Guide: Good afternoon everyone, and welcome to the Riverside Theatre backstage tour. My name is Carla, and I'll be showing you around for the next ninety minutes. Before we start, just a few safety notes. Please keep your phones on silent, and don't touch any of the ropes or pulleys you'll see — some of them control heavy scenery and can be dangerous.
Visitor: How old is the building, exactly?
Guide: Great question. The theatre opened in 1908, so it's well over a hundred years old. It was originally built as a music hall, but it was converted into a proper playhouse in 1925. The seating capacity today is six hundred and forty, which is fairly small compared to the big West End venues.
Visitor: And how many people work behind the scenes?
Guide: During a typical production, we have around forty-five staff working backstage. That includes the stage crew, lighting technicians, sound engineers, and the wardrobe team. Now, let's head through this door into the wings. Mind the step.
Visitor: It's much bigger back here than I expected.
Guide: Yes, the stage area extends a long way back. The main feature here is what we call the fly tower — that's the tall space above the stage where scenery is lifted out of sight. Our fly tower is twenty metres high, which lets us store backdrops vertically. Over there you can see the prop store, where we keep furniture, fake weapons, and other items used in the shows.
Visitor: Do you make your own costumes?
Guide: We do, mostly. The wardrobe department is on the second floor, and they produce around two hundred costumes for a single large production. Some are hired in for unusual period pieces, but the majority are made on site by our team of seven tailors and dressmakers.
Visitor: What about the dressing rooms?
Guide: There are twelve dressing rooms in total. The two largest are reserved for the lead actors, and the others are shared. The actors usually arrive about two hours before a performance to get into costume and have their makeup done.
Visitor: Is the tour suitable for children?
Guide: Absolutely, though we recommend it for ages eight and above, simply because there's quite a lot of walking and some narrow staircases. We run the tour every Saturday at two o'clock, and tickets cost twelve pounds for adults and eight pounds for children. If you'd like to book the full theatre experience, which includes a show afterwards, that's available at the box office. Right, let's continue up to the lighting gallery.
Visitor: How old is the building, exactly?
Guide: Great question. The theatre opened in 1908, so it's well over a hundred years old. It was originally built as a music hall, but it was converted into a proper playhouse in 1925. The seating capacity today is six hundred and forty, which is fairly small compared to the big West End venues.
Visitor: And how many people work behind the scenes?
Guide: During a typical production, we have around forty-five staff working backstage. That includes the stage crew, lighting technicians, sound engineers, and the wardrobe team. Now, let's head through this door into the wings. Mind the step.
Visitor: It's much bigger back here than I expected.
Guide: Yes, the stage area extends a long way back. The main feature here is what we call the fly tower — that's the tall space above the stage where scenery is lifted out of sight. Our fly tower is twenty metres high, which lets us store backdrops vertically. Over there you can see the prop store, where we keep furniture, fake weapons, and other items used in the shows.
Visitor: Do you make your own costumes?
Guide: We do, mostly. The wardrobe department is on the second floor, and they produce around two hundred costumes for a single large production. Some are hired in for unusual period pieces, but the majority are made on site by our team of seven tailors and dressmakers.
Visitor: What about the dressing rooms?
Guide: There are twelve dressing rooms in total. The two largest are reserved for the lead actors, and the others are shared. The actors usually arrive about two hours before a performance to get into costume and have their makeup done.
Visitor: Is the tour suitable for children?
Guide: Absolutely, though we recommend it for ages eight and above, simply because there's quite a lot of walking and some narrow staircases. We run the tour every Saturday at two o'clock, and tickets cost twelve pounds for adults and eight pounds for children. If you'd like to book the full theatre experience, which includes a show afterwards, that's available at the box office. Right, let's continue up to the lighting gallery.