THERE ARE FEW THEATRES IN LONDON that have two such distinct and diverse reputations
as the Aldwych. For the pre-war generation it was the home of the 'Aldwych
Farces'; for younger playgoers, the Aldwych is remembered as having been
the London base of the Royal Shakespeare Company for 22 glorious years.
The Aldwych is the twin of the Strand
Theatre on the opposite corner of the same block, not far from Drury Lane
and the Royal Opera House. They were opened within seven months of each
other in 1905, and designed by W. G. R. Sprague with identical facades and
almost the same seating capacity of over 1000. The interior decoration of
the Aldwych is a mixture of Georgian and French baroque, the dominant colour
being a greyish blue with gilt ornamentation. A dual stairway ascends past
three huge mirrors, and meets in the handsome plush Circle Bar under chandeliers
from where one can look down into the vestibule from a circular ramp. The
Era magazine in 1905 wrote that "one of the innovations that will
be greatly appreciated by the male members of the audience is a commodious
smokers' gallery above the entrance hall."
Today, on the walls of the Stalls Bar is a collection of paintings, playbills
and photos of past successes lent by the Theatre Museum recently opened
in Covent Garden. These range from a portrait of Ellaline Terriss in one
of the Aldwych's first productions, The Beauty Of Bath (1906), through
the famous Ben Travers farces and Alastair Sim in Bridie's Mr Bolfry
(1943), to Vivien Leigh as Blanche du Bois in A Streetcar Named Desire
(1949), and a pensive Alec Guinness in Under The Sycamore Tree (1952).
There is little visible trace of the RSC's long and now historic sojourn
here.
For some years, the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre Company at Stratford-on-Avon
had been looking for a second home in London. In 1960, when Peter Hall became
artistic director, they acquired the Aldwych. Before moving in on 15 December,
1960 with Peggy Ashcroft as The Duchess Of Malf, an apron stage (as
at Stratford) was created by bringing the forestage forward to the line
of the stage boxes, and eliminating the curtain. The interior was re-painted
a dark olive, with the gilt left intact.
During their long tenancy,
the Royal Shakespeare Company (so named in 1961) set new standards of Shakespeare
production, and of other classical and modern plays, building up a brilliant
ensemble company of actors in the hands of inspired directors. Among the
multitude of memorable productions were three directed by Peter Brook--a
hippy Midsummer Night's Dream, a Samuel Beckett-like King Lear
with Paul Scofield, and the revolutionary Marat/Sade which brought
Glenda Jackson to the public attention. There was Pinter's The Homecoming,
Brecht's The Caucasian Chalk Cirde, the landmark sequence of eight
of Shakespeare's history plays, The Wars Of The Roses, and their
tenure culminated in their greatest hit, Nicholas Nickleby in 1979.
The Aldwych also played host to Peter Daubeny's World Theatre season every
summer from 1964 to 1973.
Since the departure of the RSC for the Barbican in 1982, the theatre has lost much of its glory,
having housed a number of short-lived musicals and plays, but there are
enough ghosts of the past within its walls to inspire another great era
in its history.
--Portions excerpted fromThe Great Theatres
of London
by Ronald Bergan
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