Mechanics' Theatre

Mechanics' Theatre

The Mechanics' Hall, also known as the Hibernian Theatre of Varieties was a theatre and music hall in Lower Abbey Street, Dublin. It stood at the site of the current Abbey Theatre at 26 Lower Abbey Street.

A theatre or circus has stood on this site on Lower Abbey Street since at least the early 19th century. In the mid-19th century, at the urging of Dublin's gentry, John Classon, an upper-class merchant, acquired the buildings then on the site, one of which had housed a circus, in order to establish a joint concert hall and civic institution for the lower classes. Those buildings became the Music Hall and the Mechanics' Institute. The Music Hall, which could seat 4000 persons, hosted concerts, lectures, and popular entertainments.[1][2] The renowned black American abolitionist Frederick Douglass lectured at the Music Hall in 1845 during a four-month visit to Ireland. In 1850 and 1851 Pablo Fanque, the popular black equestrian and circus owner (immortalised later in The Beatles' song Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!) played to near-capacity Dublin crowds for weeks. During a March 1851 performance of Pablo Fanque's Circus Royal police were called in to quell a riot when playgoers threatened to riot and destroy the theatre in protest to the winner of a "conundrum" contest.[3][4]

In the late 19th Century the Music Hall was renamed the Mechanics' Theatre, after the adjacent Mechnanic's Institute. Sean O'Casey once appeared on stage there in a production of The Shaughraun by Dion Boucicault. The theatre was also known during this time as the Hibernian Theatre of Varieties, a name it retained until the building was acquired for the Abbey Theatre at the beginning of the 20th Century.


  1. ^ Denard, Hugh (February 25, 2011). "Abbey Theatre, 1904, digitally reconstructing Dublin's original Abbey Theatre". blog.oldabbeytheatre.net. http://blog.oldabbeytheatre.net/archives/298. Retrieved 2011-09-20. 
  2. ^ Ferris, Catherine (April 2011). ""The Use of Newspapers as a Source for Musicological Research: A Case Study of Dublin Musical Life 1840-44"". National University of Ireland, Maynooth. http://eprints.nuim.ie/2577/1/Catherine_Ferris_PhD_2011.pdf. Retrieved 2011-09-20. 
  3. ^ The Freeman's Journal and Daily Commercial Advertiser, June 10, 1850
  4. ^ The Caledonian Mercury, 3 April 1851

Other References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Mechanics Hall — (and variants Mechanic s Hall and Mechanics Hall) may refer to different current or former meeting halls: Mechanics Hall, Blaydon Mechanics Hall (Boston, Massachusetts) Mechanics Hall, Deadwood Mechanics Hall (Toronto) Mechanics Hall, New York… …   Wikipedia

  • Theatre Royal, Dublin — At one stage in the history of the theatre in Britain and Ireland, the designation Theatre Royal or Royal Theatre was an indication that the theatre was granted a Royal Patent without which theatrical performances were illegal. There have over… …   Wikipedia

  • Mechanics' Institute, Manchester — Mechanics Institute, Princess Street, Manchester The Mechanics Institute, 103 Princess Street, Manchester is notable as the building in which three significant British institutions were founded: the Trades Unions Congress (TUC), the Co operative… …   Wikipedia

  • Mechanics' Hall, New York City — Mechanics Hall was a meeting hall and theatre seating 2,500 people located at 472 Broadway in New York City. It had a brown façade. Built in 1803 by the Mechanics Society for their monthly meetings, it was also used for banquets, luncheons, and… …   Wikipedia

  • Mechanics' Bank and Trust Company Building — U.S. National Register of Historic Places …   Wikipedia

  • Mechanics' Hall (New York City) — For other buildings called Mechanics Hall, see Mechanics Hall. Mechanics Hall, 1803 Mechanics Hall was a meeting hall and theatre seating 2,500 people located at 472 Broadway in New York City, United States. It had a brown façade. Built in 1803… …   Wikipedia

  • theatre, Western — ▪ art Introduction       history of the Western theatre from its origins in pre Classical antiquity to the present.       For a discussion of drama as a literary form, see dramatic literature and the articles on individual national literatures.… …   Universalium

  • theatre — /thee euh teuhr, theeeu /, n. theater. * * * I Building or space in which performances are given before an audience. It contains an auditorium and stage. In ancient Greece, where Western theatre began (5th century BC), theatres were constructed… …   Universalium

  • Theatre in Detroit — A National Historic Landmark, the Detroit Fox Theatre lights up Foxtown at night. Theatre in Detroit discusses performing arts in the city, its history, and its venues. With more than a dozen performing arts venues, the city s theatre district… …   Wikipedia

  • Abbey Theatre — This article is about the Abbey Theatre, Dublin. For Abbey s Theatre on Broadway, see Knickerbocker Theatre (Broadway). Abbey Theatre Front facade Address 26 Lower Abbey Street …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”