One
of the nicest surprises of our recent Soho Poly festival, was the fact that we
were joined by so many local Soho and Fitzrovia denizens, many of whom had
never known about the old theatre standing right outside their front doors. With
that in mind, I thought it would be fitting to post some thoughts written by
Jennifer Kavanagh (a terrifically interesting writer in her own right: www.jenniferkavanagh.co.uk):
The headline in Fitzrovia News: “Fitzrovia’s ‘lost’ theatre returns for a week of poetry
and memorabilia” was so intriguing that, finding that the lunchtime events were
just round the corner from where I live, I went.
It was an extraordinary experience. Most of all to
be led round the corner of a building belonging to the University of
Westminster and down from an outside door into a dark basement. And then to
discover that this murky little space was the original site of the Soho
theatre, and in the 1970s and 80s the birthplace of a lively tradition of
radical theatre. And to realise that this little space is just behind where I
live and I’d never known of its existence.
Round the walls was an exhibition of rare black and
white photos of its illustrious past and, as we sat at small tables with plates
of biscuits, we were treated to an exposition of the history of the theatre by
the original artistic director, Fred Proud. Then followed a poetry reading and finally two pieces of newly
commissioned digital theatre. With our headphones and i-pads, or those lent for
the occasion, we were asked to stand alone in a space in the room. Then into
our ears, but seemingly behind us, at our shoulders, all round us, came the
sounds of breathing and voices. It was a spooky experience – I kept looking
over my shoulder to see the invisible person breathing in my ear! The second
play, with different voices representing the spoken and unspoken thoughts of
two characters, was particularly affecting.
This is a space with a unique atmosphere, steeped
in history. I hope it will be saved to continue its contribution to experimental
and community theatre.
Jennifer Kavanagh, December 2017
