Union Theatre, London

Sasha Regan and the Peter Brook Empty Space Award, at the Union Theatre

The Union Theatre is a small fringe theatre situated in the borough of Southwark in London, England. It was established in 1998 by Sasha Regan who took the initiative to convert a disused paper warehouse on Union Street near Southwark station into a functioning theatre.[1] Set beneath railway arches, it is one of the more distinctive theatrical spaces in London.

The theatre is currently threatened with closure as its landlord, the publicly owned infrastructure body Network Rail, wishes to redevelop the site for offices.[2] A campaign has been started to save the theatre, and also other small businesses nearby which have been given just 12 weeks notice to relocate. The Union Theatre was given a stay of execution and is moving into new Network Rail premises just across the road from its original site. This short film was part of the campaign to keep the theatre, and other small businesses there open: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaHvaumkxrY


The Union has a reputation for staging high-quality musicals in its tiny studio space. Some of its acclaimed productions include Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd,[3] Adler and Ross' The Pajama Game, Gilbert and Sullivan's The Mikado (an all-male version)[4] and HMS Pinafore.[5] The Union won the accolade of Best Up-and-Coming Theatre in the 2008 Empty Space Peter Brook Awards.[6] The Union hosted the London premier of a new musical, Once Upon A Time At The Adelphi, in March 2010.

The theatre has an all-day cafe and a bar.

References

  1. ↑ "WELCOME - Union Theatre". Uniontheatre.biz. Retrieved 2015-07-24.
  2. ↑ Merrifield, Nicola. "Union Theatre in Southwark threatened with closure | News". The Stage. Retrieved 2015-07-24.
  3. ↑ Gardner, Lyn (2008-11-16). "Sweeney Todd". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2016-04-28.
  4. ↑ Fiona Mountford (2008-07-25). "The Mikado is a treat - Theatre - Going Out - London Evening Standard". Thisislondon.co.uk. Retrieved 2015-07-24.
  5. ↑ "HMS Pinafore". WhatsOnStage.com. Retrieved 2016-04-28.
  6. ↑ Archived June 12, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.

External links

Coordinates: 51°30′13″N 0°06′07″W / 51.5037°N 0.1019°W / 51.5037; -0.1019


This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, April 28, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.