The Quarry Theatre at St. Luke’s

Planning permission to convert St Luke’s Church, a Grade II listed Moravian Chapel built on the site of a smaller mid-18th century church and consecrated in 1865, into a new performing arts centre for Bedford School was granted in 2013. Named after a school benefactor, the Quarry Theatre opened on 26th June 2015. The auditorium is a 286-seat galleried courtyard theatre created by inserting a new steel structure within the volume of the existing church allowing the interior features to remain visible. The stage is flat with the audience in tiered seats. The existing balcony was retained but extended forward and re-tiered to provide good sightlines to the stage area. Two levels of new galleries extend along either side of the auditorium. The lower gallery is used for the audience while the upper gallery provides technical facilities and a control room supported on the steel frame. Lighting bars and suspension bars are above the stage on winches and a tension wired grid allows technicians to walk above the audience to access equipment without the risk of falling as it takes up the entire width of the space. An extension at the rear of the building wraps around the outside of the curved chancel providing foyer space. It has a zinc roof with Bedfordshire Gault brick at the base and glazing and timber in between. By radiating the extension around the original apsidal chancel wall and keeping the roof low, the original building has been allowed to remain visible. The extension houses an additional foyer and bar and the space opens out to a terrace that connects the building with the gardens and the school beyond. The listed 18th century Minister’s House was discovered to have been the original congregation meeting room which meant that it could be converted into an additional 60-seat studio theatre along with front of house facilities and offices. Existing materials, such as lime plaster, have been used in the renovations wherever possible. Oak flooring and joinery are used throughout the interior. The original church windows were kept but their acoustic performance improved by secondary glazing. The building uses low energy lighting and, where possible, insulation levels have been improved. Stippled glass has been removed from the front of the building to make the interior visible and the name of the theatre appears in a wrought iron arch at the entrance.