Savoy Theatre, Monmouth facts for kids
The entrance to the Savoy Theatre
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| Address | Church Street Monmouth Wales |
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| Coordinates | 51°48′46″N 2°42′52″W / 51.81284°N 2.71450°W |
| Owner | MacTaggart family |
| Capacity | 360 |
| Opened | 5 March 1928 |
| Website | |
| www.monmouth-savoy.co.uk | |
The Savoy Theatre is a historic theatre and movie cinema located on Church Street in Monmouth, Wales. It is believed to be the oldest working theatre location in the entire country! The theatre can seat 360 people and is managed by a charitable trust, which is a group that runs it to benefit the local community.
The Savoy is a special building and is one of 24 historic sites on the Monmouth Heritage Trail. Because of its importance, it is protected as a Grade II* listed building. This means it must be preserved for future generations to enjoy.
A Theatre with Many Lives
The Savoy Theatre has a long and interesting history. The building stands on the foundations of an old inn. It first got a license for entertainment way back in 1832 when it was called the Assembly Rooms.
Over the years, the building changed many times.
- In 1850, it was updated and renamed the Theatre Royal.
- Later, it became the town's Corn Exchange, a place where farmers and merchants traded grain.
- For a short time, it was even a roller skating rink!
- In 1910, it became Monmouth's very first cinema, called the "Living Picture Palace and Rinkeries."
- It was later renamed the Palace, then the Scala, and finally the Regent.
In 1927, a theatre company bought the building and completely rebuilt the inside. It reopened on March 5, 1928, as the "New Picture House." In 1930, it was the first place in town to show "talking pictures," which were movies with sound!
The building closed as a cinema in the 1960s and became a bingo hall. After closing again in 1983, it has been running as a cinema since the 1990s. In 1989, the government officially recognized its historical importance, calling it "a rare and little altered example of a small cinema from the inter-War period in Wales.”
The Savoy Today
The Savoy is privately owned by the MacTaggart family. Their ancestor, B. T. Davies, once owned 19 cinemas across South Wales and South West England.
A group of volunteers called the Monmouth Savoy Trust rents the theatre and runs it for the community. This group helped save the theatre from closing down in 2010. It costs about £50,000 every year to keep the theatre open, and it does not receive regular money from the government.
In 2004, the theatre's beautiful interior was restored. It features red velvet curtains, fancy gold-colored plaster designs, and glass chandeliers. The theatre is also known for having excellent sound quality.
Today, the Savoy shows new movies almost every night. It also hosts live events like concerts, plays, and comedy shows. In 2012, it won a grant to help start an after-school film club for kids and drama workshops for young people. The theatre and the buildings next to it were put up for sale in 2022.
Gallery
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Ironwork on the ticket booth
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The projection room
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View from the central balcony
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Chandelier on the balcony
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Detail on the door of balcony box 3
See also
In Spanish: Teatro Savoy (Gales) para niños
