Songbirds, a chandelier and no green: how Theatre Royal Haymarket's historic star dressing room was remade

With dusty pink wallpaper covered in flowers and songbirds, two sofa chairs in brighter florals and a floor-length mirror with a golden frame this room would not look out of place on the cover of House and Garden.

If it did, it would likely be the first theatre dressing room to do so, as this space sits at the top of Theatre Royal Haymarket in the West End. It has hosted legendary actors including Ingrid Bergman, Noel Coward, Lauren Bacall, Alec Guinness, Judi Dench, Maggie Smith and Bradley Cooper – and now it’s the home of Succession star Sarah Snook as she plays all 26 parts in The Picture of Dorian Grey.

Just before Snook stepped into the role, the 136-year-old star dressing room, called Number 10, underwent a redesign from one of London’s leading design firms, Kit Kemp Design Studio – readying the room for its next century of occupants.

The dressing room, photo by Simon Brown (Courtesy of Theatre Royal Haymarket and Kit Kemp Design Studio)

“It was a real honour to be working on the space,” says Minnie Kemp​​​​, the studio’s design director. “It’s a cherished heaven for stars, leading actors across generations.”

The design firm, founded by creative director of Firmdale Hotels Kit Kemp, has transformed the interiors of some of London’s most celebrated hotels, from The Soho Hotel and the Ham Yard Hotel, to Charlotte Street Hotel and the Haymarket Hotel.

When it was approached by one of its neighbours, the Theatre Royal Haymarket, to reinvent the historic dressing room, it jumped at the opportunity (this is its first project of this kind – Jake Gyllenhaal asked the design studio to redesign his Savoy dressing room, but his show, Sunday in the Park With George, was delayed indefinitely due to Covid).

The drawer signed by stars, photo by Simon Brown (Courtesy of Theatre Royal Haymarket and Kit Kemp Design Studio)

Thought to be the largest dressing room in London, the design studio drew on Number 10’s storied past to recreate its new look.

“We wanted to create something that felt androgynous, yet romantic,” says Kemp. There were only a few requirements: a bed of some kind needed to be installed for the actors’ long days at the theatre, and green was banned; one of theatre’s many superstitions, the colour is deemed unlucky.

So the Kit Kemp team transformed the high-ceilinged, multi-room space (it also boasts a waiting area and a bathroom), with key features including tranquil songbird wallpaper, symbolising new beginnings and music, a modern chandelier, and huge, elegant curtains strung Italian-style to mirror the curtains on stage.

They left the room’s vintage desk, which has been signed by dozens of actors over the past century: “It feels very, very historic,” says Kemp, who added her own signature to the desk drawer, a nod to the studio’s role in the room’s incredible history.

“The great thing about working on historic projects like this is, yes, you can bring it into new and zhuzh it up, adding a really contemporary twist. But having pieces like this vintage desk, that show the history of the space – keeping that there and celebrating that is really special.”

The dressing room, photo by Simon Brown (Courtesy of Theatre Royal Haymarket and Kit Kemp Design Studio)

The star dressing room was first created in 1890 for 29-year-old Winifred Emery, one of the West End’s most celebrated stage actors of her time. Unusually, the space was built at the top of the building, rather than next to the stage, reinforcing its sense of grandeur – “Like a sort of penthouse,” says Kemp. And lining the stairs on the way up are framed posters of past performances, further adding to the drama of the old space (the theatre was built in 1720).

“If only the walls could speak!” Kemp says: not only has the room been occupied by some of the world’s biggest stars, but it has survived some remarkable periods. During the Blitz for example, Rex Harrison was starring in No Time For Comedy, working as a fire marshal between performances.

“When you’re working with historical buildings like in this case, you really don’t have to do as much, because all of the details are still there,” says Kemp. “You just have to work with the history to create something that feels new and fresh.”

Meanwhile, The Portrait of Dorian Grey has been picking up rave reviews: “Whether you enjoy this show as a star vehicle, a Wildean debate on morality versus self-expression, or a cutting-edge piece of mixed-media art, it’s an extraordinary event,” said the Standard, which described Snook’s performance as “extreme, carnivalesque” and “nothing else I’ve ever seen”.

Next up, Dominic West will occupy the dressing room as the actor will star in Arthur Miller’s The View From the Bridge. But, for a few more days, Snook will recline in Kit Kemp Design Studio’s joyful yellow sofa bed, looking up at the soft pink ceilings. And, surely, she too will add her signature to the drawer.

The Picture of Dorian Grey, Theatre Royal Haymarket, to May 11; trh.co.uk

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