Ambitious £6m restaurant revamp of Theatre Museum proposed

Published Thursday 16 October 2008 at 15:45 by Alistair Smith

Exclusive: Covent Garden’s former Theatre Museum could reopen under a £6 million plan put forward by a consortium looking to relaunch the site as an upmarket, theatrical version of Planet Hollywood.

Geoff Morrow, a former songwriter who penned hits for Elvis Presley, is leading the bid. As well as a background in music and theatre, he has experience in corporate finance.

His plans would see the Mander and Mitchenson Theatre Collection used as a basis for a new museum on site, which would be subsidised by event hire and an exclusive restaurant. This would be run by Robert de Niro’s restaurant chain the Tribeca Group - which runs the Michelin-starred Nobu.

The site would also house a studio theatre and an outpost of an existing drama school.

Morrow told The Stage: “I believe the reason the Victoria and Albert Museum removed subsidy was because the Theatre Museum was losing money and we have to find another way to make it work.

“We believe we’ve put a proposition to Capital and Counties [which owns the site] with a business plan which shows several different elements. One of them is a drama school, one is a corporate events area, which is in the same area as the museum, and a restaurant and bar on the ground floor. We believe those elements in Covent Garden would be profitable and subsidise the museum.”

While the amount of space given to a museum would be slightly less than when the site was run by the V&A, it would still have around 17,000sq ft. Morrow’s plan would be to utilise that space more effectively and have a crossover between the restaurant, museum and school.

“We’re looking at a different type of museum, where 75% of it is live,” he explained.

“Theatre is a live animal, so we’re looking at shows that would tell the history of theatre or might give a biography of Noel Coward or other great writers. We would be utilising many of the thousands of actors and actresses - chorus people - who are out of work at any one time. Normally those people go to restaurants and ask for jobs - we’d give them jobs which would see them entertaining customers and working in the museum.”

The consortium has architects Avery Associates on board - which designed the nearby Transport Museum - and business plans have been put to Capco.

But no deal has been reached as yet between the two parties, despite the fact that under the terms of the lease, the site must be used for cultural purposes.

A spokesman for Covent Garden London - the arm of Capco which runs the site - said: “After a thorough examination of the Theatre Studio proposal and consultation with the recommended partners for the venture, we concluded that the proposal was based upon an unsustainable business plan.

“We provided detailed feedback on our concerns to Mr Morrow regarding the viability of his plans and have thanked him for his application.”

Morrow insists that he has a solid business plan, with funding and underwriting for that funding.

He added: “We’re willing to pay the rent that they have requested, it’s just that they feel - and I understand this totally - that it may not commercially work.

“But what we are saying is that we will be spending some £5 million or £6 million on improving the building, so the worst thing that can happen is that Capco will have a beautiful building and their rent covered.

“So we’re saying, give us a shot at this. Let us try. Either way, Capital and Counties won’t be the losers.”

The Theatre Museum closed in January 2007, after the decision was taken to remove funding to the organisation by its parent institution the V&A. Parts of its collection have since been moved to the main V&A building, where there are plans to launch a space dedicated to the art form. There have also been talks between the V&A and Blackpool Council about launching an outpost of the Theatre Museum in the seaside resort.