Waltham Forest (Parliament Politics Magazine) – The new Soho Theatre Walthamstow has unveiled its striking interior as the long-awaited Hoe Street venue prepares to open its doors to the public this Friday.
The building’s 100-year legacy as a live performance venue is honored with the opening, which comes after years of meticulous repair work.
Before a crowded summer lineup that features Tim Minchin, Dara O’Briain, Sara Pascoe, Mark Watson, Adam Kay, and many more, American comedian and actor Natalie Palamides’ one-woman show WEER will kick off events.
With developers Wilmott Dixon attributing the delays to the difficulties of restoring the Grade 2*-listed structure to its “former glory,” the much awaited £30 million theatre was first set to open in March 2023 and then the following February 2024.
Along with brand-new studio spaces, backstage amenities, four bars (Main Foyer, Ziggurat, Cross Hall, and Circle), and a restaurant, the theater has a 960-seat auditorium.
In-house food and drink options include Curry On Naanstop, which will serve street cuisine from Mumbai, Neon, and Soho Theatre’s own lager, which is manufactured locally in the borough by Adnams and East London Brewery.
Additionally, the theater will hold cross-borough events like a two-day film festival honoring Walthamstow’s contributions to the film industry from 1800 to the present, as well as architectural tours. The McGuffin Film Society, which was headquartered at the old Granada theater until it closed 22 years ago, is in charge of curating the festival.
A vibrant and diverse creative engagement program, on the other hand, offers events for people of all ages, including storytelling sessions for young children, theatre sessions for senior citizens, music tech sessions for young creatives, writing workshops for anyone 16 and up, and a variety of taster workshops for aspiring adult artists who wish to try their hand at comedy, cabaret, drag, or playwriting.
The refurbishment of the old movie theatre has cost at least £30 million, but according to Waltham Forest, it will contribute roughly £52 million to the local economy over the next ten years and is a crucial component of the plan for Walthamstow to develop into a “cultural hotspot” in the capital.
Originally inaugurated in 1897, the Hoe Street building underwent renovations to become the Granada Theatre in 1930. The interior design was influenced by Spain’s Alhambra Palace. The Rolling Stones, Dusty Springfield, and The Beatles were among the world-renowned performers that played there starting in the middle of the 1950s.
The Granada was converted into a movie theater in 1973. It changed hands until closing in 2003 under the name EMD Cinema.
Concerned locals quickly started a grassroots movement to keep the building’s historic function as a place for entertainment and to reclaim it from an international evangelical Christian organization that intended to convert it into a church.
In 2014, the group sold the building to Antic, a network of pubs that temporarily operated Mirth, Marvel, and Maud. Waltham Forest Council and Soho Theatre came to an arrangement for the venue’s operation in 2019.
The council claims that the arrested deterioration technique, which is frequently employed in the protection of ancient buildings, was utilized to restore the building’s interior, which was inspired by Spanish and Arabic.
By freezing it in time, arrested decay allows the structure to show its own history through the layers of various visible paints and textures, rather than trying to recreate a perfect original and ignore everything that happened after.
Interior designer Jane Wheeler of JaneJaney Design told the Echo about how the arrested decay approach was decided:
“It was a challenge. We had to think deeply about what design route we were going down. Were we going to go back to the original 1930s style of the building or were we going to preserve the journey the building has gone through since it opened?”
Ultimately, Soho Theatre felt that “preserving the journey” of the building’s history was a preferable route to take.
Jane said:
“Opting for this design route was important for Soho Theatre, but also for the local community. So many people from the borough will have been here over the years, and we wanted them to come back and be able to recognise parts of their time here.”
According to architect Gareth Wilkins of Pilbrow & Partners, the public’s reaction to the space during pre-opening events has been overwhelmingly positive.
He said:
“People seem to be absolutely loving it, I mean, for a start, they’re over the moon that the building is up and running again as a theatre. It’s so sad that it was in such a bad state, so to see it repaired [in this way] is just really brilliant.”
Co-executive director of Soho Theatre Walthamstow Mark Godfrey added that some people get quite emotional and talk about the fact that they came here as a child and they saw this particular film here and they’re just blown away by connecting with those early memories.
Some people that have lived here said he had no idea that this building existed or what it meant because obviously you have to have been here for more than 22 years to have come here so there’s an awful lot of people that have not have not ever seen inside here. Both of those experiences are really fantastic to see.
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said:
“I’m delighted that Soho Theatre Walthamstow has breathed new life into this historic London venue. With a world-class comedy line up alongside a creative programme for the local community, the theatre is set to become a huge asset – not just for Walthamstow but London as a whole.
It’s a fantastic legacy from Waltham Forest’s year as my very first London Borough of Culture, and an excellent example of the power of culture to transform areas and inspire communities.”
What are the unique features of the restored Granada building?
By conserving and revealing diverse decorative schemes from different centuries, the restoration honors the building’s multi-layered past rather than returning it to its original state.
With its many layers of paint and textures, including the original 1920s golds and greens, the earthy oranges of the 1960s, and the purples and mint greens of the 1990s, this method tells the building’s rich story.
In order to preserve the building‘s historic façade and visual character, the architects painstakingly recreated the original 1924 marquee in collaboration with historians.
The movie theater’s original magnificent ceiling was not replaced during renovations; instead, it was dismantled to expose it.
The building’s 1920s design is reflected in the elaborate plaster moldings, glass chandeliers, and arched proscenium, among other historic features that have been preserved or recreated.