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The history of the drama in Barnstaple

Trans. Devon. Assoc., vol. 49, (1917) pp.376-388.

by

JSydney Harper

Prepared by Michael Steer

The history of theatre in Barnstaple can be traced back to about 1435, when minstrels, players, jugglers and buffoons were an established feature of Barnstaple's annual fair. Documents indicate that in 1605 a touring troupe, the King's Players visited, and it is believed that William Shakespeare was one of their members. John Gay, best known for the 'Beggar's Opera' was born in Barnstaple. Barnstaple's first theatre was built in Honey Pot Lane (now Theatre Lane) in 1760. By 1832, it had become 'ruinous' and was forced to close. A new theatre, 'The Grecian Hall', opened in 1834. Renamed 'The Theatre Royal' around 1860, it regularly staged popular musicals and musical comedies. By 1880 this too had closed. The 'Theatre Royal' re-opened in 1893 and the music hall, now the 'Albert Hall', in 1897. The two venues operated successfully until just prior to World War I, when the 'Theatre Royal' was demolished. The Internet Archive makes available, in its Community Texts Collection (originally known as Open Source Books), books that have been digitised by Google from a number of libraries. These are books on which copyright has expired, and are available free for educational and research use. This rare book was produced from a copy held by the Princeton University Library, and is available from the Internet Archive