Wilton’s Music Hall is the oldest surviving Grand Music Hall in the world and continues to capture the imagination of artists and the public 161 years after its first performance.
Wilton’s reopened its door in 2015 following a four-year and £4m project to conserve and restore the Victorian Music Hall and its unique spirit. The RIBA Award-winning project, to which Virdor Credits Environmental Company awarded £318,000 funding in 2013, has enabled Wilton’s to establish itself as one of the leading performing arts venues in London.
Recently named 5th most iconic place in London by Time Out, Wilton’s is now home to over 400 performances of extraordinary theatre and music each year and welcomes over 65,000 visitors annually. Since reopening, Wilton’s has presented performances from the Royal Opera House, English National Opera, National Youth Theatre and each year they produce a Christmas production written and staged especially for Wilton’s.
The conservation and restoration of the building also saw the creation of a new space at Wilton’s in the form of a state-of-the-art Learning & Participation Studio. Wilton’s welcomes emerging and mid-career artists to the studio for residencies all-year round and in 2020 Wilton’s will present the first Wilton’s Music 4all Festival for new musical talent.
Harry Hickmore, Head of Development & Communications at Wilton's, said "The funding generously granted to Wilton's from Valencia Communities Fund helped secure the future of our magnificent building. Without it, we wouldn't be able to programme the extraordinary theatre and music. In particular the funding helped enable us to refurbish our Learning and Participation Studio, which now plays host to hundreds of budding theatre makers each year. We – and all of our collaborators – here at Wilton's have much to thank Valencia Communities Fund for.”
Alison Salvador, General Manager at Valencia Communities Fund, said “Valencia Communities Fund has always taken a great deal of pride in the part we were able to play in the restoration of this truly iconic and historic Grand Music Hall. Not only was the Board keen to bring this building of such architectural and archaeological significance back to its former glory but also to ensure the local community and visitors from far and wide could learn about the history of the East End and enjoy a huge variety of music and theatrical performances.”
