Some said it would never happen but, after 80 years of neglect and one year after reopening, the restored theatre at The Peoples’ Palace looks splendid and is now available for event hire as well as gigs and plays. I happened to visit it quite by chance as it is very close to my studio in Wood Green.
Walking through what used to be a fire break, one enters a side door then up the stairs
before catching a first glimpse of the theatre with its original wooden and plaster ceiling
and stage.
The original wooden fly system is still in place but not safe for everyday use.
You can see here that the side doors are now a little shorter (but perfectly serviceable) as the floor was reinforced then raised before re-laying the original floorboards.
Traces in the trompe l’oeil painted wall of a second balcony – they really packed them in during Victorian times.
Restoration, not reconstruction retains the history of the space and I can vouch that the seats are extremely comfortable – no risk of tipping back into that hole in the plaster.
