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The Princess's Theatre or Princess Theatre was a theatre in

Oxford Street Oxford Street is a major road in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, running from Tottenham Court Road to Marble Arch via Oxford Circus. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, with around half a million daily visitors, and as ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. The building opened in 1828 as the "Queen's Bazaar" and housed a

diorama A diorama is a replica of a scene, typically a three-dimensional full-size or miniature model, sometimes enclosed in a glass showcase for a museum. Dioramas are often built by hobbyists as part of related hobbies such as military vehicle mode ...

Clarkson Stanfield Clarkson Frederick Stanfield (3 December 179318 May 1867) was a prominent English painter (often inaccurately credited as William Clarkson Stanfield) who was best known for his large-scale paintings of dramatic marine subjects and landscapes. ...

and David Roberts. It was converted into a theatre and opened in 1836 as the Princess's Theatre, named for then Princess Victoria before her accession as queen. After an unsuccessful series of

promenade concert Promenade concerts were musical performances in the 18th and 19th century pleasure gardens of London, where the audience would stroll about while listening to the music. The term derives from the French ''se promener'', "to walk". Today, the te ...

s, alterations were made on the interior, and the theatre was reopened on 26 December 1842 with

Vincenzo Bellini Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini (; 3 November 1801 – 23 September 1835) was a Sicilian opera composer, who was known for his long-flowing melodic lines for which he was named "the Swan of Catania". Many years later, in 1898, Giu ...

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

La sonnambula ''La sonnambula'' (''The Sleepwalker'') is an opera semiseria in two acts, with music in the ''bel canto'' tradition by Vincenzo Bellini set to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani, based on a scenario for a ''ballet-pantomime'' written by Eu ...

''. The theatre, by now under the management of

John Medex Maddox John Medex Maddox (1789–1861) was a Victorian-era playwright and one-time manager of the Princess's Theatre, London, Princess's Theatre in London's Oxford Street. Of Jews, Jewish descent, Maddox had been born John Medex and used "Maddox" as an ...

, presented operas and other entertainments, such as

General Tom Thumb Charles Sherwood Stratton (January 4, 1838 – July 15, 1883), better known by his stage name "General Tom Thumb", was an American dwarf who achieved great fame as a performer under circus pioneer P. T. Barnum. Childhood and early life Bo ...

. The theatre is best remembered for

Charles Kean Charles John Kean (18 January 181122 January 1868), was an English actor and theatre manager, best known for his revivals of Shakespearean plays. Life Kean was born at Waterford, Ireland, a son of actor Edmund Kean and actress Mary Kean ('' ...

's Shakespeare revivals, beginning in 1849 and continuing for ten years. Kean presented these in lavish and well-researched "authentic" productions and also presented French drama.

Dion Boucicault Dionysius Lardner "Dion" Boucicault (né Boursiquot; 26 December 1820 – 18 September 1890) was an Irish actor and playwright famed for his melodramas. By the later part of the 19th century, Boucicault had become known on both sides of the ...

became the theatre's leading actor, and

Ellen Terry Dame Alice Ellen Terry, (27 February 184721 July 1928), was a leading English actress of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born into a family of actors, Terry began performing as a child, acting in Shakespeare plays in London, and tour ...

and

Henry Irving Sir Henry Irving (6 February 1838 – 13 October 1905), christened John Henry Brodribb, sometimes known as J. H. Irving, was an English stage actor in the Victorian era, known as an actor-manager because he took complete responsibility ( ...

got their starts at the theatre. Thereafter, the theatre presented mainly melodrama.

H. J. Byron Henry James Byron (8 January 1835 – 11 April 1884) was a prolific English dramatist, as well as an editor, journalist, director, theatre manager, novelist and actor. After an abortive start at a medical career, Byron struggled as a provincial ...

wrote a series of Christmas

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...

s for the theatre, beginning in 1859 with ''Jack the Giant Killer, or, Harlequin, King Arthur, and ye Knights of ye Round Table''Lee, Amy Wai Sum
"Henry J. Byron"
Hong Kong Baptist University and followed the next year by ''Robinson Crusoe, or Harlequin Friday and the King of the Caribee Islands!'' In 1863, Sefton Parry, recently returned from Cape Town, appeared as Cousin Joe in the farce ''The Rough Diamond.''''Leeds Intelligencer'' 19 September 1863 p.3 In 1864, a particularly popular drama was presented at the theatre called ''The Streets of London''. The theatre was demolished and rebuilt in 1879–80. After this, the theatre continued to present melodramas, including ''

The Lights o' London ''The Lights o' London'' is a melodramatic play, by George R. Sims, first produced in London on 10 September 1881 at the Princess's Theatre, produced by and starring Wilson Barrett. The play was a hit, running for 226 nights, and was frequentl ...

'' (1881) and ''The Silver King'' (1882). In 1887, the theatre hosted the

farcical Farce is a comedy that seeks to entertain an audience through situations that are highly exaggerated, extravagant, ridiculous, absurd, and improbable. Farce is also characterized by heavy use of physical humor; the use of deliberate absurdity o ...

comedy ''Romany Rye'' written by

George Robert Sims George Robert Sims (2 September 1847 – 4 September 1922) was an English journalist, poet, dramatist, novelist and ''bon vivant''. Sims began writing lively humour and satiric pieces for ''Fun'' magazine and ''The Referee'', but he was soon co ...

, performed by the company of Gilbert Elliott, and the show toured from there to the

Theatre Royal, Exeter The Theatre Royal, Exeter was the name of several Theater (structure), theatres situated in the city centre of Exeter, Devon, England in the United Kingdom. Early theatres and fires The name "Theatre Royal" was first applied in Exeter by the ...

, where the opening night resulted in the

Exeter Theatre Royal fire The Exeter Theatre Royal fire was a disaster that occurred on 5 September 1887 in Exeter, England. A fire broke out in the backstage area of the Theatre Royal during the production of ''The Romany Rye'' by George Robert Sims and produced by Wi ...

, which was the deadliest theatre disaster in UK history, killed 186 people. The theatre closed permanently in 1902 after its last success, ''

The Fatal Wedding ''The Fatal Wedding'' is a play by Theodore Kremer and a 1911 Australian silent film directed by Raymond Longford based on the melodrama, which he and Lottie Lyell had toured around Australia.

'', and the building became a warehouse. It was demolished in 1931 and replaced by a Woolworth store, and then subsequently by the

Oxford Walk Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

shopping centre. The site is now the location of a sports store.

References

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External links

* {{Authority control Buildings and structures demolished in 1931 Former theatres in London Former buildings and structures in the City of Westminster Theatres completed in 1828 1902 disestablishments in England Demolished buildings and structures in London