City Guides
Halifax
Theatres
Halifax has an abundance of cultural and artistic venues, making it an important centre for culture in the North. For a small town, Halifax has an impressive number of theatres, performance spaces and theatre groups.
The Victoria Theatre on Wards End in the town centre was opened in 1901, and has continued to serve the area with a varied programme of around a hundred and sixty-five dramas, comedies, musicals and dance productions each year since. The main auditorium has a capacity of almost three and a half thousand people, seated and standing. There is a bar on the premises, where smoking is permitted, with seating for a hundred-and-twenty and which opens an hour before each performance.
Tickets can be booked online or by calling 01422 351 158. To discuss hiring the Green Room Bar (free) on non-performance days, call 01422 351 156.
The Square Chapel Arts Centre is located in the single, surviving square church in the country. The venue was designed by the same architect as that of the Piece Hall, and was opened in 1772. The auditorium has been painstakingly renovated, with many of its original features restored or reproduced, and the theatre prides itself on unusually effective acoustics. Performances at the venue include drama, children’s theatre, dance, musicals, community drama and various lectures and talks. The bar and theatre are available to hire for private functions. Find the Square Chapel Arts Centre on Square Road, or call 01422 349 422.
The Viaduct Theatre is an intimate theatre, music and film venue, showcasing high quality small-scale drama and independent films. The theatre is home to two theatre companies: the IOU Theatre Company and the Northern Broadsides Theatre Company. The auditorium seats just less than three hundred people.
Upcoming performances include a production of Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ and various cabaret shows. For current listings and prices, call 01422 255266.
The Playhouse, on King Cross Street in the town centre, has a seating capacity of two-hundred-and-sixty people, with space for two wheelchair users. The venue also comprises a bar area and coffee lounge, and offers rehearsed play readings in the bar area for a more informal performance. Contact the theatre on 01422 365 998.
The Piece Hall was opened at the end of the eighteenth-century and served as a market for local handloom weavers for many years. It now comprises fifty retail units and a large market in the open courtyard. The Piece Hall has been officially recognized as being of historical importance, and its ambience has been made use of in films such as ‘Brassed Off’, with scenes filmed in the grounds. At one end of the market area, directly opposite the main entrance, is a large stage that has been used for a variety of performances and events. Theatre performances are just one type of these events, and others have included dance, comedy and choir singing.
Halifax is home to a number of commercial and experimental theatre groups. Amongst others, these include the Halifax Gilbert & Sullivan Society, Heaton Amateurs, Skipton Little Theatre and Dewsbury Collegians.
The Victoria Theatre on Wards End in the town centre was opened in 1901, and has continued to serve the area with a varied programme of around a hundred and sixty-five dramas, comedies, musicals and dance productions each year since. The main auditorium has a capacity of almost three and a half thousand people, seated and standing. There is a bar on the premises, where smoking is permitted, with seating for a hundred-and-twenty and which opens an hour before each performance.
Tickets can be booked online or by calling 01422 351 158. To discuss hiring the Green Room Bar (free) on non-performance days, call 01422 351 156.
The Square Chapel Arts Centre is located in the single, surviving square church in the country. The venue was designed by the same architect as that of the Piece Hall, and was opened in 1772. The auditorium has been painstakingly renovated, with many of its original features restored or reproduced, and the theatre prides itself on unusually effective acoustics. Performances at the venue include drama, children’s theatre, dance, musicals, community drama and various lectures and talks. The bar and theatre are available to hire for private functions. Find the Square Chapel Arts Centre on Square Road, or call 01422 349 422.
The Viaduct Theatre is an intimate theatre, music and film venue, showcasing high quality small-scale drama and independent films. The theatre is home to two theatre companies: the IOU Theatre Company and the Northern Broadsides Theatre Company. The auditorium seats just less than three hundred people.
Upcoming performances include a production of Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ and various cabaret shows. For current listings and prices, call 01422 255266.
The Playhouse, on King Cross Street in the town centre, has a seating capacity of two-hundred-and-sixty people, with space for two wheelchair users. The venue also comprises a bar area and coffee lounge, and offers rehearsed play readings in the bar area for a more informal performance. Contact the theatre on 01422 365 998.
The Piece Hall was opened at the end of the eighteenth-century and served as a market for local handloom weavers for many years. It now comprises fifty retail units and a large market in the open courtyard. The Piece Hall has been officially recognized as being of historical importance, and its ambience has been made use of in films such as ‘Brassed Off’, with scenes filmed in the grounds. At one end of the market area, directly opposite the main entrance, is a large stage that has been used for a variety of performances and events. Theatre performances are just one type of these events, and others have included dance, comedy and choir singing.
Halifax is home to a number of commercial and experimental theatre groups. Amongst others, these include the Halifax Gilbert & Sullivan Society, Heaton Amateurs, Skipton Little Theatre and Dewsbury Collegians.
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