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West End theatre

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West End theatres on Shaftesbury Avenue in 2016
The London Palladium in Soho opened in 1910. While the Theatre has a resident show, it also has one-off performances such as concerts. Since 1930 it has hosted the Royal Variety Performance 43 times.

West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.[1] Along with New York City's Broadway theatre, West End theatre represents the highest level of commercial theatre in the English-speaking world. Seeing a West End show is a common tourist activity in London.[1] Famous screen actors, British and international alike, frequently appear on the London stage.[2][3][4][5][6]

There are approximately 40 theatres in the West End, with the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, opened in May 1663, the oldest theatre in London.[7] The Savoy Theatre—built as a showcase for the popular series of comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan—was entirely lit by electricity in 1881.[8]

The Society of London Theatre (SOLT) announced that 2018 was a record year for the capital's theatre industry with attendances topping 15.5 million for the first time since the organisation began collecting audience data in 1986. Box office revenues exceeded £765 million.[9] While attendance in 2019 was down 1.4% compared to the previous year, box office revenues reached a record £799 million.[10]

The majority of West End theatres are owned by the ATG Entertainment, Delfont Mackintosh Theatres, Nimax Theatres, LW Theatres, and the Nederlander Organization.

History

[edit]
Further information: English drama and English Renaissance theatre

Theatre in London flourished after the English Reformation. The first permanent public playhouse, known as The Theatre, was constructed in 1576 in Shoreditch by James Burbage. It was soon joined by The Curtain. Both are known to have been used by William Shakespeare's company. In 1599, the timber from The Theatre was moved to Southwark, where it was used in building the Globe Theatre in a new theatre district formed beyond the controls of the City corporation. Regarding theatre as sinful, these theatres were closed in 1642 due to the Puritans who would later influence the interregnum of 1649.[11][12] On 24 January 1643, the actors protested against the ban by writing a pamphlet titled The Actors remonstrance or complaint for the silencing of their profession, and banishment from their severall play-houses.[13]

Further information: Restoration comedy and Restoration spectacular
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. Opened in May 1663, it is the oldest theatre in London.[7]

After the Restoration (1660), Puritan legislation was declared null and void, and theatre (among other arts) exploded.[12][14] Two companies were licensed to perform, the Duke's Company and the King's Company. Performances were held in converted buildings, such as Lisle's Tennis Court. The first West End theatre, known as Theatre Royal in Bridges Street, was designed by Thomas Killigrew and built on the site of the present Theatre Royal, Drury Lane.[7] It opened on 7 May 1663 and was destroyed by a fire nine years later. It was replaced by a new structure designed by Christopher Wren and renamed the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane.[15][16] One of the first actresses on the stage, Nell Gwyn became a star of restoration comedy.[17]

Outside the West End, Sadler's Wells Theatre opened in Islington on 3 June 1683. Taking its name from founder Richard Sadler and monastic springs that were discovered on the property,[18][19] it operated as a "Musick House", with performances of opera; as it was not licensed for plays. In the West End, the Theatre Royal Haymarket opened on 29 December 1720 on a site slightly north of its current location, and the Royal Opera House opened in Covent Garden on 7 December 1732.[20] John Gay's ballad opera The Beggar's Opera ran for 62 performances in 1728, and held the record for London's longest run for nearly a century. It has been called "the most popular play of the eighteenth century."[21] Another musical show, Tom and Jerry, or Life in London (1821), was the first London production to reach 100 consecutive performances.[22] Tom and Jerry's combination of a tour of London interspersed with song and dance, gave rise to numerous similar, loosely constructed entertainments, and "planted the seeds for later musical comedy and revue".[23]

The Patent theatre companies retained their duopoly on drama well into the 19th century, and all other theatres could perform only musical entertainments. By the early 19th century, however, music hall entertainments became popular, and presenters found a loophole in the restrictions on non-patent theatres in the genre of melodrama. Melodrama did not break the Patent Acts, as it was accompanied by music. Initially, these entertainments were presented in large halls, attached to public houses, but purpose-built theatres began to appear in the East End, such as the Pavilion Theatre in Whitechapel.[24] The comic theatrical genre the harlequinade was also popular among London audiences. Its most famous performer, Joseph Grimaldi, best known for developing the modern day white-face clown, made his stage debut at Drury Lane in 1780.[25]

Original interior of Savoy Theatre in 1881, the year it was fitted with the incandescent light bulb developed by Sir Joseph Swan to become the first public building in the world to be lit entirely by electricity.[26][27]

The West End theatre district became established with the opening of many small theatres and halls, including the Adelphi in The Strand on 17 November 1806. South of the River Thames, the Old Vic, Waterloo Road, opened on 11 May 1818. The expansion of the West End theatre district gained pace with the Theatres Act 1843, which relaxed the conditions for the performance of plays, and The Strand gained another venue when the Vaudeville opened on 16 April 1870. The next few decades saw the opening of many new theatres in the West End. The Adelphi hosted A Christmas Carol; or, Past, Present, and Future in 1844, a play adapted from the novella A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens—who came to several stage rehearsals during which he made suggestions—with his book published weeks earlier in December 1843.[28][29]

Gilbert and Sullivan play at the Savoy in 1881

The Criterion Theatre opened on Piccadilly Circus on 21 March 1874, and in 1881, two more houses appeared: the Savoy Theatre in The Strand, built by Richard D'Oyly Carte specifically to showcase the comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan, opened in October (the first theatre and public building to be lit by electric lights, with The Times recording, "the success of the new mode of illumination was complete, and its importance for the development of scenic art can scarcely be overrated"), and five days later the Comedy Theatre opened as the Royal Comedy Theatre on Panton Street in Leicester Square.[26] It abbreviated its name three years later.[16] On 23 December 1886, Alice in Wonderland (the first major production of the Alice books) debuted at the Prince of Wales Theatre. Its author Lewis Carroll was involved in the stage adaptation, and he attended a performance seven days later.[30] The Palace Theatre opened in 1891. Opened in 1892, the Duke of York's Theatre debuted J. M. Barrie's play, Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up, on 27 December 1904.[31]

One of the most popular playwrights in London in the 1890s, Oscar Wilde, premiered his second comedy, A Woman of No Importance, at Haymarket Theatre in 1893. The subject of widespread public and media interest, Lillie Langtry (an associate of Wilde) made her West End debut in the comedy She Stoops to Conquer in 1881.[32] In 1878, Ellen Terry joined Henry Irving's company as his leading lady, and for more than the next two decades she was considered the leading Shakespearean and comic actress in Britain.[33] Opened in 1903, the New Theatre debuted The Scarlet Pimpernel in 1905, a play that introduced a heroic figure with an alter ego into the public consciousness.[34] The theatre was renamed the Noël Coward Theatre in 2006 after the playwright Noël Coward. Constructed in 1897, Her Majesty's Theatre hosted a number of premieres, including George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion in 1914.[35] The theatre building boom continued until about the First World War.[36]

In 1930, Laurence Olivier had his first important West End success in Noël Coward's Private Lives. A number of other actors made their West End debut prior to the Second World War, including John Gielgud, Alec Guinness, Vivien Leigh and Rex Harrison; the latter's performance in Terence Rattigan's 1936 comedy French Without Tears at the Criterion Theatre established him a leading light comedian.[37] During the 1950s and 1960s, many plays were produced in theatre clubs, to evade the censorship then exercised by the Lord Chamberlain's Office. The Theatres Act 1968 finally abolished censorship of the stage in the United Kingdom.[38]

Theatreland

[edit]
The Lyceum Theatre, home to Disney's The Lion King[39]

"Theatreland", London's main theatre district, contains approximately 40 venues and is located in and near the heart of the West End of London. It is traditionally defined by the Strand to the south, Oxford Street to the north, Regent Street to the west, and Kingsway to the east. However, a few other nearby theatres are also considered "West End" despite being outside the area proper; an example is The Apollo Victoria Theatre, in Westminster. Prominent theatre streets include Drury Lane, Shaftesbury Avenue and the Strand. The works staged are predominantly musicals, classic and modern straight plays, and comedy performances.[40]

Many theatres in the West End are of late Victorian or Edwardian construction and are privately owned. Many are architecturally impressive, and the largest and best maintained feature grand neo-classical, Romanesque, or Victorian façades and luxurious, detailed interior design and decoration.

Queen's Theatre showing Les Misérables, running in London since October 1985

However, owing to the age of the buildings, leg room is often cramped, and audience facilities such as bars and toilets are often much smaller than in modern theatres. The protected status of the buildings and their confined urban locations, combined with financial constraints, make it very difficult to make substantial improvements to the level of comfort offered. In 2003, the Theatres Trust estimated that an investment of £250 million over the following 15 years was required for modernisation,[41] and stated that 60% of theatres had seats from which the stage was not fully visible.[42] The theatre owners unsuccessfully requested tax concessions to help them meet the costs.

Victoria Palace Theatre (showing Billy Elliot in 2012) was refurbished in 2017.[43]

Starting in 2004, there were several incidents of falling plasterwork, or performances being cancelled because of urgent building repairs being required. These events culminated in the partial collapse of the ceiling of the Apollo Theatre in December 2013.[44] Of these earlier incidents, only one led to people being hurt,[45] but at the Apollo 76 people needed medical treatment for their injuries.[46] A number of West End theatres have undergone refurbishments, including the Victoria Palace Theatre following the run of Billy Elliot in 2016.[43] The Dominion Theatre refurbishment was completed in 2017 with the unveiling of a new double-sided LED screen, the largest and highest resolution projecting screen on the exterior of a West End theatre.[47]

In 2012, gross sales of £529,787,692 were up 0.27% and attendances also increased 0.56% to 13,992,773-year-on-year.[48] In 2013, sales again rose this time by 11% to £585,506,455,[49] with attendances rising to 14,587,276.[50] This was despite slightly fewer performances occurring in 2013.[51]

On 16 March 2020, following government advice due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all theatres in the West End were closed until further notice.[52] Theatres in London were allowed to re-open (with social distancing) on 17 May 2021, with full capacity permitted from 19 July.[53] Opening in October 2022, @sohoplace is the first new West End theatre in 50 years.[54]

Long-running shows

[edit]
Main article: List of the longest-running West End shows
St Martin's Theatre, home to The Mousetrap, the world's longest-running play

The length of West End shows depends on ticket sales. The longest-running musical in West End history is Les Misérables, produced by Cameron Mackintosh, which has been running in London since October 1985. It overtook Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats, which closed in 2002 after running for 8,949 performances and 21 years, as the longest-running West End musical of all time on 9 October 2006. Other long-runners include Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera, Willy Russell's Blood Brothers, and Abba jukebox musical Mamma Mia! which have also subsequently overtaken Cats. However, the non-musical Agatha Christie play The Mousetrap is the longest-running production in the world, and has been performed continuously since 1952.[55][56]

Running since 2011, Matilda the Musical, an adaptation of Roald Dahl's Matilda, won a then-record seven Olivier Awards in 2012.[57] Running since 2016, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a two-part play written by Jack Thorne based on an original story by J. K. Rowling, won a record-breaking nine Olivier Awards in 2017.[58]

List of West End theatres

[edit]
  • An * after the opening date indicates that the listed production has yet to open and is scheduled for the given date at that theatre.
  • An * after the closing date indicates that there is another show scheduled for that theatre.
  • If the next show planned is not announced, the applicable columns are left blank.
Theatre Address Capacity Owner/Operator Current production Type Opening Closing
Adelphi Theatre Strand 1,500 LW Theatres / Nederlander Organization Back to the Future: The Musical Musical 2021-09-1313 September 2021 Open-ended
Aldwych Theatre Aldwych 1,200 Nederlander Organization Tina—The Tina Turner Musical Musical 2018-04-1717 April 2018 Open-ended
Ambassadors Theatre West Street 444 ATG Entertainment The Curious Case of Benjamin Button[59] Musical 2024-10-1010 October 2024 Open-ended
Apollo Theatre Shaftesbury Avenue 658 Nimax Theatres Fawlty Towers: The Play[60] Play 2024-05-1515 May 2024 2025-03-011 March 2025
Apollo Victoria Theatre Wilton Road 2,328 ATG Entertainment Wicked Musical 2006-09-2727 September 2006 Open-ended
Arts Theatre Great Newport Street 350 JJ Goodman Ltd. The Choir of Man Musical 2022-10-1313 October 2022 2024-12-3131 December 2024
Cambridge Theatre Earlham Street 1,231 LW Theatres Matilda the Musical Musical 2011-11-2424 November 2011 Open-ended
Criterion Theatre Jermyn Street 588 Criterion Theatre Trust Titanique[61] Musical 2025-01-099 January 2025* 2025-03-022 March 2025
Dominion Theatre Tottenham Court Road 2,163 Nederlander Organization The Devil Wears Prada[62] Musical 2024-12-055 December 2024* Open-ended
Duchess Theatre Catherine Street 494 Nimax Theatres The Play That Goes Wrong Play 2014-09-1414 September 2014 Open-ended
Duke of York's Theatre St. Martin's Lane 640 ATG Entertainment Barcelona[63] Play 2024-10-2121 October 2024 2025-01-1111 January 2025*
Fortune Theatre Russell Street 432 ATG Entertainment Operation Mincemeat Musical 2023-03-2929 March 2023 Open-ended
Garrick Theatre Charing Cross Road 718 Nimax Theatres Why Am I So Single?[64] Musical 2024-09-1212 September 2024 2025-01-1919 January 2025
Gielgud Theatre Shaftesbury Avenue 994 Delfont Mackintosh Theatres Oliver![65] Musical 2024-12-1414 December 2024* Open-ended
Gillian Lynne Theatre Drury Lane 1,118 LW Theatres The Lehman Trilogy[66] Play 2024-10-099 October 2024 2025-01-055 January 2025*
Harold Pinter Theatre Panton Street 796 ATG Entertainment Macbeth[67] Play 2024-10-011 October 2024 2024-12-1414 December 2024
His Majesty's Theatre Haymarket 1,216 LW Theatres The Phantom of the Opera Musical 1986-10-99 October 1986 Open-ended
London Palladium Argyll Street 2,286 LW Theatres Robin Hood[68] Pantomime 2024-12-077 December 2024* 2025-01-1212 January 2025
Lyceum Theatre Wellington Street 2,100 ATG Entertainment The Lion King Musical 1999-10-1919 October 1999 Open-ended
Lyric Theatre Shaftesbury Avenue 915 Nimax Theatres Hadestown[69] Musical 2024-02-2121 February 2024 Open-ended
Noël Coward Theatre St. Martin's Lane 942 Delfont Mackintosh Theatres Dr. Strangelove[70] Play 2024-10-088 October 2024 2025-01-2525 January 2025*
Novello Theatre Aldwych 1,146 Delfont Mackintosh Theatres Mamma Mia! Musical 1999-04-066 April 1999 Open-ended
Palace Theatre Shaftesbury Avenue 1,400 Nimax Theatres Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Play 2016-07-2525 July 2016 Open-ended
Phoenix Theatre Charing Cross Road 1,012 ATG Entertainment Stranger Things: The First Shadow[71] Play 2023-12-1414 December 2023 Open-ended
Piccadilly Theatre Denman Street 1,232 ATG Entertainment Moulin Rouge! The Musical Musical 2022-01-2020 January 2022 Open-ended
Playhouse Theatre Craven Street 550 ATG Entertainment Cabaret Musical 2021-12-1212 December 2021 Open-ended
Prince Edward Theatre Old Compton Street 1,727 Delfont Mackintosh Theatres MJ the Musical[72] Musical 2024-03-2727 March 2024 Open-ended
Prince of Wales Theatre Coventry Street 1,148 Delfont Mackintosh Theatres The Book of Mormon Musical 2013-03-2121 March 2013 Open-ended
Savoy Theatre Strand 1,150 ATG Entertainment Mean Girls[73] Musical 2024-06-2626 June 2024 Open-ended
Shaftesbury Theatre Shaftesbury Avenue 1,416 DLT Entertainment Mrs. Doubtfire Musical 2023-06-2222 June 2023 2025-04-2626 April 2025*
@sohoplace Charing Cross Road 602 Nimax Theatres A Christmas Carol (ish) Play 2024-11-1616 November 2024 2024-12-3131 December 2024*
Sondheim Theatre Shaftesbury Avenue 1,137 Delfont Mackintosh Theatres Les Misérables Musical 1985-10-88 October 1985 Open-ended
St Martin's Theatre West Street 550 Stephen Waley-Cohen The Mousetrap Play 1952-11-2525 November 1952 Open-ended
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane Catherine Street 1,996 LW Theatres The Tempest[74] Play 2024-12-1919 December 2024* 2025-02-011 February 2025*
Theatre Royal Haymarket Haymarket 888 Access Entertainment Waiting for Godot[75] Play 2024-09-1919 September 2024 2024-12-2121 December 2024*
Trafalgar Theatre Whitehall 630 Trafalgar Entertainment Group The Duchess[76] Play 2024-10-055 October 2024 2024-12-2020 December 2024*
Vaudeville Theatre Strand 690 Nimax Theatres Six Musical 2021-09-2929 September 2021 Open-ended
Victoria Palace Theatre Victoria Street 1,557 Delfont Mackintosh Theatres Hamilton Musical 2017-12-2121 December 2017 Open-ended
Wyndham's Theatre St. Martin's Court 799 Delfont Mackintosh Theatres Oedipus[77] Play 2024-10-1515 October 2024 2025-01-044 January 2025*

Upcoming productions

[edit]

"Theatre is such an important part of British history and British culture"

—Dame Helen Mirren after receiving the Evening Standard Award in 2013 for her performance as the Queen in The Audience.[78]

The following shows are confirmed as future West End productions. The theatre in which they will run is either not yet known or currently occupied by another show.

Production Type Theatre Opening Ref
Clueless: The Musical Musical Trafalgar Theatre 2025-02-1515 February 2025 [79]
The Deep Blue Sea Play Theatre Royal Haymarket 2025-05-077 May 2025
Elektra Play Duke of York's Theatre 2025-02-055 February 2025 [80]
Hercules Musical Theatre Royal Drury Lane 2025-06-2424 June 2025 [81]
Inside No. 9 Stage/Fright Play Wyndham's Theatre 2025-01-1818 January 2025 [82]
Just for One Day Musical Shaftesbury Theatre 13 July 2025 [83]
Kyoto Play @sohoplace 2025-01-099 January 2025 [84]
The Last Laugh Play Noël Coward Theatre 2025-02-2525 February 2025 [85]
Much Ado About Nothing Play Theatre Royal Dury Lane 2025-02-1919 February 2025 [86]
My Neighbour Totoro Play Gillian Lynne Theatre 2025-03-088 March 2025 [87]
The Score Play Theatre Royal Haymarket 2025-02-2020 February 2025 [88]
Shucked Musical TBA 2024-12-312025 [89]
Some Like It Hot Musical TBA 2025-12-312025 [90]
The Years Play Harold Pinter Theatre 29 January 2025 [91]

London's non-commercial theatres

[edit]
The exterior of the Old Vic
The Royal Court Theatre. Upstairs is used as an experimental space for new projects—The Rocky Horror Show premiered here in 1973.[92]

The term "West End theatre" is generally used to refer specifically to commercial productions in Theatreland. However, the leading non-commercial theatres in London enjoy great artistic prestige. These include the National Theatre, the Barbican Centre, Shakespeare's Globe (including the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse), the Old Vic, Royal Court Theatre, Sadler's Wells Theatre, and the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre. These theatres stage a high proportion of straight drama, Shakespeare, other classic plays and premieres of new plays by leading playwrights—for example David Hare's play Pravda starring Anthony Hopkins which was described by The Telegraph as "one of the biggest hits in the history of the National Theatre."[93] Successful productions from the non-commercial theatres sometimes transfer to one of the commercial West End houses for an extended run.[94]

The Royal Opera House is widely regarded as one of the greatest opera houses in the world, comparable with the Palais Garnier and La Scala. Commonly known simply as Covent Garden due to its location, it is home to the Royal Opera, Royal Ballet and a resident symphony orchestra, and hosts guest performances from other leading opera, ballet and performance companies from around the world. In 1735 its first season of operas, by George Frideric Handel, began and many of his English oratorios were specifically written for Covent Garden and had their premieres here.[95]

Likewise, the London Coliseum is the resident home to the English National Opera. The theatre is also the London base for performances by the English National Ballet, who perform regular seasons throughout the year when not on tour. The Peacock Theatre is located on the edge of the Theatreland area. Now owned by the London School of Economics and Political Science, it is used in the evenings for dance performances by Sadler's Wells, who manage the theatre on behalf of the school.[96]

Other London theatres

[edit]
Opened in 1977, the Donmar Warehouse became an independent producing house in 1992 with Sam Mendes as artistic director.

There is a great number of stage productions in London outside the West End. Much of this is known as fringe theatre (referred to as Off West End) which is the equivalent of off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway theatre in New York City. Among these are the Menier Chocolate Factory, Bush Theatre and the Donmar Warehouse. Fringe venues range from well-equipped small theatres to rooms above pubs, and the performances range from classic plays, to cabaret, to plays in the languages of London's ethnic minorities. The performers range from emerging young professionals to amateurs. Productions at the Donmar included the 1980 play Educating Rita which starred Julie Walters in the title role before she reprised the role in the 1983 film.[97]

There are many theatres located throughout Greater London, such as the Lyric Hammersmith, Theatre Royal Stratford East, Rose Theatre, Kingston, New Wimbledon Theatre, the Rudolph Steiner Theatre in Westminster, the Ashcroft Theatre in Croydon, Secombe Theatre in Sutton, the Churchill Theatre in Bromley and the Hackney Empire in Hackney.[98]

London theatres outside the West End also played an important role in the early history of drama schools. In 1833, actress Frances Maria Kelly managed the Royal Strand Theatre in Westminster where she funded and operated a dramatic school, the earliest record of a drama school in England.[99] In 1840 she financed the Royalty Theatre in Soho which opened as Miss Kelly's Theatre and Dramatic School.[100]

Awards

[edit]

There are a number of annual awards for outstanding achievements in London theatre:

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Christopher Innes, "West End" in The Cambridge Guide to Theatre (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194–1195, ISBN 0-521-43437-8
  2. ^ "Stars on stage". London theatre. Retrieved 23 June 2015
  3. ^ Orlova-Alvarez, Tamara; Alvarez, Joe (30 January 2019). "John Malkovich Is Coming To West End". Ikon London Magazine. Archived from the original on 30 January 2019. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  4. ^ Kenton, Tristram (18 November 2020). "Nicole! Gwyneth! Orlando! Hollywood stars on the West End stage – in pictures". the Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  5. ^ Editorial (9 April 2023). "The Guardian view on stars on the stage: theatre's recovery should be applauded". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  6. ^ Addley, Esther (10 February 2024). "Tom Holland is latest superstar name in bumper year for London theatre". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  7. ^ a b c "London's 10 oldest theatres". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  8. ^ "Shakespeare's indoor Globe to glow by candlelight". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  9. ^ "2018 BOX OFFICE FIGURES RELEASED BY SOCIETY OF LONDON THEATRE AND UK THEATRE". Society of London Theatre. March 2019. Archived from the original on 18 December 2020. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  10. ^ "New Figures Reveal West End Theatre is Thriving". London Box Office. February 2020.
  11. ^ Milling, Jane; Thomson, Peter (23 November 2004). The Cambridge History of British Theatre. Cambridge University Press. pp. 439, 440. ISBN 978-0-521-65040-3.
  12. ^ a b "From pandemics to puritans: when theatre shut down through history and how it recovered". The Stage.co.uk. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  13. ^ Schoch, Richard (2016). Writing the History of the British Stage 1660-1900. Cambridge University Press. p. 64.
  14. ^ "When Christmas carols were banned". BBC. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
  15. ^ "London's Vibrant West End Theatre SCENE". TheatreHistory.com. Retrieved 17 January 2010.
  16. ^ a b "London pub trivia – Ten oldest London theatres". Timeout London. 12 December 2006. Archived from the original on 3 December 2008. Retrieved 17 January 2010.
  17. ^ Howe, Elizabeth (1992). The First English Actresses: Women and Drama, 1660–1700. Cambridge University Press. p. 66.
  18. ^ "London's Lost Tea-Gardens: I". Story of London. Archived from the original on 27 August 2009. Retrieved 17 January 2010.
  19. ^ "Sadler's Wells Theatre". LondonTown.com. Retrieved 17 January 2010.
  20. ^ "Royal Opera House". Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  21. ^ Carlson, Marvin (1975). "A Fresh Look at Hogarth's 'Beggar's Opera'". Educational Theatre Journal. 27 (1): 31–39. doi:10.2307/3206338. JSTOR 3206338.
  22. ^ Parker, John, ed. (1925). Who's Who in the Theatre (fifth ed.). London: Sir Isaac Pitman and Sons. p. 1196. OCLC 10013159.
  23. ^ "Tom and Jerry; or, Life in London". The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. Oxford University Press. 2004. ISBN 978-0-19-516986-7.
  24. ^ Davis, Jim; Emeljanow, Victor (1 April 2005). Reflecting the Audience: London Theatregoing, 1840–1880. University of Iowa Press. pp. 55–70. ISBN 978-1-58729-402-0. Retrieved 25 November 2016.
  25. ^ "The Pantomime Life of Joseph Grimaldi: Laughter, Madness and the Story of Britain's Greatest Comedian". The Times. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
  26. ^ a b "The Savoy Theatre", The Times, 3 October 1881. "An interesting experiment was made at a performance of Patience yesterday afternoon, when the stage was for the first time lit up by the electric light, which has been used in the auditorium ever since the opening of the Savoy Theatre. The success of the new mode of illumination was complete, and its importance for the development of scenic art can scarcely be overrated. The light was perfectly steady throughout the performance, and the effect was pictorially superior to gas, the colours of the dresses – an important element in the “æsthetic” opera – appearing as true and distinct as by daylight. The Swan incandescent lamps were used, the aid of gaslight being entirely dispensed with".
  27. ^ "The Savoy is one of the best places to stay in London". USA Today. Retrieved 22 June 2024. The first public building in the world to be lit entirely by electricity, The Savoy has a history rich in both invention and scandal.
  28. ^ Standiford, Les (2008). "The Man Who Invented Christmas: How Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol Rescued His Career and Revived Our Holiday Spirits", Crown, New York, p. 168.
  29. ^ Playbill advertising Edward Stirling's adaptation of A Christmas Carol, Collection of the British Library
  30. ^ Carroll, Lewis (1979). The Letters of Lewis Carroll, Volumes 1–2. Oxford University Press. p. 657. Dec. 30th.—To London with M—, and took her to "Alice in Wonderland," Mr. Savile Clarke's play at the Prince of Wales's Theatre... as a whole, the play seems a success.
  31. ^ "Mr Barrie's New Play. A Christmas Fairy Tale". The Glasgow Herald. 28 December 1904. p. 7. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
  32. ^ "Lillie Langtry British actress". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  33. ^ "Famous People – Ellen Terry". BBC. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  34. ^ Markowitz, Judith A. (2019). Robots That Kill: Deadly Machines and Their Precursors in Myth, Folklore, Literature, Popular Culture and Reality. McFarland. p. 105.
  35. ^ Herbert Beerbohm Tree. Archived 2 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine PeoplePlayUK, accessed 12 February 2008.
  36. ^ The Book of Dance. Dorling Kindersley. 2012. p. 100.
  37. ^ "Harrison, Sir Reginald Carey [Rex]". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press.
  38. ^ "Theatres Act 1968". www.legislation.gov.uk
  39. ^ "1.8 million views of Lion King". Theatre Views Newsletter. October 2011. Retrieved 9 May 2012.
  40. ^ Michael Billington "Snooty about musicals? Sheila Hancock should change her tune", The Guardian. (blog), 16 March 2001
  41. ^ Giles Worsley "Falling Houses", The Daily Telegraph, 6 December 2003
  42. ^ Michael Billington "Crisis in the West End", The Guardian, 2 August 2007
  43. ^ a b "Victoria Palace Theatre". Time Out. Retrieved 24 July 2022.
  44. ^ Sarah Jane Griffiths "How safe is London's Theatreland?", BBC News, 20 December 2013
  45. ^ At the Theatre Royal Haymarket in 2004, 15 people were injured when part of the ceiling fell on to them; see the Sarah Jane Griffiths article above.
  46. ^ Alice Philipson, and Andrew Marszal "Apollo Theatre ceiling in London's West End collapses: scores injured", The Daily Telegraph, 20 December
  47. ^ "The Dominion Theatre, home to An American in Paris, completes £6M refurbishment". mr.carlwoodward.com. 7 August 2017. Archived from the original on 7 October 2017. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  48. ^ "Society of London Theatre reports robust 2012 Box Office figures despite challenges" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 June 2013. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  49. ^ Singh, Anita (29 January 2014). "West End audiences hit record high thanks to Twitter". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  50. ^ "West End Theatre Ticket Sales at Record High". Sky (United Kingdom). 29 January 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  51. ^ "West End Has Another Record Year, With Increases in Both Attendance and Revenue". Playbill. 29 January 2014. Archived from the original on 1 February 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  52. ^ "Theatre closures to help slow the spread of Coronavirus". UK Theatre. 16 March 2020. Archived from the original on 11 May 2020. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
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  61. ^ "'Titanique' to open at Criterion Theatre in the West End". londontheatre.co.uk. London Theatre. 3 September 2024. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
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  66. ^ "'The Lehman Trilogy' to return to Gillian Lynne Theatre in the West End". londontheatre.co.uk. London Theatre. 17 June 2024. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
  67. ^ "Macbeth West End". 25 April 2023. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  68. ^ "Jane McDonald, Julian Clary to lead 'Robin Hood' panto in December". londontheatre.co.uk. London Theatre. 21 April 2024. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
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  76. ^ "'Doctor Who' star Jodie Whittaker to return to the stage in 'The Duchess'". londontheatre.co.uk. London Theatre. 3 June 2024. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
  77. ^ "Mark Strong and Lesley Manville to star in 'Oedipus' in the West End". londontheatre.co.uk. London Theatre. 19 January 2024. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
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  81. ^ "'Hercules' musical to premiere in the West End". londontheatre.co.uk. London Theatre. 23 June 2024. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
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  100. ^ An earlier theatre, also named the Royalty, existed in Wells Street, Wellclose Square, London from 1787 until the early part of the nineteenth century. See Wilmot-Buxton, Harry John. "William Clarkson Stanfield", Chapter IX, English Painters, Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington (1883), accessed 22 November 2013
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