Abbey Theatre evacuated in fire scare

Around 700 patrons were evacuated from the Abbey theatre tonight when an electrical fault set off its fire alarm.

The false alarm at the theatre – which houses two separate auditoriums – happened at around 9.15pm.

A spokesman for the Abbey said both performances had a full house when the alarm bells rang shortly before the intervals.

“We had around 700 people in and everybody was evacuated swiftly from both venues within three minutes,” he said.

“Fortunately it was a false alarm.

“There was no fire. We think there was an electrical fault which knocked on the alarm system.”

The venue, on Lower Abbey Street, contains two theatres.

In the main auditorium, the Abbey Theatre boasts almost 500 seats, where Three Sisters is currently being staged.

Meanwhile, the Peacock Theatre is situated under the Abbey foyer and has capacity for some 127, who were watching Big Love.

Actors and staff were also forced to leave the building.

The spokesman added that patrons returned to their seats a short time later.