Novello Theatre
 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification.(February 2008) |
Waldorf Theatre Strand Theatre Whitney Theatre | |
 (2007) | |
 | |
| Address | Aldwych London,WC2 United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 51°30′44″N0°07′09″W/ 51.512306°N 0.11925°W |
| Public transit |  Covent Garden;Temple |
| Owner | Delfont Mackintosh Theatres |
| Designation | Grade II |
| Type | West End theatre |
| Capacity | 1,146 |
| Production | Mamma Mia! |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 22 May 1905 |
| Architect | W.G.R. Sprague |
| Website | |
| delfontmackintosh.co.uk/theatres/novello-theatre/ | |
TheNovello Theatreis aWest End theatreonAldwych,in theCity of Westminster.It was known as theStrand Theatrebetween 1913 and 2005.
History
[edit]The theatre was built as one of a pair with theAldwych Theatreon either side ofThe Waldorf Hilton, London,both being designed byW. G. R. Sprague.The theatre was opened byThe Shubert Organizationas theWaldorf Theatreon 22 May 1905, and was renamed theStrand Theatre,in 1909. It was again renamed as theWhitney Theatrein 1911, before again becoming theStrand Theatrein 1913. In 2005, the theatre was renamed by its owners (Delfont Mackintosh Theatres) the Novello Theatre in honour ofIvor Novello,who lived in a flat above the theatre from 1913 to 1951.
The black comedyArsenic and Old Lacehad a run of 1337 performances here in the 1940s, andSailor Beware!ran for 1231 performances from 1955.Stephen Sondheim's musicalA Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forumopened here in 1963, running for nearly two years. In 1971, the comedyNo Sex Please, We're Britishopened here, remaining for over 10 years of its 16-year run until it transferred to theGarrick Theatrein 1982.
The theatre was extensively refurbished in 1930 and again in the early 1970s. It wasGrade II listedbyEnglish Heritageon 20 July 1971.[1]AfterThe Rat Pack: Live from Las Vegasin 2005, its 100th anniversary year, the theatre was extensively refurbished. The currentseating capacityis 1,105.
The theatre reopened on 8 December 2005 with theRoyal Shakespeare Company(RSC)'s annual London season, playing to 4-week runs ofTwelfth Night,The Comedy of Errors,A Midsummer Night's DreamandAs You Like It,concluding in March 2006.
In 2006, the theatre played host to the London première of the Broadway musicalFootloose,starringCheryl Baker.Ending on 11 November, Footloose made way for the Royal Shakespeare Company's return season for 2006–7, following which the Broadway musicalThe Drowsy Chaperonemade its European première on 6 June 2007. The London production starredElaine Paige,Bob Martin,Summer Strallenand John Partridge. The London production closed after a run of only two months on 4 August 2007 after failing to attract audiences, despite positive notices.
It was announced on 10 July 2007, just three days after the announcement ofDrowsy'spremature closure that the theatre would be the home of a new musical version of the MGM motion pictureDesperately Seeking Susanwith music byBlondieandDeborah Harry,directed by Angus Jackson, and starringEmma Williamsand Kelly Price. The musical previewed on 16 October 2007 (originally 12 October 2007), receiving its world première on 15 November 2007. However, just two weeks after its opening, following a critical mauling, the show announced its final performance for 15 December 2007, having played just four weeks of previews and four weeks of open run, losing over £3.5 million.
A quick replacement came in the form of the cross-West End transfer ofShadowlandsfrom theWyndham's Theatre,commencing 21 December 2007 for a 12-week run to 25 February 2008. Producer Phil McIntyre opened ZooNation's adaptation of the musicalInto the Woods,entitledInto the Hoods,on 26 March 2008.
This theatre is one of the 40 theatres featured in the 2012 DVD documentary seriesGreat West End Theatres,presented byDonald Sinden.[2]
In 2020, following the nation-wide lockdown due to theCOVID-19 pandemic,Delfont Mackintosh Theatres Ltd laid off most of the theatre's staff and in August 2020 they were facing redundancy.
Nearby Tube stations
[edit]Recent and current productions
[edit]
- No Sex Please, We're British(3 June 1971 – 16 January 1982)
- The Real Thing(16 November 1982 – 16 February 1985)
- Cabaret(17 July 1986 – 4 May 1987)
- Someone Like You(22 March 1990 – 26 April 1990)
- Leonardo the Musical: A Portrait of Love(3 June 1993 – 10 July 1993)
- Buddy(6 October 1995 – 3 March 2002)
- The Rat Pack: Live from Las Vegas(1 July 2003 – 28 May 2005)
- The RSC'sTwelfth Night(8 December 2005 – 31 December 2005)
- The RSC'sThe Comedy of Errors(6 January 2006 – 28 January 2006)
- The RSC'sA Midsummer Night's Dream(2 February 2006 – 25 February 2006)
- The RSC'sAs You Like It(2 March 2006 – 25 March 2006)
- Footloose – The Musical(8 April 2006 – 11 November 2006)
- The RSC'sMuch Ado About Nothing(7 December 2006 – 6 January 2007)
- The RSC'sAntony and Cleopatra(11 January 2007 – 17 February 2007)
- The RSC'sThe Tempest(22 February 2007 – 24 March 2007)
- The Drowsy Chaperone(6 June 2007 – 4 August 2007)
- Desperately Seeking Susan– A New Musical(15 November 2007 – 15 December 2007)
- Shadowlands(21 December 2007 – 23 February 2008)
- Into the Hoods(14 March 2008 – 30 August 2008)
- Eürobeat: Almost Eurovision(9 September 2008 – 1 November 2008)
- The RSC'sHamlet(3 December 2008 – 10 January 2009)
- The RSC'sA Midsummer Night's Dream(15 January 2009 – 7 February 2009)
- The RSC'sThe Taming of the Shrew(12 February 2009 – 7 March 2009)
- Spring Awakening(21 March 2009 – 30 May 2009)
- An Inspector Calls(22 September 2009 – 14 November 2009)
- Cat On A Hot Tin Roof(12 December 2009 – 10 April 2010)
- Grumpy Old Women Live2 –Chin Up Britain(14 April – 5 June 2010)
- Tap Dogs(15 June 2010 – 5 September 2010)
- Onassis(12 October 2010 – 8 January 2011)
- Betty Blue Eyes(19 March 2011 – 24 September 2011)
- Crazy for You(8 October 2011 – 17 March 2012)
- Noises Off(24 March 2012 – 30 June 2012)
- Derren Brown:Svengali Tour (9 July 2012 – 11 August 2012)
- Mamma Mia!(6 September 2012 –)
References
[edit]Citations
- ^English Heritage Listing details (as Strand theatre)accessed 23 August 2007
- ^Fisher, Philip."Great West End Theatres",British Theatre Guide,19 February 2012
Bibliography
- Earl, John; Sell, Michael (2000).Guide to British Theatres 1750–1950.London: Theatres Trust. pp. 141–2.ISBN0-7136-5688-3.
External links
[edit]
- Official website
- Historyat ArthurLloyd.co.uk
