Smock Alley Theatre
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Since the 17th century, there have been numerous theatres in Dublin with the name Smock Alley. The current Smock Alley Theatre () is a 21st-century theatre in Dublin, converted from a 19th-century church building, incorporating structural material from an 18th-century theatre building, and built on the site of the 17th century
Theatre Royal, Dublin Over the centuries, there have been five theatres in Dublin called the Theatre Royal. In the history of the theatre in Great Britain and Ireland, the designation "Theatre Royal", or "Royal Theatre", once meant that a theatre had been granted a r ...
. The present theatre was opened in 2012, after a €3.5 million investment.Smock Alley Theatre reopening after 225 years - New theatre set to open today on site of original facility which opened in 1662.
17 May 2012 The Smock Alley Theatre site comprises Smock Alley Theatre (178 seats), The Boys School (60 - 100 capacity), Black Box (80 capacity), and The Banquet Hall (300 capacity).


History of the building


Theatre Royal

The first Theatre Royal was opened on the site by John Ogilby in 1662. Ogilby, who was the first Irish
Master of the Revels The Master of the Revels was the holder of a position within the English, and later the British, royal household, heading the "Revels Office" or "Office of the Revels". The Master of the Revels was an executive officer under the Lord Chamberlain. ...
, had previously run the New Theatre in
Werburgh Street Werburgh Street is a street in the medieval area of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland named for St. Werburgh's Church, Dublin, St. Werburgh's Church. Location Werburgh Street runs from Castle Street, Dublin, Castle Street at the northern end, ...
, which had closed during the Puritan
interregnum An interregnum (plural interregna or interregnums) is a period of discontinuity or "gap" in a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one monarch and the next (coming from Latin '' ...
. This building was entirely demolished, with a new theatre replacing it in 1735. This second building was active as a theatre until 1759, with a brief later revival until its final closure in 1787.


First building (1662)

The Theatre Royal consisted of a classical proscenium stage, pit, boxes, a middle and upper gallery, lattices (which were a type of box peculiar to Dublin) and a music/orchestra loft above the stage, also the acoustics were said to be excellent. The pit had backless benches and a raked floor that rose toward the back of the audience to help sightlines. Mostly single men sat here, and it was the noisiest, rowdiest area in the theatre. Boxes sat upper-class aristocrats. Boxes were luxuriously decorated with velvet drapes should the occupants require some privacy during the evening, for whatever reason. The doors were wider in the boxes to allow access for the voluminous dresses of the ladies. Galleries held the lower class, including servants of the upper classes in attendance. These were the worst seats as they were on the same level as the large chandeliers that lit the theatre. Candles were made of tallow (animal fat) and they were very pungent and smokey. The building was built on reclaimed ground from the River Liffey and due to this, in 1670 and later in 1701 the upper galleries collapsed killing several people inside and injuring many more including the son of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Charles Earl of Middlesex. He was pulled from the wreckage of his box with two broken legs There was another partial collapse in March 1734 after which it was abandoned for a short while. The major decision was then taken to demolish and rebuild the theatre in 1735 with increased audience capacity.


Second building (1735)

In the time between the demolition of the original theatre and the construction of its replacement, a new theatre had opened in
Aungier Street Aungier Street is a street on the south side of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It runs north-south as a continuation of South Great George's Street. It is the location of both a Technological University Dublin and a Dublin Business Schoo ...
and it managed to wrestle the title Theatre Royal from Smock Alley for a time. In 1745
Thomas Sheridan Thomas Sheridan may refer to: *Thomas Sheridan (divine) (1687–1738), Anglican divine *Thomas Sheridan (actor) (1719–1788), Irish actor and teacher of elocution *Thomas Sheridan (soldier) (1775–1817/18) *Thomas B. Sheridan (born 1931), America ...
, godson of
Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish Satire, satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whig (British political party), Whigs, then for the Tories (British political party), Tories), poe ...
, took on the role of manager of Smock Alley and Aungier Street. He made many improvements and reclaimed the title Theatre Royal for Smock Alley. By 1750 the Aungier Street theatre had closed down. Sheridan was not only the director of the theatre, he was also a playwright and strove to improve audiences at the theatre by cleaning up the neighbourhood in which it stood. At the time there were many unsavoury taverns and alehouses as well as many establishments of ill repute that Sheridan successfully petitioned to have closed down in favour of more wholesome and decent businesses. This change in the area encouraged more noble people to again return to the theatre and it once again thrived. Benjamin Victor was an Englishman who originally visited Ireland in an effort to extend his textile business, but that did not prove profitable, and he eventually gave it up. On 11 October 1746, Victor settled with his family in Dublin as treasurer and deputy manager to Sheridan at the Smock Alley Theatre. The theatre was for some years fairly successful; but about 1753 Sheridan was at variance with a portion of the theatre-going public, and for two years Victor and
John Sowdon John Sowdon (died 1789) was an Irish stage actor, singer and theater manager in the eighteenth century. His origins are a matter of dispute with one source claiming he was the brother of the owner of Castle Otway while George Anne Bellamy claim ...
, a principal actor in the company, took over its management. On 15 July 1755 Sheridan returned to Dublin, and Victor resumed his old position. Eventually, the theatre was closed on 20 April 1759, and Victor returned to England. The theatre later reopened, being active until 1787, but Victor did not return - having become involved with the
Drury Lane Theatre The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto Drur ...
in his native London.


Legacy

The first Theatre Royal housed the plays of George Farquhar (The Recruiting Officer/The Beaux Stratagem),
Oliver Goldsmith Oliver Goldsmith (10 November 1728 – 4 April 1774) was an Anglo-Irish novelist, playwright, dramatist and poet, who is best known for his novel ''The Vicar of Wakefield'' (1766), his pastoral poem ''The Deserted Village'' (1770), and his pl ...
(She Stoops to Conquer) and
Richard Brinsley Sheridan Richard Brinsley Butler Sheridan (30 October 17517 July 1816) was an Irish satirist, a politician, a playwright, poet, and long-term owner of the London Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. He is known for his plays such as ''The Rivals'', ''The Sc ...
, son of Thomas Sheridan (The Rivals/School for Scandal). It was here that the stars of world theatre appeared to much acclaim such as Peg Woffington, Thomas Sheridan, Spranger Barry and Charles Macklin. It was on the stage of Smock Alley Theatre that
David Garrick David Garrick (19 February 1717 – 20 January 1779) was an English actor, playwright, theatre manager and producer who influenced nearly all aspects of European theatrical practice throughout the 18th century, and was a pupil and friend of Sa ...
, the greatest actor of the 18th century, first played Hamlet. It was the first time Hamlet had ever been staged in Ireland and some 3,000 customers clambered to get one of only 300 tickets. It was also the site of some infamous 18th century Dublin riots, the most serious being the Kelly riots of 1747. Thomas Sheridan was the manager at the time and had recently banned the presence of audience members on stage and the taking of money for the privilege of going backstage. These rules were for men only. Indeed, it was under Charles II that the law was changed to even allow women to act on stage. These rules were severely tested by a very drunk Trinity College student named Richard Kelly. Kelly did not appreciate the new rules restricting access backstage and brazenly went backstage.


St Michael and John's Church (1815)

In 1758, another rival theatre opened, and eventually, the Theatre Royal at Smock Alley closed in 1787. After this, the building was used as a whiskey store, falling into heavy disrepair before purchase by Fr Michael Blake in 1811. The structure of the derelict building was partially demolished, and the new church incorporated some of this original theatre structure into its own during the building work, which was carried out between 1811 and 1815. The resultant new building was named St Michael and John's Church, after the medieval churches of St Michael of the Hill (now Dublinia) and St John of Booth Street (Fishamble Street). It had a famous stained glass window that is now in Swords. The theatre still boasts ornate stained glass windows and ceiling plasterwork which dates from the turn of the 20th century. When the bell tolled in 1811, 18 years before Catholic Emancipation; it was the first Catholic bell to ring in Dublin in nearly 300 years. This prompted the aldermen of the city to bring charges against Fr Blake, though these charges were dropped when young lawyer Daniel O'Connell came to his defence. In 1989, due to falling numbers of parishioners the church of St Michael and John was deconsecrated. It was then redeveloped (part of the Temple Bar rejuvenation scheme) into the 'Viking Adventure' which was closed down in 2002.


Excavation

In 2009, a full archaeological excavation took place under Margaret Gowan Archaeology. The dig revealed part of the foundations from the first theatre on the site built in 1662 and the full basement and foundation plan of the 1735 theatre. A total of 229 artefacts were recovered from the excavations, these included medieval and post-medieval pottery, glass finds (mostly wine bottles), clay tobacco-pipe fragments, an actor's wig curler, a medieval roof tile, fragments of mosaic floor and many oyster shells, remnants of the building's theatrical past.


References

*Joseph Quincy Adams, quoting a contemporary manuscript source, in Shakespearean Playhouses: A History of English Theatres from the Beginnings to the Restoration, Boston, Houghton Mifflin, 1917; p. 419. *Simpson, L. (Margaret Gowen & Co. Ltd) Archaeological excavation at the Smock Alley Theatre 17/3/2010 *Dr. Christopher Morash (NUI Maynooth) Board Member of Smock Alley Ltd *Bynane, P. (Prof. Theatre, Texas Women's University) "As Good A Gentleman as You Are." The Kelly Riots at the Theatre Royal, Smock Alley *Joseph Quincy Adams, quoting a contemporary manuscript source, in Shakespearean Playhouses: A History of English Theatres from the Beginnings to the Restoration, Boston, Houghton Mifflin, 1917; p. 419.


External links


Smockalley website Our History
{{Authority control Theatres in Dublin (city) Theatres completed in 1662 1662 establishments in Ireland