City theatre revamp moves closer

Architects are set to work on the Marlowe Theatre designs in 2007

Plans to demolish the main part of a city's theatre in order to replace it with a state-of-the-art facility have moved a step closer.

Canterbury City Council has agreed to release funds so that architects can work on designs next year for the Marlowe Theatre's £24m overhaul.

The theatre is housed in a 1920s cinema but soon only the shell will remain.

Council chief executive Colin Carmichael said the building would look "completely different".

He said the council was set to put £9m into the plan overall and would also seek funds from trusts and private organisations.

Bars and restaurants

He said the Marlowe Theatre's fly tower made it the second tallest building in the city after the cathedral.

The council chief said the theatre would close for 18 months, but stage productions would still take place in the city.

The end result would provide a theatre with 200 additional seats, refigured in a semi-circle instead of the current straight-down-the-line rake.

He said there would be a second performance space and "all of the facilities you would expect in a theatre", including a proper box office, bars and restaurants.

Mr Carmichael said the shell of the building - the walls and the stage house - would remain because there was a limit to what it could stand in terms of refurbishment, but everything else would be extra.