Corona Stage Academy - Theatre Building

Theatre Building

In 1958, work started on a theatre which would enable the students to put on their own theatrical productions, also learning all forms of drama and theatre studies, including stage management. This was a real do-it-yourself venture, as many students took an active part in the actual construction of the theatre, including digging out the foundations and constructing the brickwork to a height of about eight feet. This was under the guidance of a professional builder, who happened to be one of the student's parents. A lot of the basic spadework was done by the students to save money; then, the professional contractors took over to complete the more complicated bits. The overall building costs were only £5,000, with most of this money being raised through subscriptions, donations, fetes and jumble sales. Rona Knight also put some of her own savings into the venture. The stage was quite large for a school theatre, being 25 feet by 18 feet with a small lighting gallery. Two dressing rooms were built at the rear of the theatre. The tip-up seats in the auditorium, which seated 150 people, had been purchased from the old Chiswick Empire.

The foundation stone included in the wall of the building clearly states that it was laid by Joan Crawford, who also donated £100 towards the cost of the building. Other stars had been equally generous with donations. Unfortunately, Crawford did not actually lay the stone as stated, because on the day in question she was unwell and unable to attend the ceremony. So Mr. Lloyd, the odd-job man, did the honours and laid the stone, causing the children to nickname him Joan for ages afterwards. The theatre officially opened on Monday the 25th of April 1960, with a revue entitled “This Is It” staged by the students. The opening ceremony was to have been performed by Sir Richard Attenborough, but at the last minute he was called away to Liverpool for location shots on the film he was working on. He did, however, send a telegram wishing the theatre every success.