How we miss Matcham’s matchless beauties
PLAY addicts can currently find several ways of satisfying their hunger: NT Live continues to stream its greatest hits, BBC4 has been giving us Shakespeare from Stratford-upon-Avon and radio had the bright idea of broadcasting plays that were in production at the time of lockdown.
None of this, however, can ever match the thrill of the live event, which leads me to think about theatres themselves and the ones we miss most in this time of cultural deprivation.
What does one look for in the ideal theatre? Good sightlines, a natural rapport between stage and auditorium, a sense of fun rather than mere functionalism. All these factors were
