The recently restored Albert Walker Hall – a beautiful hidden gemat the Linacre Methodist Mission in Litherland – is set to take centre stage as the venue for an exciting new site-specific, immersive theatre piece.
Built in 1909, the stunning Art Nouveau hall has been recently restored thanks to Heritage Lottery funding. Memoria – a poetic, visceral exploration of memory and nostalgia – will be the first event to take place in the new space since the restoration.
The show takes place as part of Physical Fest – the UK’s only international physical theatre festival – which returns to the Liverpool City Region this June for an 8-day extravaganza of live & online performance, conversation & workshops, brought to you by the city’s own Tmesis Theatre.
Tmesis Theatre create, develop and share passionate and playful physical theatre and have toured their award-winning productions nationally and internationally since 2003.
The brand new piece, which runs from the 28th June until the 2nd July, will ask “what do past lives leave behind; what lives within walls; and what lives on in our collective present?”
The beautiful Sefton venue, which will host the show for nine performances over the five days, was originally conceived as a grand extension to accommodate the growing number of worshipers using Linacre Methodist Mission; it was a galleried hall until a false floor was installed in the 1950s dividing it into both a lower and upper hall.
The hall is named after Albert James Walker who, together with his mother, Elizabeth Walker, founded the mission in 1898.
Over the years, the once grand hall fell into disrepair due to a lack money to pay for its upkeep. But over a period of 18-months, working through the pandemic, the building’s structure has now been made sound, and the original decorative features have been painstakingly restored.
Artistic Director, Elinor Randle said
“It is so exciting to be making a piece in this incredibly beautiful space, so full of history. We are honoured to be the first ever event in the space following the heritage lottery restoration, I think it’s going to be a really exciting immersive experience for the audience.”
Other venues and locations for the 8-day long Physical Fest include the Unity Theatre, Toxteth TV, and outside the iconic Metropolitan Cathedral.
The festival, which runs from 25th June until the 2nd July, is supported by Arts Council England, Liverpool City Council and the Granada Foundation.
ickets and information for all the performances at this year’s Physical Fest can be found at www.tmesistheatre.com/physical-fest/.
