Locate the site of Shakespeare's first theatre

In Elizabethan times on Curtain Road in Shoreditch the second permanent theatre ever built in England (and the first successful one) was erected by actor-manager James Burbage. It was at The Theatre that many of William Shakespeare's plays were premiered, as he was employed as actor and playwright by the management on his first job since moving down from Stratford.

Nowadays, much of the original site is rather unceremoniously occupied by a Foxton's, but behind that some of the area has been excavated and exposed to the air for the first time in generations.


In August last year, the Museum of London announced that they had found some foundations which they believed to be the remains of one corner of The Theatre. As you can see from the video linked to above, the excavations are nearing completion and the Tower Theatre group now intends to develop a new theatre on the site. Sadly, the site is not accessible at the moment but there is a plaque on the wall in Curtain Road to show where it is.

For more information on the project, visit the Tower Theatre Group website at www.towertheatre.org.uk.

Click here to see the location on a map.

^{^Video from youtube courtesy of TowerTheatreCo^}