Chatsworth House

In 1896, Louisa, eighth Duchess of Devonshire, arranged for a room at Chatsworth House to be converted into a private theatre. The theatre survives today and is one of only a handful of private theatres remaining in Britain - though elsewhere in Europe there are a number of fine examples.

The room that was covered is located at the far end of the North Wing, which was added to Chatsworth House by the sixth Duke of Devonshire in the 1840s. Prior to the conversion of the space into a permanent theatre, the room had been known interchangeably as the Ball Room, Banqueting Room and Theatre. It had been used for theatrical activities at least once before, under the sixth Duke of Devonshire.

Chatsworth's Theatre sits at the end of the North Wing, on the first floor of the Belvedere Tower.

Fashionable amateur theatricals were held in Chatsworth House's private theatre almost annually between 1896 and 1907. These events ceased on the death of the eighth Duke of Devonshire in 1908. The ninth Duke and Duchess of Devonshire used the theatre for family theatricals, in which the Cavendish children would perform.

The Amateur Performers

An elite group of amateur performers made up the casts at Chatsworth each year. Some of the most prominent members were Leo Trevor, Muriel Wilson, Mrs Willie James, the Princess of Pless, Lady Maud Warrender, Charles Colnaghi, and the fifth Earl of Rosslyn.