THE Rose Theatre on Rose Street could become a hotel with a rooftop bar, according to recently submitted plans.
The theatre, owned by Olivier Award winner Peter Schaufuss, was put on sale in 2023 with a guide price of £3m.
A planning application has now been submitted by Portugal-based hotel developer Morningbridge, who specialise in transforming “old neglected” buildings into “valuable hotels”.
The theatre lies in a 113-year-old church building which was converted in 2017.
Rose Theatre, founded by Danish ballet dancer and director Peter Schaufuss, was previously a major venue in the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
The B-listed building on 204 Rose Street is located within the Edinburgh World Heritage Site and the New Town Conservation Area.
It includes a 340-seat main hall, basement space, a cabaret bar, and a 100-seat studio.
It also contains the Rose Theatre Cafe, which opened its doors in 2018 and provided a wide variety of brunch and breakfast options, baked goods, and even cocktails.
The cafe also played host to open mic nights, yoga events and served afternoon tea.
In 2023, the building was put on the market for £3m, which included a self-contained three-bedroom caretakers flat on the third floor.
This week, Edinburgh City Council validated an application sent on behalf of Morningbridge, to turn the theatre into a “hotel and associated cafe/bar area in the roof”.
Before Schaufuss bought the five-storey building, applications had been submitted to turn it into a “superpub” and a restaurant/hotel, though these were rejected by the council.
Schaufuss trained at the Royal Danish Ballet School and later became artistic director of the Royal Danish Ballet and founded the English National Ballet School in 1988.
He was knighted in Denmark for his services to the arts in the same year and showed interest in converting Portobello Town Hall into a “world-class centre” in 2021.
Morningbridge plans to convert Rose Theatre into serviced apartments with accommodation stretching from the basement to the fourth floor.
The hotel would contain 47 rooms, as well as a rooftop bar and a reception area for residents.
Dormers, which are raised roofed structures containing windows, have also been proposed to increase space on the top floor whilst “minimising visual impact at street level”.
Documents state that “the redevelopment of 204 Rose Street represents a policy-compliant, low-carbon, and climate-responsive transformation of a vacant listed building”, in accordance with council planning policies.
Morningbridge has been responsible for the development of multiple boutique luxury hotels across Portugal, such as The Lumiares in Lisbon and The Rebello in Porto.
The last date for comments on the application is 11 July.
Morningbridge has been contacted for comment.
