The Playhouse, Whitley Bay is a state of the art, 630 seater auditorium in the coastal resort of

Whitley Bay Whitley Bay is a seaside town in the North Tyneside borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It formerly governed as part of Northumberland and has been part of Tyne and Wear since 1974. It is part of the wider Tyneside built-up area, being around eas ...

Tyne and Wear Tyne and Wear () is a metropolitan county in North East England, situated around the mouths of the rivers Tyne and Wear. It was created in 1974, by the Local Government Act 1972, along with five metropolitan boroughs of Gateshead, Newcastl ...

. Having undergone a major and completed refurbishment by

North Tyneside Council North Tyneside Council is the local authority of North Tyneside in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a metropolitan district council, one of five in Tyne and Wear and one of 36 in the metropolitan counties of England, and provides the majority of lo ...

in 2009, the contemporary theatre has a glass foyer, front of house facilities, box office and bar facilities. In addition it also features a redesigned auditorium, new company room and chorus rooms. The transformation of the venue, situated on Marine Avenue, was a key part of North Tyneside Council's £64million regeneration programme for Whitley Bay. It has become an integral part of the local community programme, regularly playing host to productions from local artistic and drama groups. The Playhouse is managed by SMG, who locally own and manage Newcastle's 11,000+ seater

Metro Radio Arena The Utilita Arena Newcastle (formerly the Newcastle Arena, Telewest Arena and Metro Radio Arena) is a large indoor arena in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Owned and operated by ASM Global and sponsored by Utilita Energy, it hosts m ...

and 1,100 seater

Mill Volvo Tyne Theatre The Tyne Theatre and Opera House is a theatre in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is a Grade I listed building .html" ;"title="/sup>">/sup>, rated "in the top 4% of listed buildings" by English Heritage and is afforded a three star (the highest ...

. A specially-commissioned installation by artist Rolf Wojciechowski, is displayed in the North corridor of the theatre to mark the re-opening of the Playhouse Whitley Bay in 2009. A time capsule in the form of a wooden box has been made by longtime theatre supporter Rid Stokoe, and filled with a collection of memorabilia from its proud past.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Whitley Bay Theatre Company website
Theatres in Tyne and Wear