Bare boards, crumbling plaster
This small theatre has survived everything that fate could throw at it: a fire in 1877, the Blitz of 1940–41, slum clearances in the 1960s and decades of neglect. From the street, there is no sign of a theatre – only a row of terraced houses with traces of red paint on a shabby façade. The decay becomes clearer when you enter the hallway, where the floorboards are bare and the brick walls have lost their plaster. In the auditorium beyond, delicate spiral columns support the galleries. After a short time, as your eyes get used to the darkness, the remains of stucco decoration and gilding become visible. Welcome to Wilton’s Music Hall, the last of its kind!
19th century music-hall shows comprehended everything that could make the public laugh, cry or cheer: from singers and comedians to acrobats, ventriloquists, dancers and sword-swallowers. At Wilton’s, this entertainment developed from sing-songs in a seamen’s tavern in the 1740s. A concert hall built behind the pub in 1839 was enlarged 20 years later by John Wilton. He constructed a high stage to give the audience a clear view, even over the top hats of gentlemen who came from the West End to indulge in some low life, and adorned the room with mirrors, crystal chandeliers and a »sunlight« with 100 gas jets to make everything sparkle. Oscar Wilde’s »Picture of Dorian Gray« describes how such a light »flamed like a monstrous dahlia with petals of yellow fire«.
Info
Address 1 Grace’s Alley, Ensign Street, E1 8JB | Public Transport Tower Hill (Circle, District Line), Tower Gateway (DLR) | Hours For musical and dramatic performances, food and drink in the Mahogany Bar and guided tours,, see www.wiltons.org.uk| Tip A short trip by Tube from Wilton’s takes you to many historic theatres, for example the Victoria Palace Theatre, built in 1911 for music hall entertainments near Victoria Station.
The days of glory were soon over. Splendid new theatres supplanted simple halls like Wilton’s, which became a Methodist mission and finally a storehouse. In 1971 it was listed as the only surviving first-generation music hall. Following years of fund-raising and publicity work, restoration and careful modernisation were completed in 2015, making Wilton’s fit for operation as a theatre without spoiling its morbid charm. Go there after dark and listen: does the laughter of past times still echo?
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