'It stank of fags and booze and we loved it' – theatres that made us, from Glasgow to Soho
‘A railway arch converted into a club’
Robert Softley Gale: There was a group of theatre-makers in Scotland in the 2000s and early 2010s who were all working at the (now-closed) Arches in Glasgow. It was a railway arch that had been converted into a club and performance space during Glasgow’s year as European capital of culture in 1990. The place stank of fags, booze and many bodily fluids. We loved it.
In March 2012, I was to premiere a new solo piece there called If These Spasms Could Speak. Jackie Wylie, now National Theatre of Scotland’s artistic director, wanted to programme me as part of their Behaviour! festival. I thought she was nuts – I’d never written anything before.
The writing process was hell – I was stuck in front of a laptop doubting every word I typed and thinking it was all shite. The first night preview went well but on the second night the press were in. One scene into the hour-long show I got a massive unexpected laugh from a gag and then I completely dried. Couldn’t remember my own name. Wanted to crawl off stage and die in a hole. The show went on to do more than 100 performances in four continents. I still miss the Arches.
Robert Softley Gale is the artistic director of Birds of Paradise.
‘Everyone is part of the buzz’
Laura Carmichael: I’ve been lucky enough to work at the Trafalgar Studios twice, both times with the brilliant Jamie Lloyd. It was home to the Jamie Lloyd Theatre Co for many years and I remember him saying what a special gem it is. You’re not quite in the West End, you’re in Whitehall. It’s common to meet marches on your way in for a matinee. It feels as though you’re right in the heart of London and in the conversation.
Jamie has a way of bringing everyone in the building into the production. Everyone backstage and front of house is part of the buzz. The moment the audience set foot in the theatre, the experience begins. It’s one of the warmest and most inclusive communities I’ve ever worked in. That is the joy of theatre: to work hard, to challenge yourself and be brave which is only possible because you’re in it together.
Laura Carmichael stars in the BBC’s The Secrets She Keeps and will next be seen in Starz’s The Spanish Princess on Amazon Prime. Read more about Trafalgar Studios.
‘I’ve been known to see four shows a night!’
Rosie Jones: As a comedy-loving queer person whose main two passions are Soho and the theatre, there’s only one place I could ever choose: Soho theatre. It is modern theatre at its finest. If I ever have a free evening, I simply rock up to their box office and say: “Right, what have you still got tickets for?” and I inhale their latest play, or a comedian’s newest hour … I’ve even been known to go from floor-to-floor, watching four shows in one night! When I started standup comedy, I could only dream of performing there. But when I finally did, it exceeded all expectations. Soho theatre attracts the best audiences and it will always be my favourite place to perform. I also need to give the bar a special mention. It’s the comedy equivalent of Cheers: everybody knows your name! Oh boy, I am looking forward to getting back in there!
Rosie Jones and Helen Bauer’s podcast Daddy Look At Me is available now. Read more about Soho theatre.
‘Empowering instead of terrifying’
Anthony Matsena: The Taliesin Arts Centre in Swansea is a precious place for me as it’s where I started my journey of contemporary dance. My first work was shared on that stage. What I thought would be a terrifying experience turned into a very empowering one, as the amazing team ensured I was heard regardless of my youth.
Most important was the warm supportive feeling I received from the audience. Quite often as a young black man, you can feel out of place when you are from a certain background in the theatrical setting. That was never the case with the Taliesin. It’s my home and for so many other young performers. Thank you to the Taliesin and the communities you have affected in such a positive way.
Anthony Matsena is an associate artist with National Dance Company Wales. Read more about Taliesin Arts Centre.
‘Hooked by beauty and emotion’
Annilese Miskimmon: Visiting the Grand Opera House in Belfast meant dodging the odd bomb. This beautiful Frank Matcham theatre sits beside the “most bombed hotel in Europe”. The atmosphere of unspoken risk created a stoical audience solidarity. It wasn’t just a nice evening out but something worth braving danger for. Live art is more essential for a society in hard times than in good. Belfast never stopped laughing, singing and showing up.
My childhood visits left me amazed by the endless gilt, painted cherubs and – thrillingly – elephants mounted on the boxes. My wonderful mother and I sat in the cheap seats. It was surreal and exciting in equal measure. At 11, I saw my first opera there, and I was hooked by the beauty and emotion. Years later, my new artistic home is Matcham’s triumphant London Coliseum. When ENO is back I will be combing every inch of the Coli for another elephant, if anyone wants to join me.
Annilese Miskimmon is the artistic director of English National Opera. Tickets for ENO’s Drive & Live, Europe’s first drive-in opera, are on sale now. Read more about the Grand Opera House.
‘Gloriously grand, incredibly intimate’
Lee Lyford: Built in 1766, Bristol Old Vic is the oldest continuously working theatre in the English-speaking world. It’s a gloriously grand auditorium that feels incredibly intimate and I love it. For all its history, it is a theatre for today, committed to the city and its local artists and not afraid to take a punt on them. I was new to the Bristol scene when Sharon Clark (literary manager) asked me to direct Tom Wainwright’s play Muscle as part of the new writing programme Ferment. She had seen a little of my work and was prepared to take a risk. Later Tom Morris took a similar risk on me directing the Christmas show in the main house – it made a huge difference to me as a director. Most recently I directed Tom’s adaptation of A Christmas Carol, but my fondest memory is of Tom being called away to one of his many meetings and leaving me in that beautiful auditorium with the words “just sit here a while and dream what we might do here”.
Lee Lyford is artistic director of Theatr Iolo. Read more about Bristol Old Vic.
