• 2 months ago
The world’s smallest theatre which almost burnt down before falling into a state of disrepair is set for a big re-opening.

The Theatre of Convenience – a former gents’ toilets – is only big enough for 12 people and has a tiny 1.5m (4.9ft) stage.

It opened in Malvern, Worcs., in 1997 and was officially named the world’s smallest commercial theatre by Guinness Book of World Records in 2002.

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00:00I'm Loz Samuels, I'm part of a group of women that are taking over the Theatre of Small
00:15Convenience. We've set up a CIC, we've got Dr Jan Birtle and Deba Faruqi who are equally
00:24as enthusiastic as I am to see the theatre restored and open it up again as an entertainment
00:31hub for the Melbourne town. We've set up a proud funding campaign on Space Hive for people
00:36to donate which is going quite well but we're a long way off our target. We've also just
00:41been given some funding for Melbourne Hills Town Council so that's a big help. We've got
00:47a lot of repairs to do, we need a new roof, we need rewiring, all sorts of work needs
00:52to be done to get this little theatre open and restore it back to its title of the smallest
00:57theatre in the world. The whole theatre is full of amazing detail and quite a lot of
01:03it is animated or it adds to the atmosphere that Denny's created. So this old puppet has
01:09lost its weight now but that would move as people come in. These lovely little bits that
01:17make sound effects. This is an old piano.
01:35So much of the theatre is made out of reclaimed bits of old furniture and the dome above the
01:41stage is made from an old rattan chair and Denny's put little sections of coloured glass
01:46in it so when the lights are on it all illuminates different colours which makes it really beautiful.
01:53These panels here, they're open from the back, little doors so Denny's would appear or put
01:59puppets out of them and they're all made out of bits of old furniture, bits of old piano,
02:04pianolas, these are old chairs, old chair legs and table legs. So everything's reclaimed
02:10and really beautifully carved.

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