Auditorium

Phase 1 of our transformation project, An Icon for Everyone, will include a refurbishment of the original 1930s auditorium. Although various repairs and renovations have taken place since then, this will be its first full refurbishment in 90 years.

The auditorium is largely attributed to Serge Chermayeff whose interior and acoustic design expertise can be found in original features such as the dimpled ceiling, steel handrails, porthole air filters, rectangle windows on the doors and decorative exit signs. Theatre consultants Frank Birch and Edgar Jackson were tasked to equip a space that could be used for every type of presentation and in that way the auditorium was unique: an “entertainment hall” which presented concerts and plays but where the stalls seats could be removed for dances, balls and exhibitions.

On 14 December 1935 the inaugural concert was performed by the Pavilion Orchestra and played to a packed crowd including the Duke and Duchess of York. Little did the audience know that some of the ceiling, having been saturated with condensation the night before, was being held up manually by the assistant to the Clerks of Works for the duration of the concert. After the audience went home, the assistant let go and a 15m ceiling panel crashed straight on to the area where the Royal couple and other VIPs had been seated just twenty minutes before.

The auditorium has always been the heart of Bexhill, where people gather to be entertained or take part.

Thousands of adults and children have appeared on stage in choirs, school concerts, dance shows and awards ceremonies. Local amateur theatre, orchestras and music societies have used it as their home. It has hosted mayoral balls, New Year’s Eve parties, flower shows, badminton tournaments, Jobs Fairs and other events.

The auditorium has played host to some star names over the years including Paul Robeson, Dame Sybil Thorndike, Spike Milligan, Ken Dodd, Cliff Richard, Bob Marley’s first UK gig, Keane, Laurie Anderson, Patti Smith, Robert Plant, Elvis Costello, Dionne Warwick, The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Pixies and Eddie Izzard.

But the auditorium’s popularity has taken its toll and essential works need to be carried out to make it fit for the future. Architects Haworth Tompkins, working with specialist theatre consultants will retain and restore the auditorium’s original features and purpose re-introducing globe light fittings in the coffered ceiling and installing new retractable raking for seating. Currently it takes eight people up to six hours to remove the seats and raking and store them under the stage; the new system, with a repaired stage lift, will mean improved seating, spacing and sightlines in a shorter turnaround time. The balcony seats will be restored and reconstructed for comfort but the lighting box (no longer used) and 1970s lift shaft will be taken out for the balcony to be redesigned to have more seats and, for the first time, accommodate wheelchair users. New chairs and layouts will also mean more choice for wheelchair users, with wheelchair spaces in the stalls at different levels. These renovations will enable the auditorium to work more efficiently, be more accessible and vastly improve the audience experience.

1935 architects: Erich Mendelsohn and Serge Chermayeff

2026 architects: Haworth Tompkins

There are many ways you can support this project, please find out more here. Support the refurbishment of our auditorium and foyers and with your donation, celebrate a memory, honour a loved one, or add your name to an engraved plaque on one of our soon-to-be-installed new seats as part of Your Seat in History, find out more here.