 – 17 September 1941), best known by his stage name Fred Karno, was an English theatre impresario of the British music hall. As a comedian of slapstick he is credited with popularising the custard-p ...

and a repeat visit by

. The aviator

Samuel Franklin Cody Samuel Franklin Cowdery (later known as Samuel Franklin Cody; 6 March 1867 – 7 August 1913, born Davenport, Iowa, USA)) was a Wild West showman and early pioneer of manned flight. He is most famous for his work on the large kites known ...

was in a box in the theatre in 1912 when, being observed by the audience he was invited to step to the front of the box to talk about the aeroplanes he was developing. The English Opera Company appeared here in March 1914 in ''

The Bohemian Girl ''The Bohemian Girl'' is an Irish Romantic opera composed by Michael William Balfe with a libretto by Alfred Bunn. The plot is loosely based on a Miguel de Cervantes' tale, ''La Gitanilla''. The best-known aria from the piece is "I Dreamt I Dwel ...

'', ''

Il Trovatore ''Il trovatore'' ('The Troubadour') is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto largely written by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play ''El trovador'' (1836) by Antonio García Gutiérrez. It was García Gutiérrez's mos ...

'', ''

Don Giovanni ''Don Giovanni'' (; K. 527; Vienna (1788) title: , literally ''The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni'') is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Its subject is a centuries-old Spanis ...

'' and ''

Cavalleria Rusticana ''Cavalleria rusticana'' (; Italian for "rustic chivalry") is an opera in one act by Pietro Mascagni to an Italian libretto by Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti and Guido Menasci, adapted from an 1880 short story of the same name and subsequent play b ...

'', among other works. In 1917 the

curtain raiser A curtain raiser is a short performance, stage act, show, actor or performer that opens a show for the main attraction. The term is derived from the act of raising the stage curtain. The first person on stage has "raised the curtain". The fashio ...

''Ida Collaborates'' by

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...

and

Esmé Wynne-Tyson Esmé Wynne-Tyson (29 June 1898 – 17 January 1972) was an English actress, writer and philosopher. As a child she acted in West End plays, and became a close friend, confidante, and collaborator of Noël Coward. She left the stage in 1920 a ...

was performed at the theatre.Paul H. Vickers, ''Aldershot Through Time'', Amberley Publishing (2013)
-

This new theatre was very small on a small site and could only seat 881 in total, with 197 in the stalls, 220 in the pit, 84 in the Dress Circle, and 350 in the gallery at the rear of the dress circle with its own entrance from Gordon Road. There were two boxes which seated 30 in total on each side at Dress Circle level, with elaborate plasterwork on the dress circle and box fronts. The proscenium opening was 24 feet wide and 26 feet deep with the flies 32 feet high. In addition there were eight dressing rooms, a manager's office and a band room with the stalls, pit and circle each having its own licensed bar.

Variety theatre

In 1922 the actor and singer

Martyn Green William Martin Green (22 April 1899 – 8 February 1975), known by his stage name, Martyn Green, was an English actor and singer. He is remembered for his performances and recordings as principal comedian of the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, in t ...

appeared here in a tour of ''

Shuffle Along ''Shuffle Along'' is a musical composed by Eubie Blake, with lyrics by Noble Sissle, and a book written by the comedy duo Flournoy Miller and Aubrey Lyles. One of the most notable all-Black hit Broadway shows, it was a landmark in African-America ...

'' immediately before joining the

. From 1925 to 1926 the theatre was owned by local businessman W. A. 'Willie' Rubick (1869-1926) on whose death the theatre transferred to his widow who sold it in 1928. During the 1930s the theatre was owned by Town & Country Theatres who also owned the

Duchess Theatre The Duchess Theatre is a West End theatre in the City of Westminster, London, located in Catherine Street near Aldwych. The theatre opened on 25 November 1929 and is one of the smallest West End theatres with a proscenium arch. It has 494 se ...

in London. The actor

is believed to have made his stage début here in 1931 in ''The Rascal''. However, some sources claim this was at the nearby Hippodrome Theatre.James Mason Obituary
''

The Glasgow Herald ''The Herald'' is a Scottish broadsheet newspaper founded in 1783. ''The Herald'' is the longest running national newspaper in the world and is the eighth oldest daily paper in the world. The title was simplified from ''The Glasgow Herald'' in ...

'' 28 July 1984 pg 8 –

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The Theatre Royal went bankrupt in the 1930s and was reopened as a

Variety Theatre Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a compère ...

by Ben Garcia in 1940 who managed it during

World War II 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 ...

. Aldershot being a Garrison Town, much of the audience at this time was male leading to a number of nude revues being held at the theatre. Other acts at this time included

Tod Slaughter Norman Carter Slaughter (19 March 1885 – 19 February 1956), also known as Tod Slaughter, was an English actor, best known for playing over-the-top maniacs in macabre film adaptations of Victorian melodramas. Early life Slaughter was born o ...

in the

melodrama A modern melodrama is a dramatic work in which the plot, typically sensationalized and for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodramas typically concentrate on dialogue that is often bombastic or exces ...

Jack the Ripper Jack the Ripper was an unidentified serial killer active in and around the impoverished Whitechapel district of London, England, in the autumn of 1888. In both criminal case files and the contemporaneous journalistic accounts, the killer wa ...

'', Billy Reid and his accordion band with

Dorothy Squires Dorothy Squires (born Edna May Squires, 25 March 1915 – 14 April 1998) was a Welsh singer. Her early successes were achieved with " The Gypsy", " A Tree in the Meadow" and " I'm Walking Behind You" by her partner Billy Reid, and " Say It w ...

as his vocalist, and

Phyllis Dixey Phyllis Dixey (10 February 1914 – 2 June 1964) was an English singer, actress, dancer and impresario. Her earlier career was as a singer in variety shows in Britain. During World War II, she joined ENSA and entertained the British forces. She s ...

in her revue ''Peek A Boo''.

Decline

From 1946 to 1948 the Theatre Royal was home to Harry Hanson's Court Players. In the late 1940s, as her film career floundered,

Jessie Matthews Jessie Margaret Matthews (11 March 1907 – 19 August 1981) was an English actress, dancer and singer of the 1920s and 1930s, whose career continued into the post-war period. After a string of hit stage musicals and films in the mid-1930s, Ma ...

ran an amateur theatre group at the theatre. In 1948 Garcia leased the theatre to another management who formed the Aldershot Repertory Company who put on plays there including ''

Pygmalion Pygmalion or Pigmalion may refer to: Mythology * Pygmalion (mythology), a sculptor who fell in love with his statue Stage * ''Pigmalion'' (opera), a 1745 opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau * ''Pygmalion'' (Rousseau), a 1762 melodrama by Jean-Jacques ...

'' in 1950 starring Jessie Matthews until their final production, the

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...

Aladdin Aladdin ( ; ar, علاء الدين, ', , ATU 561, ‘Aladdin') is a Middle-Eastern folk tale. It is one of the best-known tales associated with ''The Book of One Thousand and One Nights'' (''The Arabian Nights''), despite not being part of ...

'' in December 1952. Following this there was a short season of

repertory theatre A repertory theatre is a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation. United Kingdom Annie Horniman founded the first modern repertory theatre in Manchester after withdrawing ...

by the Arthur Brough Players but the theatre again went bankrupt and finally closed. A backstage fire in 1957 lead to great damage and the Theatre Royal was demolished in 1959. A block of flats, Matinée House, occupies the site today.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Theatre Royal, Aldershot Former theatres in England 1891 establishments in England Buildings and structures demolished in 1959 Buildings and structures in Aldershot Theatres completed in 1891

Early years

Variety theatre

Decline

See also

References