Matthew Morrison, Senior Lecturer and Course Leader in Humanities, spoke to the Marylebone Journal about the restoration of the Soho Poly theatre for their 101st issue. He highlighted the long history of the venue and spoke about the decade-long process of bringing it back to life.
The Soho Theatre Company was set up in 1968 and moved to a basement space on Riding House Street in 1972. This belonged to the Polytechnic of Central London, now the University of Westminster. The company adapted the name Soho Poly, an amalgamation of Soho Theatre Company and Polytechnic of Central London.
The Soho Poly quickly established itself as a pioneering fixture on the London fringe, helping to launch the careers of actors, writers and directors including Hanif Kureishi, Simon Callow, Bob Hoskins, Caryl Churchill and Timberlake Wertenbaker. Many BBC producers from the nearby Broadcasting House also commissioned works first performed at the Soho Poly.
The Soho Poly was a leading venue for radical lunchtime theatre and dedicated to widening democratic access to the arts. It also gave voice to underrepresented writers, particularly women. After the Soho Poly closed in 1990, it fell into disrepair. Matthew Morrison rediscovered it in 2012 and began making plans to reactivate the space, mounting new pop-up performances and re-engaging students, local residents and the wider London arts community.
Matthew Morrison said: “I first heard about the Soho Poly while researching the early history of Soho Theatre. I had a theatrical background as an actor and playwright and worked at the University of Westminster. I knew that the old theatre must be somewhere on the university’s estate.
“Eventually, in 2012, I found an internal door that opened onto a rickety staircase. I went down into the basement and found an anonymous junk room full of rubbish – nothing theatrical at all. It was hard to believe it, but this had once been a crucible of alternative theatre. That was the point at which I thought, wouldn’t it be amazing if we could bring this space back to life?”
Morrison began doing pop-up events in the space to gain momentum. The Soho Poly project received a £100,000 grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, which provided funding for an oral history and outreach project, Soho Poly: Inspiring Future Generations. In early 2023, the Soho Poly obtained a premises license from Westminster City Council. Morrison plans to set up year-round activities that will include curated seasons, poetry events, community workshops and regular gigs.
Morrison said: “We’re building a real sense of exchange, with the theatre becoming a place where people share their expertise, skills and passion. Our mantra is ‘disrupt your everyday.’ The idea is to have a spread of events at different times of the day, meaning we can reach different audiences and people can disrupt whatever their daily routine is with something cultural or creative.”
Read the article The Difference Makers in the Marylebone Journal.
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