The Lyric Theatre
8 King Street, Carmarthen, Carmarthenshire, SA31 1BD

Built in 1854 as Carmarthenshire Public Rooms, the building became The Lyric in 1918. The current auditorium was built in 1936. It has red upholstered raked seating. There are stalls, a mezzanine, and a circle. There is a large foyer with a wooden booth in the centre that serves as the box office. The entrance to the theatre looks deceptively small, as it is flanked by shops on either side. The décor inside could be described as ‘old-school glam’, as it has retained many of its original Victorian and Art Deco designs and colour schemes. There is a 1930s Westar cinema projector upstairs by the entrance to the circle, and the theatre has a traditional hemp fly tower. There is a decorative mosaic on the ground in the entrance.

The Lyric is the largest theatre in Carmarthenshire and one of the largest in West Wales. It is a Grade II listed building. It has been owned by Carmarthenshire County Council since 2005, and prior to this was run by a trust headed by Liz Evans, who campaigned to save it in 1993 (the subject of the film Save the Cinema). There have been several (unconfirmed) sightings of ghosts at the Lyric, including that of Liz Evans, and an unidentified gentleman who was caught on CCTV.

There is also a smaller studio space, which can be used for rehearsals, conferences, and smaller events. It is a basic space that was built as part of the refurbishment in 2007, with potential to be used for a variety of purposes. There is also a bar upstairs in Art Deco style.

Parking: No parking on-site other than a loading bay at the back. Several pay-and-display car parks nearby.

Catering: The studio space can be used for caterers. The loading bay at the back of the theatre recently housed a catering truck used by Crown Ballet when they performed Swan Lake.

Filming restrictions: Opening times are 11am to 3pm Tuesday to Saturday (box office) plus all shows, but we can be very flexible if filming is required.

Drone restrictions: None

The theatre is a Victorian building, originally built in 1854. It is a traditional proscenium theatre with a 593-seat capacity. (which can be extended to 665 with restricted seating). Save the Cinema (2022) was partly filmed there. The foyer has an interesting feature in that the box office is a wooden ‘booth’ in the centre There is a 1930s Westar cinema projector, an Art Deco style bar, and there are rumoured to be ghosts.

Grade II listed building.