The Kings Theatre is a theatre in

Southsea Southsea is a seaside resort and a geographic area of Portsmouth, Portsea Island in the ceremonial county of Hampshire, England. Southsea is located 1.8 miles (2.8 km) to the south of Portsmouth's inner city-centre. Southsea began as a f ...

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

, designed by the architect

Frank Matcham Francis Matcham (22 November 1854 – 17 May 1920)Mackintosh, Iain"Matcham, Frank" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, accessed 7 July 2019 was an English architect who specialised in the design of theatres and ...

. It opened on 30 September 1907. It is operated by the Kings Theatre Trust Ltd. The building was designated a

Grade II* listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

in 1976.The Kings Theatre, with numbers 24-28 (even) Albert Road, Southsea
Historic England website, accessed 25 April 2025.

History

The theatre opened on 30 September 1907 with a production of ''Charles I'' followed by two further of

Sir 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 ( ...

's works. During the 1930s it was used to premiere several works by

Ian Hay Major (Honorary Major General) John Hay Beith, Order of the British Empire, CBE Military Cross, MC (17 April 1876 – 22 September 1952), was a British schoolmaster and soldier, but is best remembered as a novelist, playwright, essayist, an ...

before they transferred to the West End including '' Orders Are Orders'' and '' Admirals All''. The musical ''

This'll Make You Whistle ''This'll Make You Whistle'' is a 1936 British musical comedy film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Jack Buchanan, Elsie Randolph and William Kendall. The film was based on the stage musical of the same title which Buchanan had starred ...

'' premiered there in 1935. The theatre stayed in the control of its original owners, The Portsmouth Theatre Company, until 1964 when it was purchased by Commander Reggie & Mrs Joan Cooper. In 1990 it was sold again to

Hampshire County Council Hampshire County Council (HCC) is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Hampshire in England. The council was created in 1889. The county council provides county-level services to eleven of the thirteen districts geo ...

. In 2001, after a successful campaign by AKTER (Action for Kings Theatre Restoration) to keep the theatre open, the theatre was purchased by

Portsmouth City Council Portsmouth City Council is the local authority of the city of Portsmouth, in the ceremonial county of Hampshire, England. Portsmouth has had a council since medieval times, which has been reformed on numerous occasions. Since 1997 the council ha ...

and leased to the Kings Theatre Trust Ltd who undertook the restoration of the building. The present day theatre has a

seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...

of 1600 and a computerised booking system. Much of the backstage area is still fully manual, allowing it to retain the tag of a traditional hemp house, though powered flying bars have now been installed to allow large-scale productions. In 1974, director

Ken Russell Henry Kenneth Alfred Russell (3 July 1927 – 27 November 2011) was a British film director, known for his pioneering work in television and film and for his flamboyant and controversial style. His films were mainly liberal adaptations of ...

filmed the

Pinball Wizard "Pinball Wizard" is a song by the English rock band the Who, written by guitarist and primary songwriter Pete Townshend and featured on their 1969 rock opera album '' Tommy''. The original recording was released as a single in 1969 and reac ...

sequence of the rock opera ''

Tommy Tommy may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tommy (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Tommy Atkins, or just Tommy, a slang term for a common soldier in the British Army * Tommy Giacomelli (born 1974), Brazilian fo ...

'' at the theatre, featuring

The Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...

and

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...

on the stage.

The Kings Theatre Trust Ltd

The Kings Theatre Trust Ltd. is a registered charity which oversees both the day-to-day running and the restoration of the building, as well as productions at the theatre. The restoration is in part funded by Portsmouth City Council and the Kings Theatre Trust.

Staff

Led by a team of full time staff, headed by CEO Richard Pearce.

Restoration work

As part of the Centenary Project, the Kings Theatre underwent a £500,000 refurbishment of the auditorium, including the ceiling. Beginning on 17 June 2007 the theatre was cleared and scaffolding was constructed to allow access to the higher areas of the auditorium. There was work to restore the decorations of the theatre and maintain the areas. During this work a small 120-seat theatre was created within the auditorium which was known as the Stage 2 Studio. The Studio season was such a success that it was repeated during the Summer of 2008 (throughout August) with music, comedy, children's shows, drama and dance all part of the line up. Between October 2008 and February 2009, the original leaded dome, red painted wooden cupula, the deteriorated wooden statue (now named Aurora) and six lion figures was replicated in glassfibre by Jago Developments of Chichester and successfully installed by them (with the help of a 60-ton crane). Since the restoration programme commenced, over £2 million has been spent on refurbishment using both professional and volunteer workers. The Kings Theatre Trust are in the process of raising funds for a restoration of the currently dilapidated Tower Room, to create a community art studio and exhibition space.

Shows

Many one night touring shows come to the Kings Theatre, from ballet to rock music, through drama to children's shows and comedians. Since the major restorations have been undertaken, the Kings Theatre has attracted large national touring productions such as "Chicago", "Beauty & The Beast", "MAMMA MIA!", "The Rocky Horror Show", "Evita" and "Grease". The theatre is also host to many local drama societies including The Portsmouth Players, CCADs and South Downe Musical Society.

Professional Productions

The Sound of Music ''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, '' The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. ...

* Mamma Mia! *

We Will Rock You "We Will Rock You" is a song by the British rock band Queen from their 1977 album '' News of the World'', written by guitarist Brian May. ''Rolling Stone'' ranked it number 330 of " The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2004, and the RIAA it p ...

The Play That Goes Wrong ''The Play That Goes Wrong'' is a play by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, and Henry Shields of Mischief Theatre Company. The story follows a performance of a murder mystery, where the ill-fated theatre company encounters numerous mishaps. The ...

Avenue Q '' Avenue Q'' is a musical comedy featuring puppets and human actors with music and lyrics by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx and a book by Jeff Whitty. It won Best Musical, Book, and Score at the 2004 Tony Awards. The show's format is a parody ...

* Grease *

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Dreamboats and Petticoats ''Dreamboats and Petticoats'' is a jukebox musical based on popular songs from the fifties and early sixties. The musical, featuring those songs of the rock 'n' roll era, is set around the years 1957 to 1963 and was written by Laurence Marks an ...

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' is a sung-through musical with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice, based on the character of Joseph from the Bible's Book of Genesis. This was the first Lloyd Webber and Rice ...

* Buddy *

The Mousetrap ''The Mousetrap'' is a murder mystery play by Agatha Christie. The play opened in London's West End in 1952 and ran continuously until 16 March 2020, when the stage performances had to be temporarily discontinued during the COVID-19 pandemi ...

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers ''Seven Brides for Seven Brothers'' is a 1954 American musical film, directed by Stanley Donen, with music by Gene de Paul, lyrics by Johnny Mercer, and choreography by Michael Kidd. The screenplay, by Albert Hackett, Frances Goodrich, and Dor ...

* Copacabana * The Woman in Black (25th Anniversary Touring Production) *

Calamity Jane Martha Jane Canary (May 1, 1856 – August 1, 1903), better known as Calamity Jane, was an American American frontier, frontierswoman, Exhibition shooting, sharpshooter, sex worker, and storyteller. In addition to many exploits, she was known f ...

* Return to the Forbidden Planet (25th Anniversary Tour) *

The History Boys ''The History Boys'' is a play by British playwright Alan Bennett. The play premiered at the Royal National Theatre in London's West End on 18 May 2004. Its Broadway debut was on 23 April 2006 at the Broadhurst Theatre where 185 performances w ...

Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and ...

References

External links

Kings Theatre
Official site {{DEFAULTSORT:Kings_Theatre, _Portsmouth Theatres in Hampshire Buildings and structures in Portsmouth Grade II* listed buildings in Hampshire Tourist attractions in Portsmouth 1907 establishments in England