 The music hall as we know it developed from such establishments during the 1850s and were built in and on the grounds of public houses . Such establishments were distinguished from theatres by the fact that in a music hall you would be seated at a table in the auditorium and could drink alcohol and smoke tobacco whilst watching the show . In a theatre , by contrast , the audience was seated in stalls and there was a separate bar @-@ room . An exception to this rule was the Britannia Theatre , Hoxton ( 1841 ) which somehow managed to evade this regulation and served drinks to its customers . Though a theatre rather than a music hall , this establishment later hosted music hall variety acts . 
