London Queen's Theatre auditorium ceiling 002

The Sondheim Theatre (formerly the Queen's Theatre) is a

West End theatre West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.Christopher Innes, "West End" in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194–1 ...

located in

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 Cir ...

on the corner of

Wardour Street Wardour Street () is a street in Soho, City of Westminster, London. It is a one-way street that runs north from Leicester Square, through Chinatown, London, Chinatown, across Shaftesbury Avenue to Oxford Street. Throughout the 20th century the ...

in the

City of Westminster The City of Westminster is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and London boroughs, borough in Inner London. It is the site of the United Kingdom's Houses of Parliament and much of the British government. It occupies a large area of cent ...

, London. It opened as the Queen's Theatre on 8 October 1907, as a twin to the neighbouring Hicks Theatre (now the

Gielgud Theatre The Gielgud Theatre is a West End theatre, located on Shaftesbury Avenue, at the corner of Rupert Street, in the City of Westminster, London. The house currently has 986 seats on three levels. The theatre was designed by W. G. R. Sprague an ...

) which had opened ten months earlier. Both theatres were designed by W. G. R. Sprague. The theatre was

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

in June 1972. In 2019 the theatre's name was changed from the Queen's to the Sondheim Theatre (after

Stephen Sondheim Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March 22, 1930November 26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. One of the most important figures in twentieth-century musical theater, Sondheim is credited for having "reinvented the American musical" with sho ...

) after a 20 week refurbishment. The theatre reopened on 18 December 2019.

History

The original plan was to name the venue the ''Central Theatre''. However, after lengthy debate, it was named the Queen's Theatre and a portrait of

Queen Alexandra Alexandra of Denmark (Alexandra Caroline Marie Charlotte Louise Julia; 1 December 1844 – 20 November 1925) was List of British royal consorts, Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 22 January 1901 t ...

was hung in the foyer. The first production at the Queen's Theatre was a comedy by

Madeleine Lucette Ryley Madeleine Lucette Ryley (26 December 1858 – 7 February 1934) was an English actress and playwright known for her plays in London and then America in the late 1800s. She began writing plays under the pseudonym Noel Grant until she gained fame as ...

called ''The Sugar Bowl''. Although it was poorly received and ran for only 36 performances, the theatre received glowing reviews. ''

The Stage ''The Stage'' is a British weekly newspaper and website covering the entertainment industry and particularly theatre. It was founded in 1880. It contains news, reviews, opinion, features, and recruitment advertising, mainly directed at those wh ...

'' on 10 October 1907 described the theatre as: In September 1940, a German bomb landed directly on the theatre, destroying the facade and lobby areas. The production at the time was Daphne du Maurier's ''Rebecca'' starring Celia Johnson, Owen Nares and Margaret Rutherford. The theatre remained closed until a £250,000 restoration was completed by Westwood Sons & Partners almost 20 years later. The auditorium retained its Edwardian decor, while the lobbies and exterior were rebuilt in a

modern style The Modern Style is a style of architecture, art, and design that first emerged in the United Kingdom in the mid-1880s. It is the first Art Nouveau style worldwide, and it represents the evolution of the Arts and Crafts movement which was native ...

. The reconstructed theatre opened on 8 July 1959 with John Gielgud's solo performance in ''Shakespeare speeches and sonnets, Ages of Man''. From April 2004 to July 2019, the theatre played host to

Cameron Mackintosh Sir Cameron Anthony Mackintosh (born 17 October 1946) is a British theatrical producer and theatre owner notable for his association with many commercially successful musicals. At the height of his success in 1990, he was described as being "th ...

's production of ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its original ...

'' which transferred after 18 years at the nearby Palace Theatre. The musical celebrated its 20th anniversary at the venue on 8 October 2005 and overtook ''

Cats The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of t ...

'' as the longest-running musical of all time a year later on 8 October 2006.

2019 Refurbishment

In 2019,

announced that the original production of ''Les Misérables'' would close on 13 July 2019 while the theatre underwent a £13.8 million restoration, but would return in a new production from 18 December 2019, when the Queen's Theatre would be renamed as the Sondheim Theatre in honour of composer and lyricist

. The theatre was extensively refurbished during the 20 week period. The Edwardian auditorium was recreated from the 1950s reconstruction with the addition of a curved rail and new boxes at dress circle level, named after Maggie Smith and Judi Dench. Overhangs and ceilings on each tier were also redecorated with a recurring Sprague-inspired cherub design in carved plaster and "fifteen colours and seven shades of gold". In total, approximately 70% of the plastering in the building was redone and a new, custom-made chandelier was hung. The stage was also lowered 30cm to be closer to the audience, and 32 additional toilets were installed in a void space next door to the theatre. Additional space on every floor from the basement up was also reclaimed from a former electricity substation leased to the electric board in 1907. This allowed for more space on stage as well as additional dressing rooms on several floors, now fitted with showers. Finally, new seating was installed to improve audience comfort and sight-lines. Following completion the Sondheim Theatre re-opened on the 16th January 2020 for its first performance of ''Les Miserables'' in the 2009 touring staging.

Recent and present productions

* ''The Hobbit'' (28 November 2001 – 9 February 2002) by Glyn Robbins from

J. R. R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, ; 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlins ...

book A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical arr ...

* ''Mysteries'' (26 February 2002 – 18 May 2002) adaptation by Speir Opera * ''Umoja: The Spirit of Togetherness'' (18 June 2002 – 31 August 2002) by Todd Twala, Thenbi Nyandeni and Ian von Memerty * ''Contact'' (23 October 2002 – 10 May 2003) by Susan Stroman and John Weildman * ''

The Rocky Horror Show ''The Rocky Horror Show'' is a musical with music, lyrics and book by Richard O'Brien. A humorous tribute to the science fiction and horror B movies of the 1930s through to the early 1960s, the musical tells the story of a newly engaged couple ...

'' (23 June 2003 – 5 July 2003) by

Richard O'Brien Richard Timothy Smith. known professionally as Richard O'Brien, is a British-New Zealand actor, writer, musician, composer, and television presenter. He wrote the musical stage show ''The Rocky Horror Show'' in 1973, which has remained in conti ...

, starring

Jonathan Wilkes Jonathan Wilkes (born 1 August 1978) is an English television presenter and singer. Early life and career Jonathan Wilkes was born in Baddeley Green, Stoke-on-Trent, to Eileen Wilkes and Graham Wilkes, and spent most of his childhood in ...

and

John Stalker John Stalker (14 April 1939 – 15 February 2019) was a British police officer who served as Deputy Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police. He headed the Stalker Inquiry that investigated the shooting of suspected members of the Provision ...

* ''Cyberjam'' (23 September 2003 – 3 January 2004) * The RSC's ''

The Taming of the Shrew ''The Taming of the Shrew'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1592. The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunken ...

'' (15 January 2004 – 6 March 2004) by

William 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 nation ...

* The RSC's '' The Tamer Tamed'' (22 January 2004 – 6 March 2004) by John Fletcher * ''

'' (12 April 2004 — 13 July 2019, 18 December 2019–) by

Alain Boublil Alain Boublil (born 5 March 1941) is a French musical theatre lyricist and librettist, best known for his collaborations with the composer Claude-Michel Schönberg for musicals on Broadway and London's West End. These include ''La Révolution ...

and

Claude-Michel Schönberg Claude-Michel Schönberg (born 6 July 1944, in Vannes) is a French record producer, actor, singer, songwriter, and musical theatre composer, best known for his collaborations with lyricist Alain Boublil. Major works include ''La Révolution Fran� ...

* '' Les Misérables - The Staged Concert'' (5 December 2020 - 28 February 2021)

References

;Citations ;Further reading * ''Guide to British Theatres 1750–1950'', John Earl and Michael Sell pp. 133–4 (Theatres Trust, 2000) * ''Who's Who in the Theatre'', edited by John Parker, tenth edition, revised, London, 1947, pp. 477–478, 1183.

External links

Sondheim Theatre, London
official website

{{Authority control West End theatres Theatres completed in 1907 Theatres in the City of Westminster Grade II listed buildings in the City of Westminster Grade II listed theatres 1907 establishments in England Stephen Sondheim