Above the Stag in Vauxhall, Theatre Building

Above the Stag London Building, Vauxhall Development, Theatre Interior Architecture Images

Above the Stag in Vauxhall

New Theatre Building on Albert Embankment in South London, England – design by FORMstudio

25 Oct 2018

Above the Stag

Architects: FORMstudio

Location: Vauxhall, Southwest London, England, UK

Above the Stag – A dynamic new Theatre in Vauxhall by FORMstudio

Located in two interconnecting railway arches, the theatre will form a part of the wider retail and leisure regeneration focused around Vauxhall station in south London.

Above the Stag in Vauxhall
Main entrance to the theatre on Albert Embankment © PBGStudios

FORMstudio’s design provides a new home for the local award-winning Above The Stag LGBT+ theatre company, which had outgrown its previous venue in a single, smaller arch further along the railway line.

Above the Stag in Vauxhall
Cafa-bar area © Mike Neale, FORMstudio

The new venue comprises a 110-seat main auditorium, a 60-seat studio theatre, a dance/rehearsal space, exhibition facilities and a large café-bar open throughout the day and evening, along with all the necessary back of house areas.

Above the Stag in Vauxhall
Box office and bar © Mike Neale, FORMstudio

The polished concrete screed, galvanised steel fittings and corrugated grey cladding to the arches, combine with areas of exposed brickwork to create a retro industrial aesthetic that is further enhanced by an eclectic selection of furniture and a 9m long bar clad in reclaimed scaffolding boards.

Above the Stag in Vauxhall
Zinc bar counter © PBGStudios

The new venue has a street presence at both ends of the arches, bringing life to what had previously been the ‘dead’ back end facing the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, as well as providing the theatre with a strong visual identity and sense of place on the Albert Embankment which it previously lacked.

Above the Stag in Vauxhall
During the daytime, dappled light through the trees animates the cafe-bar © PBGStudios

The theatre opened with a new 25th anniversary production of Jonathan Harvey’s landmark play Beautiful Thing, first staged in 1993 at the Bush Theatre. Above The Stag is the only full-time professional LGBT+ theatre in the UK.

Above the Stag in Vauxhall
Concealed LED lighting illuminates the well-stocked bar © PBGStudios

FORMstudio has chosen to celebrate the industrial grit of the original architecture. The robust palette of materials features a polished concrete screed, galvanised steel fittings and corrugated grey cladding to the arches, together with areas of exposed brickwork, conjuring up a retro-industrial aesthetic that is further enhanced by a nine-metre-long bar clad in reclaimed scaffolding boards.

Above the Stag in Vauxhall
Main auditorium © Mike Neale, FORMstudio

The venue has a dynamic street presence at both ends of the arches, enlivening the facade facing the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, as well as providing the theatre with a strong visual identity and sense of place on the Albert Embankment.

Above the Stag in Vauxhall
Main auditorium seating © Mike Neale, FORMstudio

Above The Stag is the only full-time professional LGBT+ theatre in the UK and an integral part of Vauxhall’s LGBT+ identity. The area has a rich history, from the 18th-century Pleasure Gardens to the iconic Royal Vauxhall Tavern, home of performers such as Bette Bourne and Lily Savage, and scene of spirited defiance at the height of the AIDS crisis in the late ’80s.

Above the Stag in Vauxhall images / information received 251018

Location: Vauxhall, London, England, UK

London Building Designs

Contemporary London Architectural Designs

London Architecture Links – chronological list

London Architecture Walking Tours – bespoke UK capital city walks by e-architect

London Architecture Offices

London Architecture News

Canaletto Tower, 257 City Road, Islington
Design: UNStudio, architects
Canaletto Tower London Building design by UNStudio
photography © Hufton+Crow, © EvaBloem
Canaletto Tower Building

Dollar Bay, Isle of Dogs
Design: SimpsonHaugh Architects
Dollar Bay London Docklands Tower
photo © Hufton+Crow
Dollar Bay Building

Dukes Meadows Bridge, under Barnes Railway Bridge, Chiswick, West London
Moxon Architects / CampbellReith consulting engineers
Dukes Meadows Bridge in Chiswick
render © Moxon Architects
Dukes Meadows Bridge in West London

St John’s Hill Redevelopment, Battersea, Southwest London
Architects: Hawkins\Brown
St Johns Hill Redevelopment
image from architect
St John’s Hill Redevelopment

London Architecture Photographs

Comments / photos for the Above the Stag in Vauxhall page welcome

Website: FORMstudio