United Kingdom, Southampton
2018
2,270
Creative Drapery, Over Stage Engineering, Traditional Drapery
Traditional Theatre
The Mayflower Theatre in Southampton has reopened following a major £7.5 million refurbishment that restored the venue to its dormer glory. As part of the transformation, leading theatre drapery specialist J&C Joel delivered bespoke drapery throughout the auditorium.
In a rapid 16-week turnaround the UK’s largest regional theatre was restored to its former glory. The project had a complete face-lift including being completely repainted with a new red and gold colour scheme.
Working closely with leading architect Foster Wilson (FWA), J&C Joel supplied drapery for every area of the auditorium using custom-dyed Norland IFR Trevira Velour (VEL650/00). Our team designed and manufactured bespoke decorative elements too; custom braid, fringing, rope detailing and 11 appliqued Mayflower ships.
There were four key challenges with this project which set it apart from other large-scale theatre projects J&C Joel has undertaken in the past. The first challenge was to design and manufacture 10 fabric centre piece Mayflower ships which were to be the focal point for the box and arch pelmets together with the main pelmet.
FWA created the original artwork using an historic sketch of the original Mayflower ship. J&C Joel’s design team then converted the artwork into detailed production drawings for manufacture.
The team used antique gold and mustard Regal Satin alongside custom-dyed rope to create the intricate pieces. Craftspeople assembled the ships using magnifying lamps and tweezers to achieve exceptional detail. Each ship featured a custom 8mm gold rope border to complete the finish.
The second of the challenges was the pelmets for the boxes that flanked the stage. The theatre regularly hosts large touring productions that require extensive lighting positions. However, existing lighting bars conflicted with the new pelmet design.
To solve the issue, J&C Joel worked with FWA to engineer concealed slits within the pelmets. Technicians can peel back these openings whenever productions need access to the lighting bars. When not in use, specially designed infill panels attach with Velcro to create the appearance of a seamless drape.
This solution required exceptional manufacturing precision to ensure all trims aligned perfectly when closed. To finish the boxes off, J&C Joel produced self-lined legs with custom tiebacks installed on timber battens, fixed into the underside of the box.
A late addition to the refurbishment introduced another major challenge: the new proscenium pelmet and frame.
Unlike traditional installations, the pelmet was required to sit flush to the underside of the uneven proscenium arch rather than behind it. To achieve this, J&C Joel recorded measurements every 100m across the width of the arch and used the data to create detailed CAD drawings.
Measuring 13.900m wide with a drop of 2.667m at its deepest point, the pelmet frame was fabricated in seven pieces from Sapele timber at J&C Joel’s premises.
After a successful on-site test fit, the team returned the frame to its workshop and covered it in black Molton (MOL002) followed by Norland velour (VEL650/00). A bespoke 100mm wave braid was then applied which was designed to flex around the pelmet’s tight curves.
The team mitred the braid at the lower corners and concealed the joins using decorative rope swirls. The finished pelmet also featured a large appliqued Mayflower ship centrepiece.
The final challenge was the measuring, design and production of six arch pelmets which sat at a high level in the auditorium. The difficulty with this element was that the arches curved in both planes which presented a challenge from a fixing perspective.
The fixing system also needed to accommodate integrated LED lighting designed to illuminate the surrounding wall artwork.
In order for the pelmets to read correctly, each needed to be made at slightly different sizes due to the arches being uneven. J&C Joel measured each arch and produced a CAD drawing which was overlaid onto the FWA auditorium drawing. This allowed J&C Joel to ensure that each of the arch pelmets would fit precisely.
Working alongside main contractor GF Holding, the team created curved MDF templates with custom headers that allowed secure installation within the building structure.
J&C Joel wrapped the MDF panels in the same Norland velour before applying the bespoke braid, rope detailing and appliqued ships. In order to deal with the corners of the pelmet, the team mitred the braid for a neater fit and then covered the joins with rope swirls.
To complete the installation, J&C Joel produced custom legs with varying drops to accommodate the auditorium stairways. Lastly, the team finished the design with bespoke tiebacks.
Alongside the main auditorium works, J&C Joel also manufactured:
Commenting on the project, Head of Specialist Drapery Oliver Marns said: “This was an extremely rewarding project to work on and I was fortunate to be involved in the design process with FWA very early on. On a technical level the project stood out due to the intricacy required to produce appliqued ships. Having carried out such work for over 40 years, J&C Joel had never produced pieces with this level of detail and we were delighted with the result. I would like to thank the entire Joel’s team, FWA, GF Holding, the other subcontractors on site and the Mayflower team for their assistance throughout the project.”
