The 1862 Fitzroy library on Lewes High Street hosts three last shows to 4 October: dance for babies, Indian classical music and Shakespeare. Tickets £5 to £15.
Fitzroy House, the Victorian Gothic library at the bottom of School Hill, is open to the public for a week of performances. Three events are left, the last on Sunday 4 October.
The series is called Autumn at Fitzroy and runs from 26 September to 4 October. It is put on by Fitzroy House Cultural Collective CIC, a community interest company registered at the house, 10 High Street, on 20 August 2026. The collective says the week is a programme of “international artists developed by local creatives”, with music, dance, opera and visual art.
What is still on
| Date | Event | Time | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday 1 October | A Dance for Us: dance and live cello for babies up to 12 months and their carers | 11am and 2pm | £10 for one baby and one carer |
| Saturday 3 October | Mehfil: an Indian classical soirée from South Asian Arts UK | 5pm | £10 |
| Sunday 4 October | Tongs and Bones: Shakespeare in song and scenes | 7pm | £15 |
All three are listed, with booking links, on the collective’s programme page.
A Dance for Us is by Katie Dale-Everett Dance. The collective describes it as a “restorative, immersive experience” developed with babies and their carers. The town council’s listing shows the prices with booking fees added: £10.84 for one adult and one baby, or £5.42 on the lower-priced ticket.
Mehfil brings five young musicians from Leeds, in two trios, for a 90-minute recital of Hindustani music. It is their first appearance at Fitzroy House.
Tongs and Bones closes the week. The cast named by the collective is:
- BAFTA-winning actress Rakie Ayola
- soprano Ellie Laugharne
- bass Trevor Bowes
- special guests
It is directed by Federay Holmes, an associate artist at Shakespeare’s Globe, whom the collective describes as a Lewes local.
Cheaper tickets, and no checks
Every event is priced on a sliding scale. General admission is capped at £15.
A limited number of Open Doors tickets are capped at £5, for people on lower incomes. There is also a Pay It Forward price for people who can afford more, which subsidises the cheaper seats. The collective says there are no checks at the door: you pick the price that fits.
Babes in arms go free. Pushchairs may have to stay in a separate area rather than the main hall. The building does not yet have step-free access, and the collective asks visitors to tell it about access needs when they book.
Why the building matters
Fitzroy House was built in 1862 as a memorial library to Henry Fitzroy, MP for Lewes from 1837 to 1860. His widow Hannah, a daughter of the banker Nathan Rothschild, commissioned it from Sir George Gilbert Scott, the architect of the Albert Memorial and the Midland Hotel at St Pancras. That history is set out in the Friends of Lewes’ Heritage Open Days notes.
The same notes record how close Lewes came to losing it:
- 1897: it became the town’s first public library
- 1956: the library moved to Albany Street, and the building became offices
- 1970: much of the roof was destroyed ahead of planned demolition, just before it was listed Grade II
- 1976: it opened to the public for an exhibition on building conservation, and the mood changed
- Late 1970s: the county council, which then owned it, sold it for restoration as a family home
It has been a private house since then, which is why a public programme inside it is unusual. Virginia Woolf, who lived at Monk’s House in Rodmell, is said to have used the library, according to the Friends of Lewes notes.
The house is also for sale. It has been listed on Rightmove since August 2025 at offers in excess of £1 million. The collective’s site does not say what happens to the arts programme after this week.
What it means for you
- This is a rare chance to see inside. The building is normally a private home, and the week ends on Sunday.
- Book online first. The collective’s page carries the booking links for each event.
- Check the price options. Open Doors tickets are capped at £5 and nobody checks eligibility.
- Getting there: the collective points to buses stopping at the bottom of School Hill and at Lewes Waitrose, and the nearest council car park is Friars Walk. Council car parks charge from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Saturday, so Saturday evening and Sunday parking is free.
- Want to help? The collective is asking for volunteers at info@fitzroylewes.co.uk.
For everything else happening in town this week, see what’s on in Lewes this month.
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