Polka Theatre facts for kids
Polka Theatre
|
|
| Address | The Broadway, Wimbledon |
|---|---|
| Location | London, SW19 |
| Public transit |    Wimbledon |
| Type | Theatre |
| Genre(s) | Children's theatre |
| Capacity |
|
| Website | |
| http://www.polkatheatre.com | |
The Polka Theatre is a special theatre just for children! It's located in Wimbledon, London Borough of Merton, in London. This theatre puts on shows for kids aged 0 to 13 years old.
Polka Theatre has two main places where shows happen. There's a big main room called the auditorium, which can seat 300 people. There's also a smaller studio that holds 70 people. This studio is perfect for shows made for very young children.
Besides the stages, the theatre building has lots of other cool stuff. You can find a creative learning studio, a garden, and an outdoor playground. There's also an indoor play area, spaces to see exhibitions, and a cafe for snacks.
Polka Theatre is a charity, which means it's a non-profit organization. It gets money from places like Arts Council England and the London Borough of Merton. It also gets help from other charities, people, and companies. This funding helps them create amazing shows for kids!
History of Polka Theatre
The Polka Theatre started a long time ago, in 1967. Back then, it was a puppet company that traveled around, putting on shows. Richard Gill was the first person in charge of the company.
The actual theatre building in Wimbledon opened its doors on November 20, 1979. This was a really big deal because it was the first theatre in the UK made only for children! The opening was celebrated with a special show. Even Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother came to watch!
By 1983, Polka Theatre was regularly putting on shows for children under 5. These shows happened in their studio space, which was called the Adventure Theatre. The Adventure Theatre still hosts shows made by Polka and also by other theatre groups from the UK and other countries. In recent years, Polka has created even more shows for very young children, some as young as 6 months old!
In 1994, Polka Theatre won an award called the Vivien Duffield Theatre Award. They used this award to start a program called Curtain-Up! This program gives free theatre tickets to schools where students might not normally get to see a show. It helps kids who face money problems or other difficulties. The program even helps pay for their travel and offers a free drama workshop after the show. This makes sure more children can experience the magic of theatre.
The theatre building closed for a big update on February 18, 2019. Construction started in March 2019. It was supposed to reopen in summer 2020, but the pandemic caused delays. Finally, the show Cinderella: the AWESOME Truth was planned for November 2021. This was the first show after the theatre reopened its doors!
Who Leads the Theatre?
The person in charge of the artistic side of the theatre is called the Artistic Director. They decide which shows to put on and how they will look. The current Artistic Director is Peter Glanville. He started in August 2013. Before coming to Polka, he was the Artistic Director of another theatre called Little Angel Theatre.
Here's a list of the people who have been Artistic Directors at Polka Theatre:
- 1967- 1988 Richard Gill
- 1988- 2002 Vicky Ireland
- 2002- 2007 Annie Wood
- 2007– 2013 Jonathan Lloyd
- 2013–present Peter Glanville
Awards Polka Theatre Has Won
Polka Theatre has won some cool awards for its work!
- 2014 Eleanor Farjeon Award winner
- 2015 Best Production for Young People (under 8 years) for Peter Pan, Winner
Gallery
-
Polka Theatre Auditorium
-
Polka Theatre Exhibition Area
-
Polka Theatre Playground
-
Polka Theatre Toyshop
-
Polka Theatre Annex
-
Teddy Bear Collection, Polka Theatre
