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Article

The Wits Theatre

The Wits Theatre complex first opened its doors in July 1983. The complex consists of the Wits Theatre with 367 to 410 seats in an adaptable auditorium. Its foyer contains both bar and coffee bar facilities. The Downstairs Theatre is directly below it, and was designated “store room” on the original plan by the architect Don Lennard but now houses a versatile experimental theatre with its own foyer which also serves as an exhibition space. On the ground level to the north of the building, the architect, whose consultant was John Bury, (one of the great British designers from the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre), placed an open air Amphitheatre. For the first eight years of its existence, the occasional open air production was staged there when the winter nights were not too cold or it did not rain in summer. In 1992 it was enclosed and added a third venue to the complex - a 180-seater all enclosed theatre where work which cannot be housed in the other two venues can find a home. It has its own foyer space.

The day to day running of the Wits Theatre complex is handled by the Performing Arts Administration, a service organization within the University of the Witwatersrand.