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Discount Theatre Tickets >> London Theatres >> Albery
Theatre |
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Albery
Theatre |
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Albery Theatre |
Currently showing:
Blackbird |
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Originally known as the New Theatre, the Albery
Theatre was built by Sir Charles Wyndham on St. Martin's Lane in London, England
and opened on March 12, 1903. It was built behind Wyndham's Wyndham's Theatre
which was completed in 1899. In 1973 it was renamed
the Albery in tribute to the late Sir Bronson Albery who had presided as its
manager for many years. The theatre is now owned by
Delfont-Mackintosh Ltd. (as of September 2005) and there are plans for a major
refurbishment commencing in 2006 when the theatre
will also be renamed the Noel Coward Theatre from June 2006 when it reopenes for
the London premiere of Avenue Q.
The building was designed by architect W. G. R. Sprague with an exterior in the
Classical style and an interior in the Rococo
style. The theatre seats 872 patrons on 4 levels. The building is now a Grade II
Listed structure.
Notable productions
After opening in 1903 with a production of Rosemary starring Charles Wyndham and
his wife, Mary Moore, the Albery has hosted a
number of notable productions. Noel Coward's first play, I'll Leave it to You
played the then New Theatre in 1920. George Bernard
Shaw's St. Joan with an acclaimed performance by actress Sybil Thorndike ran in
1924.
The 1930s saw John Gielgud's production of Hamlet and he also appeared with
Laurence Olivier, Peggy Ashcroft and Edith Evans in
Romeo and Juliet. With the Blitz, came the destruction of the theatres that were
home to the Old Vic and Sadler's Wells Theatre
Companies. Both companies made the New Theatre home until their respective
theatres were rebuilt in the 1950s. One of the most
successful shows to play the New Theatre opened 30 June 1960, it was Lionel
Bart's musical retelling of Charles Dickens' Oliver
Twist, Oliver!. It ran for 2,618 performances.
Among some of the notable productions recently is the 1994 revival of Turgenev's
A Month in the Country starring Helen Mirren and
John Hurt.
Recently, the theatre has played host to some notable Shakespeare productions
including a production of Twelfth Night set in
India with an entirely Asian cast. The production played to packed houses and
only closed as the Royal Shakespeare Company
themselves had exclusive rights to perform their annual London season of
Tragedies there. Between December 2004 and April 2005,
they presented Hamlet, Romeo & Juliet, Macbeth, King Lear and a brand new
production of Euripedes' Hecuba starring Vanessa
Redgrave.
In June 2005, the Irish hit The Shaughraun opened, however it's success at the
Dublin Gate Theatre was not matched in the capital
and it closed just over a month after opening. This closure was followed with a
dark period of around three months before the
theatre transferred to the ownership of Delfont Mackintosh Limited and reopened
in October 2005 with The Right's Size's new
production Ducktastic!. Once again this failed to live up to expectations and
closed swiftly just three weeks after opening on 19
November 2005. A short Christmas season of Patrick Stewart's one-man version of
Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol played between
6-31 December 2005 and the theatre is now hosting the Edinburgh Festival hit
drama Blackbird starring Roger Allam.
From June 1 2006 the theatre will become known as the Noel Coward Theatre and
will play host to the London transfer of Broadway's
smash hit musical Avenue Q. |
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Albery
Theatre seating plan |
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