The Brookside Theatre is a 194-seat studio theatre situated in the centre of Romford in the London Borough of Havering, Greater London.
 The entrance to the Brookside Theatre | |
 | |
| Location | Romford, Greater London United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Public transit |    Romford |
| Capacity | 194 |
| Opened | 2012 |
| Website | |
| brooksidetheatre.com | |
The theatre was established in 2012 and plays host to many full scale theatre productions; musicals and plays, tribute bands, live music, comedy and celebrity guests and has been heralded as "Romford's best kept secret".
History
edit
The Theatre staged its first production in 2012; Shout! The Mod Musical, to raise money for the much needed renovation of the neglected war memorial buildings.
As well as producing in-house shows which have included Avenue Q, The Woman in Black, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, The Addams Family, Little Shop of Horrors, Peter Pan The Musical, and Hi-de-Hi!, the theatre now plays host to touring plays, top tribute acts, concerts, comedy evenings and celebrity guests appearances. The theatre has also produced a number of UK / world premieres including Forever Dusty, Life Could Be a Dream, When Rock n Roll Dreams Come True and Goodnight Sweetheart The Musical.
The theatre and the war memorial renovation is a completely self-funded project that relies on the generosity and kindness of local companies and organisations and the support of the local community as well as the dedication of its volunteers.
Celebrity appearances
editThe following celebrities and bands have performed at the theatre:
Romford War Memorial
editThe building which now houses Brookside Theatre was officially opened on 11 October 1953, by Lt.-Col Sir Francis Whitmore the Lord Lieutenant of Essex, to commemorate residents, civilians and service personnel of the Borough of Romford, who lost their lives during the Second World War.[citation needed]
The community hall and memorial houses commemorative oak panels engraved with the names of the fallen, donated by the United States Air Force in recognition of the hospitality they received whilst stationed at the nearby RAF Hornchurch. Following the construction of a ring road around the town in the early 1970s, several office buildings were built, while the community hall fell into disrepair.[citation needed]
Part of the Theatre's revenue goes towards the continued restoration of the war memorial.[8]
Alleged paranormal activity
editThe feature reached the international media's attention in 2014 following CCTV footage that allegedly showed possible paranormal activity.[9][10]
References
edit- ^ "Brookside Theatre - Schedule of events (Jan-June 2015)" (PDF). Havering Council. p. 3. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
- ^ "Now on to Romford for tonight's show at the Brookside Theatre". Twitter. 27 March 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
- ^ Wilkin, Andy (25 November 2014). "The first x-factor winner, Steve Brookstein performs live at the Brookside theatre". Hornchurchlife. Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
- ^ "Brookside Theatre - Schedule of events (Jan-June 2015)" (PDF). Havering Council. p. 4. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
- ^ Nair, Ajay (18 January 2015). "Jerry Lee Lewis tribute act to shake up Brookside Theatre". Romford Recorder. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
He added: "It's a really lovely theatre too – I performed at the Brookside with Anita Harris last year, which was great."
- ^ Richards, Lee-Ann (4 June 2013). "Chas Hodges to perform at the Brookside Theatre, Romford". Romford Recorder. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
- ^ "Honeycombs have the right to celebrate with a few dates". Beat Magazine. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
- ^ "Brookside Theatre Company". www.brooksidetheatre.com.
- ^ "'Ghosts' caught on CCTV at English theatre". Breaking News Ireland. 29 July 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
- ^ "Tétrico: Aseguran haber grabado a un fantasma en teatro inglés". El Dinamo. 29 July 2014. Archived from the original on 8 August 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2014.