2011 has been an eventful year for busy UK theatre consultancy Charcoalblue. The company has been responsible for many of this year’s most highly praised UK theatre projects – regeneration and new build – including the Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury and the Newcastle Theatre Royal; as well as the hugely successful transformation of the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon. Although the RST was completed in 2010, it only opened to the public in April 2011, with a new repertory created specifically for the space.

The new Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury is modern, stylish and architecturally exciting. In fact it’s a surprisingly brave design in the context of such a traditional and historic city. White colonnades tower over a wrap-around glass facade, while strikingly angular but carefully worked-out proportions complement the adjacent softer historic redbrick buildings.

Delivering a historically-authentic restoration of a 175-year-old auditorium and at the same time ensuring it features future-proofed functionality creates the kind of tension that can inspire some of the most innovative solutions in modern theatre design.

So it was for the Grade 1 listed Newcastle Theatre Royal. Built in 1901 by renowned theatre architect Frank Matcham, its recent £4.9 million restoration project to transport it back to its former glory has engaged and tested the minds and skills of architect Sansome Hall Architects, theatre consultant Charcoalblue, historic theatre consultant (and Matcham expert) Dr David Wilmore and stage engineering contractor Unusual Rigging.