A new residential tower rising up at an historic Shakespearean site in London will offer residents an exceptional lifestyle choice and long-term investment opportunity, according to the developers.

The 37-storey tower with 412 private sale apartments and penthouses, forms part of The Stage, a new mixed-use destination that is being built at a cost of £750 million ($1.07 billion).

The project will see a 2.3-acre site of William Shakespeare’s Curtain Theatre – where Romeo & Juliet and Henry V were first performed – transformed into a new destination for London.   

It is being undertaken by Galliard Homes in joint venture with Cain Hoy, McCourt, Vanke and The Estate Office Shoreditch.

On the doorstep of the City of London, the Old Street Tech City Enterprise Zone and Hoxton, The Stage is located off Curtain Road in the heart of hip and trendy Shoreditch. With a masterplan by award-winning architects Perkins + Will and interiors by Argent Design, The Stage is designed around a 1.28-acre public square that will showcase the sunken remains of the Tudor theatre. 

The new central square will be bordered by 400,000 sq ft of mixed-use space including cafes, restaurants and shops with four new buildings - the residential tower; two office buildings providing over 257,000 sq ft of blue-chip commercial space and retail premises at ground level, and a leisure/performing arts pavilion - complete with an existing 19th century railway viaduct located on one side of the new square. The viaduct will be restored with the historic brick arches accommodating 9,000 sq ft of new shops and bars fronting the square and the top of the viaduct landscaped into a park with a tea/coffee house overlooking the square. 

The historic remains of the Elizabethan Curtain Theatre, dating back to 1577, were discovered some three metres below the surface of the development. It is planned that the remains and objects found during the dig will be preserved and transformed into a cultural centrepiece within the development. 

There will be a heritage centre where visitors will have a chance to walk on a glass platform just above the theatre remains, view objects from the dig and watch augmented reality of scenes from Shakespeare plays. 

The glass ceiling of the centre - which is below ground - will form part of the new square, enabling visitors to look down onto the remains of the theatre. Steps leading down to the centre form part of a 200-seat sunken amphitheatre where plays can be performed or people can sit and relax. 

London’s oldest Shakespearean playhouse, the Curtain Theatre was opened in 1577 and was home to William Shakespeare’s Theatre Company. It is believed to be where Shakespeare’s plays ‘Romeo and Juliet’ and ‘Henry V’ were first performed and where Ben Jonson’s ‘Every Man in His Humour’ was performed in 1598 with Shakespeare himself in the cast. Queen Elizabeth I would on occasion visit the theatre and after her death in 1603 the new King, James I, became the theatre’s Royal patron. 

In 1622 the theatre closed and almost 400 years later in 2011 excavators from the Museum of London Archaeology rediscovered the remains of the theatre buried beneath a disused Victorian goods yard. Now the remains of the theatre will be preserved and form part of The Stage. 


TOWER

Rising 126 m in height the residential tower has floor-to-ceiling glazing, balconies, high speed elevators, a 32nd level Sky bar and lifestyle amenities and business meeting/hosting facilities. Twin angled glazed canyons cut into and rise up the façade enabling natural light to cascade into adjoining apartments and the communal areas within the building. 

With a specification and interiors by award-winning designer Nicola Fontanella of Argent Design, the tower will provide 412 luxurious studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments and four-bedroom duplex penthouses, ranging from 416 sq ft to 2,434 sq ft in size with the upper levels benefiting from panoramic skyline views. 

For the specification and design of the interiors, Argent Design have been inspired by the vibrant unpolished street-scene charm and café culture style of Shoreditch. This hip and trendy industrial aesthetic has been cleverly harmonised with luxurious West End and Manhattan style finishes creating a look which is a striking unique fusion of cool and fashionable meets luxurious and refined.                                                                                            

At ground level visitors enter the residential tower through a striking double-height entrance foyer with lounge, lift lobby and 24-hour concierge reception and services. Combining bespoke furniture pieces, contemporary artwork and feature lighting, the foyer is designed to exude an impression of urban unpolished charm

All the apartments have a bright and airy reception room with floor-to-ceiling windows and natural oak wide strip flooring, bespoke entertainment and shelving unit and advance home entertainment system. The living areas open onto private balconies or terraces. 

The fully fitted designer kitchen/breakfast areas are chic and stylish with contrasting textured tobacco wood and matt grey kitchen units, brushed steel plinths, quartz stone worktops and Miele integrated appliances. 

The bedrooms have deep and cosy wool mix carpets, floor-to-ceiling fitted wardrobes with featured mirrored centre panel and mood lighting. The design of the en-suites/bathrooms was inspired by the plush suites of Manhattan’s Hudson Hotel. Features include large walk-in showers with bronze tinted nickel framed shower screens, stained oak vanity units with bronze effect inlay, large format floor and wall tiles, bespoke mirrored cabinets and heated towel rails. 

The studio apartments cleverly maximise space and light by doing away with lots of internal walls and instead having spacious open interiors and the use of bespoke clear and frosted glass feature sliding walls to form the dedicated bedroom space. The larger apartments have spacious kitchen/dining areas and master bedroom suites with en-suite bathrooms and some with walk in dressing rooms. Other features include extended height internal doors, tile televisions to bathrooms in larger apartments, comfort cooling and programmable mood lighting to living and bedrooms and video security entry system. 

The Stage provides 24-hour concierge services, a business centre, a private 20-seat screening room and a games and recreational lounge.  

Over 320 feet above ground, on the 32nd level, is the stunning Sky bar and drinks terrace which provides panoramic views of the city. 

Situated directly adjacent to the residential tower within the Hewett building will be a luxurious health club with spa treatments, steam room and sauna. 

Construction of The Stage is anticipated to commence this April with completion scheduled for Q1 2019. 

Stephen Conway, Chief Executive of Galliard Homes, says: “The Stage will provide a world class new destination for London. At its heart will be a new central square, one of the largest public open spaces to be created in the capital, bordered by historic and new buildings providing cafes, restaurants, shops, offices and new homes. For apartment purchasers it offers the best new address in London and an exceptional lifestyle choice and long term investment opportunity.” 

David Galman, Sales Director of Galliard Homes said: “The regeneration of this Shakespearean site will elevate the status of Shoreditch to that of the uber-cool Meatpacking district in downtown New York City. There are lots of links with Manhattan, the Brooklyn based Mast Brothers have opened London’s first bean-to-bar chocolate factory a stone’s throw from The Stage. The Gansevoort Hotel Group, responsible for the celebrated Meatpacking and Park Avenue hotels, are delivering a brand new establishment on Curtain Road, whilst Chef Nobu Matsuhisa is set to open a hotel and restaurant on Willow Street. These new establishments alongside The Stage will turn Shoreditch into the “new Notting Hill”, a highly desirable neighbourhood to live, enjoy leisure and work.” 

An 8,000-sq-ft on site sales and marketing suite for the new development is located in three of the historic brick arches in the Victorian viaduct. The suite has been designed as a “must see” venue, with the brick interiors showcasing a collection of pop art by the famous Shoreditch street artist D-Face (Dean Stockton) whose work is popular with celebrities including Christina Aguilera, Beyonce and Jay Z. 

Sales for The Stage launch next month and prices will start from £695,000 ($1 million).