Old Red Lion Theatre
Encyclopedia
The Old Red Lion Theatre is a fringe theatre
, situated above a pub at The Angel
, in the London Borough of Islington
.
It was founded in 1948 as the Old Red Lion Theatre Club.
(who portrayed it in the middle distance of his painting "Evening", with the foreground being Sadler's Wells), Samuel Johnson
and Thomas Paine
(who wrote The Rights of Man in the shade of the trees in its forecourt).
passengers could avoid paying their fare by entering it through one door and disappearing through the other.
opened on the pub's first floor. The Old Red Lion Theatre has played host to some of Britain's most exciting theatrical talent since it was founded in 1979 as the Old Red Lion Theatre Club. Then led under the Artistic Direction of Charlie Hanson
(Birds of a Feather, Harry Hill and Extras) it became a place for actors, directors, designers , writers and technicians to experiment and thrive with their art. After the King's Cross fire
in 1987, the theatre was threatened with closure due to the tightening of fire regulations. A saviour came in the form of new Artistic Director Ken McClymont who raised funds to keep the theatre from closing.
Nina Raine
, winner 2006 Most Promising Playwright Award, staged her first show 'Rabbit' at the Old Red Lion Theatre March/April 2006.
Fringe theatre
Fringe theatre is theatre that is not of the mainstream. The term comes from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, which name comes from Robert Kemp, who described the unofficial companies performing at the same time as the second Edinburgh International Festival as a ‘fringe’, writing: ‘Round the fringe...
, situated above a pub at The Angel
The Angel, Islington
Angel is a district of London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-History:...
, in the London Borough of Islington
London Borough of Islington
The London Borough of Islington is a London borough in Inner London. It was formed in 1965 by merging the former metropolitan boroughs of Islington and Finsbury. The borough contains two Westminster parliamentary constituencies, Islington North and Islington South & Finsbury...
.
It was founded in 1948 as the Old Red Lion Theatre Club.
Construction
The pub in itself is one of the oldest in London, having first been built in 1415 in what was then the rural village of Islington in open countryside and fields. A house called Goose Farm and some nearby cattle pens (for herds being driven to Smithfield Market) were the only structures to adjoin it, and St John Street (then called Chester Road) was a country lane.18th century
In the late 18th century Chester Road became notorious for highwaymen, with patrols being provided to protect those travelling along it at night. At this time descriptions state that the Old Red Lion was a small brick house with three trees in its forecourt, visited by William HogarthWilliam Hogarth
William Hogarth was an English painter, printmaker, pictorial satirist, social critic and editorial cartoonist who has been credited with pioneering western sequential art. His work ranged from realistic portraiture to comic strip-like series of pictures called "modern moral subjects"...
(who portrayed it in the middle distance of his painting "Evening", with the foreground being Sadler's Wells), Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...
and Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine
Thomas "Tom" Paine was an English author, pamphleteer, radical, inventor, intellectual, revolutionary, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States...
(who wrote The Rights of Man in the shade of the trees in its forecourt).
Reconstruction
The Old Red Lion was rebuilt in 1899, adding two exits onto different streets. This gave the pub the nickname "the In and Out", since taxicabTaxicab
A taxicab, also taxi or cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choice...
passengers could avoid paying their fare by entering it through one door and disappearing through the other.
Theatre
In 1979 a small studio theatreStudio Theatre
A studio theatre is a 20th-century term that describes a small theatre space. Studio theatres often have a flexible auditorium whose stage and seating may be re-arranged to suit the specific requirements of a production...
opened on the pub's first floor. The Old Red Lion Theatre has played host to some of Britain's most exciting theatrical talent since it was founded in 1979 as the Old Red Lion Theatre Club. Then led under the Artistic Direction of Charlie Hanson
Charlie Hanson
Charlie Hanson is a critically acclaimed British producer and director.Charlie Hanson's work as a producer spans over two decades of television drama and comedy...
(Birds of a Feather, Harry Hill and Extras) it became a place for actors, directors, designers , writers and technicians to experiment and thrive with their art. After the King's Cross fire
King's Cross fire
The King's Cross St. Pancras tube station fire was a fatal fire on the London Underground. It broke out at approximately 19:30 on 18 November 1987, and killed 31 people....
in 1987, the theatre was threatened with closure due to the tightening of fire regulations. A saviour came in the form of new Artistic Director Ken McClymont who raised funds to keep the theatre from closing.
Nina Raine
Nina Raine
Nina Raine is an English theatre director and playwright, and the only daughter of the poet Craig Raine.She graduated from Christ Church, Oxford in 1998 with a First in English Literature.-Career:...
, winner 2006 Most Promising Playwright Award, staged her first show 'Rabbit' at the Old Red Lion Theatre March/April 2006.
Present and Future Productions
- 'night, Mother by Marsha NormanMarsha NormanMarsha Norman is an American playwright, screenwriter, and novelist. She received the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for her play night, Mother...
, 30 August - 24 September 2011 (extended to 8 October 2011) - Country Life by Peter Briffa, 18 October - 5 November 2011
- The Firewatchers by Laura Stevens, 8 November - 3 December 2011
- The Importance of Being EarnestThe Importance of Being EarnestThe Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at St. James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious personae in order to escape burdensome social obligations...
by Oscar WildeOscar WildeOscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
, 6 - 31 December 2011 - Happy New by Brendan Cowell, 31 January - 25 February 2012
Past Productions
- Chapel Street by Luke Barnes, 2 - 26 August 2011
- A World Without Words, 19 - 30 July 2011
- Waiting Like A Man, by Daniel Benoliel, 28 June - 16 July 2011
- NIMBY by Lola Stephenson, 8 - 25 June 2011
- Mojo Mickybo by Owen McCaffertyOwen McCaffertyOwen McCafferty is a playwright from Northern Ireland.Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, McCafferty held several jobs, including tiling and working in an abattoir, before becoming a full-time writer...
, 17 May - 4 June 2011
Literary Department
The literary department reads over 1,000 scripts and has an open submissions policy. The theatre are constantly looking for new plays which help us reassess the way we live today. The literary has been responsible for the discovery of 'Chapel Street' and 'The Firewatchers'.Artistic Directors
- Charlie HansonCharlie HansonCharlie Hanson is a critically acclaimed British producer and director.Charlie Hanson's work as a producer spans over two decades of television drama and comedy...
(1979-1987), - Ken McClymont (1987-2002)
- Melanie TaitMelanie TaitMelanie Tait is an Australian radio broadcaster, playwright and author.At 21 years of age she wrote the comedy theatrical production The Vegemite Tales, which has played in London over seven years including two on the West End - the play will be entering its eighth season in late 2010...
(2002-2004) - Helen Devine (2004-2010)
- Henry Filloux-Bennett (Co-Artistic Director) (2010 - Present)
- Nicholas Thompson (Co-Artistic Director) (2011 - Present)