The Shaftesbury Theatre was a

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

in central London,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, between 1888 and 1941. It was built by John Lancaster for his wife, Ellen Wallis, a well-known

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

an actress. The theatre was designed by C. J. Phipps and built by Messrs. Patman and Fotheringham at a cost of £20,000 and opened with a production of '' As You Like It'' on 20 October 1888. The theatre had a stage of 28' 6" square. The capacity was 1,196. It was located on the south side of

Shaftesbury Avenue Shaftesbury Avenue is a major road in the West End of London, named after The 7th Earl of Shaftesbury. It runs north-easterly from Piccadilly Circus to New Oxford Street, crossing Charing Cross Road at Cambridge Circus. From Piccadilly C ...

, just east of Gerrard Place.

History

The theatre's first big hit was '' The Belle of New York'' produced by the prominent Broadway producer, George W. Lederer, which opened on 12 April 1898 and ran for an extremely successful 697 performances. In 1908–09 H. B. Irving became the lessee and manager of the theatre and presented a successful season of plays.

Robert Courtneidge Robert Courtneidge (29 June 1859 – 6 April 1939) was a British theatrical manager-producer and playwright. He is best remembered as the co-author of the light opera ''Tom Jones (Edward German), Tom Jones'' (1907) and the producer of ''The Arc ...

was lessee for most of the early years of the 20th century and produced mostly

comic opera Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue. Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a ne ...

s and

Edwardian musical comedies Edwardian musical comedy was a form of British musical theatre that extended beyond the reign of King Edward VII in both directions, beginning in the early 1890s, when the Gilbert and Sullivan operas' dominance had ended, until the rise of the Ame ...

, including '' Tom Jones'' (1907), the record-setting hit '' The Arcadians'' (1909), '' Oh! Oh! Delphine!'' (1913), ''The Pearl Girl'' and many others. In 1914 Basil Rathbone appeared at the Shaftesbury as the Dauphin in Shakespeare's ''

Henry V Henry V may refer to: People * Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026) * Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125) * Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161) * Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (1 ...

''. Courtneidge's successors from 1917 to 1921 were George Grossmith Jr. and

Edward Laurillard Edward Laurillard (20 April 1870 – 7 May 1936) was a cinema and theatre producer in London and New York City during the first third of the 20th century. He is best remembered for promoting the cinema early in the 20th century and for Edwardian ...

. They produced a number of shows, including '' Arlette'' by Austen Hurgon and

George Arthurs George Arthurs (13 April 1875 – 14 March 1944) was an English songwriter, playwright, composer, author and screenwriter who contributed lyrics to several successful musical comedies such as ''The Belle of Mayfair'' (1906), ''Havana'' (190 ...

(1917); ''Baby Bunting'' by Fred Thompson and Worton David (1919); and ''The Great Lover'', by Leo Ditrichstein, Frederic Hatton and Fanny Hatton (1920). In 1941 the theatre was so severely damaged by

aerial bombardment An airstrike, air strike or air raid is an offensive operation carried out by aircraft. Air strikes are delivered from aircraft such as blimps, balloons, fighters, heavy bombers, ground attack aircraft, attack helicopters and drones. The offic ...

that the lease was vacated, and in 1956 the site was appropriated by the

London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kno ...

for a proposed new fire station to replace the one next door. However it was to remain empty for over 40 years used only as a car park surrounded by advertising boards. The current Soho fire station was eventually built on the site in 1983.

References

* ''Who's Who in the Theatre'', edited by John Parker, tenth edition, revised, London, 1947, p. 1184.

External links

History of the theatre
{{Authority control Former theatres in London Theatres completed in 1888 1941 disestablishments in England Former buildings and structures in the City of Westminster Buildings and structures in the United Kingdom destroyed during World War II Charles J. Phipps buildings