A London Theater Celebrates 150 Years

In the 1860s and ’70s the barn-sized theater saw acts like the first British can-can show, tightrope walkers and a regular parade of street buskers. The only building in this East End neighborhood to survive the Blitz during World War II, today Wilton’s is an atmospheric vestige of its raffish past. You can easily imagine legs dangling from the balcony, now chipping with green paint, dock workers leaning against the ornate barley-twist columns, or feet stomping the scuffed wood floorboards.
After serving as a Methodist mission and a sorting house for rags, Wilton’s fell into disuse until 1997, when Fiona Shaw and Deborah Warner staged T.S. Eliot’s “The Waste Land.” The acclaimed production, which eventually moved to New York, has returned to Wilton’s (with both director and star intact) through Jan. 10.
No longer cramming in crowds of 1,500, as it did in its heyday, Wilton’s now hosts a more subdued audience, but the program is still eclectic, ranging from burlesque to Shakespeare. There are film nights and a resident string quartet. “It’s a music hall for the modern day,” said Frances Mayhew, the artistic director. “We cater to everybody.” But whatever the show, the building itself always steals some of the theatrics.
Listed on the World Monuments Fund Watch List, Wilton’s is falling apart: only half of the space is open, and the flimsy roof often leaks. Recently a storm ripped out the electrics and the show went on in half-darkness. Even if the theater raised enough money, though, Ms. Mayhew said she wouldn’t restore it to its former glory.
“It’s more of a preservation project just to stop the decay,” she said. “It’s terribly sad but there’s something really beautiful about plaster hanging off the wall and damaged fireplaces. It’s a sort of time capsule. You get a theatrical experience that’s unlike anywhere else.”