Old Theatre Royal, Bath
The Old Theatre Royal, Bath is a former theatre and Catholic chapel at 12 Old Orchard Street, now used as a Masonic hall and museum. The theatre opened in 1750; the building is listed at Grade II.[1] Three Bath lodges bought the premises in 1865, and the hall was dedicated on 3 December 1866.[2]
Theatre and chapel
The Orchard Street theatre closed in 1805 when theatrical performances moved to the new Theatre Royal on Sawclose. The two buildings are distinct. The older theatre became a Catholic church in 1809.[3]
The present street frontage is built of limestone ashlar and has three storeys. Its Doric doorway with a triangular pediment belongs to the Masonic period. Historic England records both eighteenth-century alterations and reconstruction following damage in the Second World War; the interior does not survive entirely as it was when the theatre opened.[1]
Royal Cumberland Lodge No. 41, Royal Sussex Lodge No. 53 and Lodge of Honour No. 379 formed a joint committee to acquire the former chapel in 1865. Their purchase followed earlier attempts to maintain shared premises and periods of meeting in rented rooms at inns.[2]
The conversion reused parts of the existing interior. Selected chapel pews became seating, and other pew backs served as screens. The venue's history records that the old stage was retained. These changes make the building an example of the adaptation of existing premises for Masonic use.[2]
Paintings and reused furnishings
Some of the hall's fittings came from other Bath churches. A reredos, or decorated screen originally placed behind an altar, was acquired in 1881 from St Mary's Chapel near Queen Square when that chapel was demolished. John Joseph Barker supplied replacement paintings for it.[2]
William Hoare's Pool of Bethesda, formerly an altarpiece in the Octagon Chapel, was given to the hall in 1896 by Charles Radway, proprietor of the Grand Pump Room Hotel. Both the venue's history and that of Royal Sussex Lodge record the gift.[2][4]
Two further paintings, by Hoare and Robinson, had been lent by St Michael's Church and were returned there in the 1920s. They came back to Old Orchard Street in 2012 after decades in storage. Their display alongside the Pool of Bethesda brings together works originally made for Bath's churches.[2]
War damage and the museum
Bombing in April 1942 damaged the roof and ceiling and destroyed much of the museum collection. The library and much of the lodge furniture survived. Repairs continued after the war, and the venue's account dates the return to full use to 1950.[2]
The museum, founded in 1925, now occupies the vaults beneath the building. Its collections cover local Masonic history and include objects from elsewhere in Britain and overseas. An expansion in 2009 added displays about the building's theatre and chapel periods.[5] Public guided tours include the historic building and museum.[6]
See also
- Masonic architecture
- The Layout of the Craft Lodge
- Masonic museums and libraries
- Phoenix Hall, Sunderland
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Historic England, Masonic Hall, National Heritage List for England, entry 1396228, history and architectural description. Accessed 30 September 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 Old Theatre Royal, Bath, Masonic Hall — since 1865. Accessed 30 September 2026.
- ↑ Theatre Royal Bath, History. Accessed 30 September 2026.
- ↑ Royal Sussex Lodge No. 53, History, entry for 1896.
- ↑ Bath Freemasons, History, museum section. Accessed 30 September 2026.
- ↑ Old Theatre Royal, Bath, Guided Tours and Masonic Museum. Accessed 30 September 2026.
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