History

Theatr Clwyd was built as a regional arts centre designed to accommodate multiple performance spaces, TV studios, gallery and functions room. The project was commenced by Flintshire County Council in 1969, and completed under the auspices of Clwyd County Council in 1976. The building was designed by R.W.Harvey, county architect for Flintshire and opened as ‘Clwyd Theatre and Educational Technology Centre’ on 21st May 1976 by HM the Queen.

The theatre was the last major building to be constructed on the Mold civic centre site, at the highest point overlooking the town and crowning the complex of buildings. The civic centre was developed in the grounds of Llwynegrin, a mansion and parkland owned by the county council from 1948. The Shire Hall, designed by RW Harvey was the first major building to be constructed and was opened in May 1968. It was quickly followed by the Law Courts (1969), also by Harvey and then the Library Headquarters (1969), John Laing Design Associates with Harvey.

Theatr Clwyd belongs to a new wave of publicly funded theatre building in the post-war period. The passing of the Local Government Act in 1948 enabled local authorities to use part of their income from rates to support the arts and the buildings in which they were housed. The public funding of theatres (and other arts establishments) was also made possible in this period by the establishment of the Arts Council, which was given substantial increases to its budgets by the Labour Government of 1964-70. The intention was to provide universal access to the arts in the belief that this was an essential part of a modern egalitarian state. This movement for new theatres carried on until the early 1980s and Theatr Clwyd is an important example of a civic theatre from the heyday of post war theatre construction.

Theatr Clwyd was intended to operate from the outset as a producing theatre and the facilities needed for this, such as a paint-screen, were incorporated into the design of the centre. Common themes in post war theatre design include the provision of generous and accessible foyers with catering facilities open outside of performance times and designed to operate more as community centres. There was also a move to more ‘open’ theatre staging with designs and layouts rejecting the traditional proscenium-arch layout in order to change the actor-audience relationship. Both of these themes are exemplified in the design of Theatr Clwyd. The design of the main theatre space appears to have been strongly influenced by the Thorndike Theatre in Leatherhead (1967-9) which was considered to be one of the most successful designs of the period.

An administration block by GG Tomlinson was added 1980-1 and some minor alterations have been made to the interior. Otherwise the theatre survives largely as built.

Exterior

Arts and theatre complex in a Modern idiom. Steel framed construction, faced in soft red brick with glazed elements and lead roofs, the leadwork wrapped over the wall heads of the prinicipal elements to give a distinctive capping to the brickwork of the walls.

It comprises a series of irregularly massed and interlocked blocks in a rough rectangular E-W plan. These blocks largely correspond to the component functional elements of the building. The main entrance is located to the right of the main elevation, with glazed doors beneath leaded fascia that advances from a continuous grid of glazing; similar glazed block advanced to right housing staircase, the lightness of these elements contrasting with the solid walls that dominate the rest of the structure. To the rear of the entrance and staircase block, bar, main auditorium and fly tower are progressively stepped up. The remainder of the theatre facilities are grouped to the side and rear in a series of mainly brick blocks, punctuated with some areas of glazing.

Interior

Complex plan reflecting the multiple facilities the building was originally designed to accommodate, including two theatres and a former TV studio. The building is loosely organised as a series of zones, in which the principal public spaces are the two theatres, both of which are substantially unchanged, the entrance foyer (albeit the layout has been altered) and main visitor circulation areas, including gallery to first floor. Other public areas and supporting facilities are grouped to the rear and side. Main entrance foyer with stairwells to either side, and the main auditorium behind at higher level. Auditorium follows a simple layout with curving side walls lined with moulded ceramic acoustic tiles, designed to provide good sightlines and acoustics. The Emlyn Williams Theatre is a square space with removable seating and a narrow balcony on 3 (formerly 4) sides. Dressing rooms, wardrobe and workshop accommodation towards the rear of the complex, including a full-size paint frame which enabled sets and back-drops to be painted vertically as they would appear on stage in a production.

Reasons for Listing

Included for its special architectural interest as an important example of a post war civic arts and theatre complex, the key example of this building type in Wales and one of the leading examples in the UK. It survives largely intact and is notable for the range of related facilities that were incorporated into the design. It is of special historic interest as an example of the improvements in arts provision across the UK in the post-war period.

External Links

• Cadwr Listing
• Theatr Clwyd at Wikipedia
• Theatr Clwyd official website
• Wikidata Q3399127

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Surrey (The Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Development and Design of Heritage Sensitive Sites: Strategies for Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas
• 
  Oxfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Northumberland (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Churches: An Architectural Guide (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Introductions)
• 
  For the Record