London’s first purpose-built playhouse, The Theatre, has been found by archaeologists in Shoreditch.

Built by James Burbage in 1576, Shakespeare performed here and write for the company between 1594 and 1597, and his Romeo &Juliet was almost certainly first performed at The Theatre.

Museum of London archaeologists have found the inner wall of the polygonal theatre, which would probably have had a series of brick piers supporting the upper floors. A sloping gravel surface uncovered by the archaeologists would have been the yard in which audiences stood, exposed to the elements. The direction of the slope suggests that the stage is likely to have stood just south of the current site, where flats now stand. Finds within the yard include a fragment of 16th-century pottery featuring the image of a man with beard and ruff.

A row with the site owner in 1597 led to the wooden structure being dismantled and taken south of the river to become part of The Globe theatre.

But drama will appear on the Shoreditch site again. The Tower Theatre Company, amateur theatre organisation, is planning a 21st century equivalent of the original with the encouragement of both Hackney Council and English Heritage. So far £1.9m has been raised towards the £3.3m building costs.