Shakespeare's The Other Place in Stratford begins revamp

The Other Place shut in 2006 to make way for the temporary Courtyard Theatre

Work has begun to reinstate a theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon which will open to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's death.

The Royal Shakespeare Company's (RSC) The Other Place shut in 2006 to make way for the temporary Courtyard Theatre, where the company performed while the main theatre was revamped.

The Other Place was built in 1973 and will reopen in 2016 with 200 seats.

Money provided includes a £3m lottery grant from Arts Council England.

Costume store

The RSC said there was support from private and public funders, including money from The Gatsby Charitable Foundation and The Backstage Trust.

The 200-seat theatre will be built within the steel extension to the building which was added to provide the 1,000 seats for The Courtyard Theatre.

Two new rehearsal rooms will be added at The Other Place, which will also house the RSC's 30,000-piece Costume Store, giving people access via theatre tours.

Festivals of new work will be held twice a year at the theatre, which will also provide facilities for local amateur groups.

Under a new five-year collaboration with the University of Birmingham and its Stratford-based Shakespeare Institute, students will have access to teaching spaces at The Other Place, with RSC artists providing input to courses.

The main theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, reopened in 2010 and has 1,040 seats.

Shakespeare died on 23 April 1616 at the age of 52.