The theatre was erected in 1805, replacing the Old Orchard Street Theatre which had obtained a royal patent in 1768 enabling the use of the title 'Theatre Royal', the first to achieve this outside London.
The Orchard Street site became a church and is now a Freemason's Hall.
The new theatre was first proposed in 1802 at several sites in Bath until the current site was chosen in 1804; funding was raised by the use of a Tontine, an investment plan named after the Neapolitan banker Lorenzo de Tonti, who is credited with inventing it in France in 1653.
It combined features of a group annuity and a lottery.
Each subscriber paid an agreed sum into the fund, and thereafter received an annuity.
As members died, their shares devolved to the other participants, and so the value of each annuity increased.
On the death of the last member, the scheme was wound up.
Shares, which cost £200, were rapidly purchased, with the Prince Regent who later became George IV and his brother Prince Frederick among the subscribers.
A similar scheme had previously been used for the construction of the Bath Assembly Rooms.

The exterior of the building, with arches, pilasters, garlands and ornaments, which is visible from Beauford Square, was designed by George Dance the Younger who also designed the decorative sections of the interior.
The main fabric of the building was by John Palmer, who supervised the construction.
The ceiling was decorated with panels from Fonthill Splendens, a mile from Fonthill Abbey, which were painted by Andrea Casali and donated to the theatre by Paul Cobb Methuen.
Because of the potential damage from the gas lights, which were installed in 1827, the paintings were moved by William Blathwayt to Dyrham Park.

The opening night was on 12 October 1805 was a production of Richard III, with an unknown actor in the lead.
Though not a success, the theatre soon established a good reputation and thrived under the management of William Wyatt Dimond.
Early performances included appearances by the child actors Master Betty and Clara Fisher, with adult leads from prominent actors on the London stage including Dorothea Jordan, William Macready and Edmund Kean.
In addition to Shakespeare and other serious drama, the productions included opera and comedy with Joseph Grimaldi playing the clown in a pantomime of Mother Goose in November 1815.

Between the 1810s and 1850s there were a series of changes in ownership and management.
These coincided with a Puritan revival and a fall in Bath's popularity; reductions in receipts were compounded by rising payments for actors from London.
As a result, the theatre underwent financial crises and fell into a period of decline.
Fortunes began to improve when James Henry Chute, who was the manager of the Bath Assembly Rooms and the son-in-law of the owner Mrs Macready, took over as the manager of the theatre and once again audiences began to rise.
The theatre was erected in 1805, replacing the Old Orchard Street Theatre which had obtained a royal patent in 1768 enabling the use of the title 'Theatre Royal', the first to achieve this outside London. The Orchard Street site became a church and is now a Freemason's Hall. The new theatre was first proposed in 1802 at several sites in Bath until the current site was chosen in 1804; funding was raised by the use of a Tontine, an investment plan named after the Neapolitan banker Lorenzo de Tonti, who is credited with inventing it in France in 1653. It combined features of a group annuity and a lottery. Each subscriber paid an agreed sum into the fund, and thereafter received an annuity. As members died, their shares devolved to the other participants, and so the value of each annuity increased. On the death of the last member, the scheme was wound up. Shares, which cost £200, were rapidly purchased, with the Prince Regent who later became George IV and his brother Prince Frederick among the subscribers. A similar scheme had previously been used for the construction of the Bath Assembly Rooms.
The exterior of the building, with arches, pilasters, garlands and ornaments, which is visible from Beauford Square, was designed by George Dance the Younger who also designed the decorative sections of the interior. The main fabric of the building was by John Palmer, who supervised the construction. The ceiling was decorated with panels from Fonthill Splendens, a mile from Fonthill Abbey, which were painted by Andrea Casali and donated to the theatre by Paul Cobb Methuen. Because of the potential damage from the gas lights, which were installed in 1827, the paintings were moved by William Blathwayt to Dyrham Park.
The opening night was on 12 October 1805 was a production of Richard III, with an unknown actor in the lead. Though not a success, the theatre soon established a good reputation and thrived under the management of William Wyatt Dimond. Early performances included appearances by the child actors Master Betty and Clara Fisher, with adult leads from prominent actors on the London stage including Dorothea Jordan, William Macready and Edmund Kean. In addition to Shakespeare and other serious drama, the productions included opera and comedy with Joseph Grimaldi playing the clown in a pantomime of Mother Goose in November 1815.
Between the 1810s and 1850s there were a series of changes in ownership and management. These coincided with a Puritan revival and a fall in Bath's popularity; reductions in receipts were compounded by rising payments for actors from London. As a result, the theatre underwent financial crises and fell into a period of decline. Fortunes began to improve when James Henry Chute, who was the manager of the Bath Assembly Rooms and the son-in-law of the owner Mrs Macready, took over as the manager of the theatre and once again audiences began to rise.
Theatre Royal, Bath