by Steve Tanham
“You might wonder,” said our guide. “Why the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) would spend £112 million on a completely new interior for its world-famous theatre, only to leave in place these scruffy wooden boards…
Looking at me, he continued: “Do you realise, Sir, you are treading the same boards that creaked beneath the stage shoes of Lawrence Olivier, Richard Burton David Tenant and Dame Judi Dench…”
We all looked to our feet, standing on the hallowed wood, feeling amused but unworthy…
We were enjoying a long weekend near Stratford-on-Avon; soaking up the delights of Warwickshire in late July. The theatre is always a treat, but the RSC creates experiences you never forget.
This to be followed by an afternoon performance of Richard III – all three hours of it. A cracker of a day, and the weather was beautiful, so an ice cream by the river was on the cards…
Part of the agenda of this visit to the RSC was a ‘behind the scenes’ tour of the restored Art Deco building and its support services, such as costuming. Another was a glimpse of the new Swan Theatre exhibition: a permanent treasure trove of acting memorabilia.
These will be visited in a short series of posts to come. But first, it wasn’t only the stage boards that were up-scaled to serve the new building; the entire Art Deco fittings of the previous interior were carefully worked into the design. The classic bar room doors were cleaned and polished to their original glory.
At the far end of the entry gallery is the cafe, and beyond that one of the original ‘fountain and spiral staircases’ so popular in the 1930s.
©Stephen Tanham 2022
Stephen Tanham is a Director of the Silent Eye, a journey through the forest of personality to the dawn of Being.
http://www.thesilenteye.co.uk and http://www.suningemini.blog
Sun in Gemini 
Pingback: A Photo Tour of the RSC (1) Treading the Boards – The Silent Eye
Ah now there’s a treat… haven’t been in years… decades…
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Thanks, Geoff. Thought you’d be a theatre person!
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Reblogged this on Pattys World and commented:
WOW! Steve!
Well-done. I love all the description. I felt as if I were there with you.
I always enter on a blog post reported to have photos with a bit of trepidation, fearing the dreaded screen reader’s litany of, “Unlabeled graphic.” But here this was not the case.
I enjoyed this thoroughly.
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Thanks, Patty! Glad you were there with us 😃
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Ah memories of Stratford and berthing the boat on the river opposite the theatre. We never went inside though because we had the dog. Lovely gardens and I have my picture taken with ‘Will’.
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How wonderful to be able to moor close to Stratford’s centre, Di!
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We always seemed to be lucky Steve. What used to take an hour in the car would take us 4 days by boat. and so much better!!!
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I’ve always thought it an idyllic way to live, Di, especially in the summer!
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It was a lovely way of life and if it hadn’t been for our health issues, we would probably still be on it, but not in the same marina.
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