Leicester Haymarket Theatre

The Leicester Haymarket Theatre is a theatre in Leicester, England, next to the Haymarket Shopping Centre on Belgrave Gate in Leicester City centre.

History

The Haymarket Theatre was opened by Sir Ralph Richardson and the opening season started with The Recruiting Officer on 17 October 1973, Economic Necessity on 24 October and Cabaret on 21 November. Leicester City Council purchased a 99-year lease of the theatre in 1974.

Between 1974 and 2007 the theatre was operated by The Leicester Theatre Trust. The trust vacated the theatre in 2007 when it moved to the newly built Curve Theatre, Leicester in Leicester's Cultural Quarter. The last show held at the Haymarket by the Leicester Theatre Trust was Wizard of Oz starring Helena Blackman and Ceri Dupree in 2006. The theatre was closed in 2007 and remained so for the next 10 years.

In June 2016 the management of the theatre was taken over by an organisation known as the Haymarket Consortium who undertook that it would be re-opened as a performance, training and e-sports venue.^[1][2] The theatre was re-opened for performances on 2 March 2017 and a formal opening ceremony took place later that year.^[3] The theatre closed again in March 2020, during the Coronavirus pandemic and entered liquidation on 22 May 2020.^[4]

Metal Tree sculpture

The Metal Tree sculpture by Hubert Dalwood, at the front of the entrance to the Haymarket Theatre, was the only major piece of abstract sculpture in the city centre for many years. It was unveiled in 1974.^[5]

Notable productions

• Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat in 1974 directed by Robin Midgley and featuring Maynard Williams as Joseph^[6]
• Oliver! in 1977 directed by Robin Midgley and featuring Roy Hudd
• The Ghost of Daniel Lambert in 1981 written by Sue Townsend and starred Leicester actor Perry Cree
• Me and My Girl in 1984 directed by Mike Ockrent and featuring Robert Lindsay, Emma Thompson, and Frank Thornton
• Macbeth in 1984 directed by Nancy Meckler and featuring Bernard Hill and Julie Walters
• M Butterfly in 1989 directed by John Dexter and featuring Sir Anthony Hopkins
• Murders in the Rue Morgue in 1989 directed by Simon Usher

Image gallery

• 
  Red-brick exterior to the theatre
• 
  Foyer area demonstrating Brutailst architecture
• 
  The main auditorium has 901 seats
• 
  The main stage is the largest in England
• 
  Metal Tree sculpture

See also

• Curve (theatre)
• Little Theatre (Leicester)
• Sue Townsend Theatre
• De Montfort Hall

References

1. "Page Not Found". thestage.co.uk. Archived from the original on 9 October 2018. Retrieved 14 April 2019. {{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)
2. "Disused Haymarket theatre 'could reopen'". BBC News. 2 June 2016. Archived from the original on 14 April 2019. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
3. "Latest updates: East Midlands Live". BBC News. Archived from the original on 14 April 2019. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
4. "Coronavirus forces Leicester's Haymarket Theatre out of business". 22 May 2020. Archived from the original on 11 June 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020 – via leicestermercury.co.uk.
5. "Hubert Dalwood Sculpture - Haymarket Shopping Centre, Leicester". Archived from the original on 27 November 2016.
6. "The Haymarket Theatre, Leicester". Archived from the original on 25 January 2021. Retrieved 26 January 2021.

52°38′15″N 1°07′55″W / 52.6375°N 1.1320°W / 52.6375; -1.1320