Q: Regarding the new Gala Theatre in Durham City. Is it true that the new theatre is the first and only one to be built in the city? - John Hall, Chester-le-Street

A: Theatrical performances have a long tradition in Durham, dating back to early times when medieval mystery plays were performed in the city. Purpose-built theatres came later and had their heyday in the Georgian era when at least three were associated with the city's Saddler Street. Here we find Drury Lane and almost opposite the Shakespeare pub. These are both reminders that Saddler Street was once Durham's theatre land. A theatre was recorded near Drury Lane, just off Saddler Street, as early as 1722, but was replaced by a new theatre that opened nearby in 1771. It operated for 14 years until its closure in 1785 following a dispute over a lease. In March 1792, another new theatre opened in Saddler Street, but on the opposite side of the road behind the Lord Nelson Inn. This pub is now called The Shakespeare.

The first productions in the new theatre were a comedy called Wild Oats and a farce called The Spoiled Child. It became Durham's Theatre Royal and its managers would include the Shakespearean actor, Stephen Kemble, previously a manager of the Theatres Royal in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Newcastle. Kemble, who, it was said, could play Falstaff without padding, died in Durham in 1822 and was buried in the cathedral. He was a good friend of the 3ft 3in Polish dwarf Joseph Borruwlaski, who was also buried in the cathedral.

I am uncertain when Kemble's theatre in Durham finally closed, but it had become a warehouse by the mid-20th Century. Theatres were not exclusively confined to Saddler Street. One is recorded in Hallgarth Street in the Elvet area in the 1760s and I believe there was also one in nearby Court Lane. Theatres built in 19th and early 20th Century Durham catered for the new Music Hall craze and this was probably the case with the Albany Theatre in Framwellgate. This operated from 1884 until 1889 when it lost its licence.

In 1909, another Music Hall venue called the Palace Theatre opened in Walkergate behind the city's market place. It was built from the conversion of a factory building that occupied the site of the palace or town house that had belonged to the famous Neville family of Elizabethan times. Early performers at the theatre included the young Charlie Chaplin. The theatre was later converted into a cinema and was known locally as the Flea Pit. It closed in 1964.

Other theatres have been purpose built in Durham but are often associated with educational establishments in the city. Local stage societies have often used the Garland Theatre at Durham's New College or the Assembly Rooms in the South Bailey, although this is primarily for the use of Durham University. The Assembly Rooms have been in use since 1891. A small City Theatre of just over 70 seats was opened behind the Market Place in 1986 for amateur performances.

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