Orange Tree Theatre Orange Tree Theatre The Orange Tree Theatre is a 180-seat theatre at 1 Clarence Street, Richmond in south-west London, which was built specifically as a theatre in the round. It is housed within a disused 1867 primary school, built in Victorian Gothic style. The theatre was founded in 1971 by its previous artistic director, Sam Walters, and his actress wife Auriol Smith in a small room above the Orange Tree pub opposite the present building, which opened in 1991. Paul Miller, previously associate director at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, is the artistic director. He succeeded Walters, the UK's longest-serving
Lyceum Theatre (Sheffield) its demolition in 1975. The building was saved in part due to campaigning by the Hallamshire Historic Buildings Society. Over the years the building changed ownership many times, being used variously as a bingo hall and a rock concert venue. By the 1980s, the interior was in a state of disrepair. The theatre was bought by two Sheffield businessmen in 1985, with financial support from Sheffield City Council, and it was reclassified to Grade II* listed status. Between 1988 and 1990 the Lyceum was completely restored at a cost of £12 million. The theatre reopened in 1990 and now serves