Dan Gordon On Site
Donning hard hat, fluorescent vest and steel toe capped boots wasn’t my standard dress for a meeting with arts funders – NO – it allowed me to get down and dirty with the lads on our Ridgeway Street site. Incidentally the only builder’s bum on view was mine – thanks to my low cut ‘designer’ jeans or possibly over indulgence of egg sodas – as I sprockled across the spoil heaps to the wolf whistles of the digger driver! After exchanging a bit of manly builder talk he informed me that practically all the rubbish – soil – spoil – muck and clart has been removed from the site and everything that’s going in now is to be there for a very long time. Initially it’s quite disorientating because instinctively you look for reference points of where the old Lyric stood. But a quick chat with Ivor, Site Manager, and I can track the outline of the main auditorium, stage, dressing rooms, second performance space and scene dock – bigger and better than before but retaining the intimacy and spirit of the original. Standing down on the under-stage area there’s already a great feeling of anticipation as they pour the concrete retaining walls that’ll hold the stage in place. And as I got confused in the emerging rabbit-warren of basement corridors, plant rooms and twisty turns I could hear the voice of the late great actor (Sir) John Hewitt in my ear saying ‘stupid boy’. There’s a big emphasis on optimising the footprint of the site so they’re building right into every corner – from the top edge of the old ‘white building’ down to where the caretaker used to scream at the actor luvvies for flicking their feg butts over the decking. They’re cramming in two lifts – a public one which is well up already – and a massive goods lift for accessing the rehearsal room and to bring the wages up to the huge casts and stage management on a Friday morning! If you haven’t been down yet I’d urge you to go it’s very satisfying to see it really moving on. I offered to pour some concrete – but Ivor says they want to hit the deadline of spring 2011 and if they have to chip me out – it’ll only hold them back!
Dan Gordon – Actor & Lyric Trustee
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