Plough Yard Developments has won planning permission for a tower on the site of London’s second-oldest Shakespearean theatre.
The Pringle Brandon Perkins+Will scheme, called The Stage in Shoreditch, EC2, comprises a 40-storey, 385-flat tower that includes a gym and private cinema.
The 2.5-acre scheme also includes two office buildings totalling 250,000 sq ft and 50,000 sq ft of shops, cafés and restaurants.
The centrepiece will be a showcase of London’s second-oldest Shakespearean playhouse, the 16th century Curtain Theatre, where Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and Henry V were first performed. The theatre was discovered during archaeological investigations in 2011.
The theatre and related finds will be excavated, preserved and exhibited in a 13,000 sq ft space that includes a 164-seat indoor auditorium.
Outside, a 200-seat outdoor performance space will link to a new 1.3-acre open square.
An existing 19th century Victorian railway viaduct will be restored to accommodate shops spilling out onto a plaza and with a 7,800 sq ft “urban park” on top.
Architect John Drew of Pringle Brandon Perkins+Will said: “It is a privilege to be preserving such an archaeological discovery for generations to come.
“The scheme’s design as well as its name befits the hidden gem currently 3m underground and ensures that the Curtain Theatre takes centre stage when this disused site in Shoreditch is regenerated.
“We’ll be working very closely with the Museum of London Archaeology and English Heritage throughout the scheme’s development to safeguard this amazing find and create an outstanding, internationally significant cultural and educational attraction.”
Montagu Evans is advising on planning; Allsop is development adviser.
nick.whitten@estatesgazette.com
