John Neville - a vision of a world class theatre

All the world's a stage

In 1963 a new theatre opened in Nottingham.

The Nottingham Playhouse promised to introduce new audiences to the joys of staged drama.

Inside Out asked Kenneth Alan Taylor, former Artistic Director and best known for his annual performances as pantomime dame, to investigate whether the Playhouse has lived up to its promises.

From the archive...

Deep in BBC vaults Inside Out has uncovered a remarkable documentary made 43 years ago as the new theatre staged its first production.

Kenneth was fascinated to see history unfold in the film narrated by the Playhouse's young ambitious director John Neville.

Exclusive web film

"I really love this theatre. It's as important today as it was 40 years ago..."

Kenneth Alan Taylor at Nottingham Playhouse

Watch the 1963 film

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Neville was then a major West End star but he moved to Nottingham, determined to build a world-renowned theatre company in the centre of England to rival London.

And he had the building to do it.

Fifteen years in the planning - the new theatre was billed as Europe's most modern theatre and cost £375,000, a lot of money in 1963.

The first play was Shakespeare's Coriolanus and featured a young Judy Dench and an even younger Ian McKellen.

Hardly populist fare and Nottingham residents living nearby weren't impressed.

They told the BBC the money should have been spent on community facilities and playgrounds.

Reaching out to communities

So 40 years on what do people think of the Playhouse?

Is it reaching the wider community and bringing in diverse audiences as it promised.

Taking theatre out into the community - youth drama

Few of the people in inner city Nottingham we talked to had ever been through the doors.

But the theatre does run an out-reach programme called the Black Regional Initiative in Theatre for young people from the African-Caribbean community.

This has proved to be a great way of building new talent, and new audiences.

Kenneth Alan Taylor told us:

"I really love this theatre. It's as important today as it was 40 years ago for every city to have a vibrant centre of culture."

Links relating to this story:

• BBC Nottingham - Inside Nottingham Playhouse
• Nottingham Playhouse

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