Departmental Drama

The departmental meeting today was in the Drama Studio. Luckily the seats were out of the auditorium, so we were able to have tables and our customary pastries and fruit for breakfast. It was great.


The Drama Studio Manager gave us a very interesting talk about the history and current operation of the theatre. As you can tell from the picture, it used to be a church - Glossop Road Baptist Church to be exact. It was opened in 1871, and became the University Drama Studio in 1970.

Interestingly for a Baptist Church it was very ornate inside, as this picture shows.

Now it is a fully functioning theatre serving the needs of students doing our drama courses, the Student Union Theatre Society, and local amateur dramatic groups (including one I'm involved with - shameless plug here). It has modern sound and lighting systems, a recording studio, media server, rehearsal rooms, and a versatile auditorium that can be set out in a number of ways, including thrust, arena and cabaret style. It's a great asset to the University, and a number of our former students who've performed in it have gone on to do great things, including Stephen Daldry and Eddie Izzard.