The Byre Theatre was founded in 1933, by local freelance journalist and playwright, Alexander B Paterson. The auditorium in the current building is named after him and shows how far the theatre has come since its humble beginnings as a semi derelict cow byre. The theatre is now part of the University of St Andrews.
Back in 1933, renovations were carried out with the support of Hope Park Church’s theatre group. However, the original bullring, used to tether animals, stubbornly refused to be removed and remained at the back of the stage, in full view for virtually all productions until the cow shed made way for a more modern building in 1970. It has been treasured by the Byre’s Archivist, Jimmy Bone, until it became the focus of a project to catalogue and digitise the Byre’s archive in 2021.
The theatre moved into its current, state of the art building, on the same site, in 2001 and continues to chart the story of the Byre and the people who made, and make, it possible through archive materials.
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