They were once the great entertainment venues of Belfast. Now the city’s lost and forgotten theatres are being brought back into the limelight.
Set designer Stuart Marshall has created miniature models of a series of famous old venues, stirring memories for some while telling the story of Belfast’s arts history for a new generation.
While theatres once played a huge part of life in Belfast, many have now been forgotten.
Stuart said his work, which has been on display this week at Ulster University for the Children’s Festival, started during the Covid pandemic when he had a lot of spare time.
Among the venues he has brought back to life in miniature form are The Alhambra on North Street, which closed after being gutted by fire in 1959; and The Ritz, where The Rolling Stones and The Beatles once played, before it was destroyed by an IRA firebomb in 1977.
He explained: “The Grand Opera House had asked me to do a piece and from there I thought that maybe I could do some more and I got curious about some of the older theatres that were in Belfast back in the day.”
After five years of work he teamed up with Young At Art and the Children’s Festival to put all of his models on display.
“I’ve shown them to people before but this is the first time that they are all displayed together so it’s really interesting to go and see them all at once,” he said.
All of the models were made using everyday art and craft supplies.
“They are all just cardboard and plastic and they are painted to make them look a bit rougher and more realistic – that is something I really like about them, you can’t really tell what they are made from, they just look like they have just appeared there.”
Stuart had to turn detective to recreate the lost venues, many of which have faded from the memory with the passage of time.
He explained: “There are some photos you can go and see in the Ulster Museum of the older theatres but they are in black and white whereas the models really let you see what they would have looked like.”
Some of the theatres were easier to recreate than others: “You have to put two and two together, I’ll find old photos and then maybe some newspaper articles about them and from that you can piece together what it would have looked like – you feel like a bit of a detective.
“It’s given me a renewed appreciation for the architecture we have here in Belfast.
“We are very lucky to still have the Grand Opera House and we have so many buildings that are so special.
“It makes you look around them a bit and notice things you wouldn’t normally notice.”
The models are part of the Theatres of Old Belfast display at Ulster University this week and so far have been a hit with locals.
“It’s quite a cross generational exhibition,” Stuart explained.
“Children enjoy them because they are miniatures, almost doll house-type things, then adults appreciate the art and older people recognise them as places they would have known.”
Other venues he recreated include The Empire Theatre, which was situated on Victoria Square and opened to the public in 1894, before closing in the 1960s.
He is thrilled the models have unlocked memories for some older visitors.
“A man actually came up to me to say that his 90-year-old father would have loved going to the theatres so he was taking photos so he could show his father and ask him if he remembered any of them and I just think that’s quite amazing.”
He is hopeful the exhibit can inspire the next generation of set designers.
“I really want young people to get something out of it because that’s what sparked my interest,” he added.
“It was making model kits and Lego that inspired me to go into this line of work.
“On Saturday they are running a special event where children can make their own model stage and just be inspired to create their own little project.”
This exhibit won’t be the end of Stuart’s theatre models though – he has more planned for the future.
“There’s a couple more theatres I’d like to do, there’s lots of other theatres that I have tried to do but there’s only small mentions of them and no photography so it is a bit more challenging,” he added.
“But I’ve done a few cinemas as well as theatres and I’d like to do more of them because the history of theatres and cinemas in Belfast is intertwined as a lot of theatres became cinemas.
“I’m thinking of doing smaller sketchy things instead of the models as I don’t have loads of time free to do these at the moment.
“But there’s loads of options and I’m keen to continue making these as it’s nice for people to look and think of what was once here.”