The Gielgud Theatre London

By Author: Jamie Hanson
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The Gielgud Theatre, which opened Dec. 27, 1906, under the name of the Hicks Theatre, was built in honor of manager, actor, and playwright Seymour Hicks. The theatre, designed in Louis XVI style by W.G.R. Sprague, originally had 970 available seats, but currently has the capacity to hold 889 audience members on three levels. The Gielgud is located in Westminster, London, on Shaftesbury Avenue on the corner of Rupert Street. It is part of a pair of theatres, the other of which is the Queen's Theatre, which opened on the adjacent street corner in 1907.

The first play shown at the Gielgud (at the time, the Hicks) Theatre was "The Beauty of Bath," a musical by Hicks and Cosmo Hamilton, followed by "My Darling" in 1907 and the operetta "A Waltz Dream," which ran in 1908. During the next show, 1909's "The Dashing Little Duke," when Ellaline Terriss, the actress playing the title role of a woman playing a man, fell ill, her husband took her place for several performances, effectively making him a man playing a woman playing a man. The theatre was renamed the Globe Theatre in 1909 when the name because available following the ...
... demolition of the theatre formerly holding the name. Several popular and noted shows ran at the theatre in the years following the name change, such as "Call It A Day" by Dodie Smith, which opened in 1935 and ran for 509 showings.

In 1966, "There's a Girl in My Soup," a show by Terence Frisby, opened and ran for a record 1,064 performances. This remained the record until "Daisy Pulls It Off" by Andrew Lloyd Webber broke it with 1,180 runs in 1983. This remains the record to this day. Other shows performed at the Gielgud Theatre between 1966 and the renovations made to the building in 1987 include Bill Owen's "The Matchgirls"; "Design for Living" by Noël Coward; and the aforementioned "Daisy Pulls it Off."

In 1987, the theatre underwent extensive renovations and careful attention was paid to perfecting the auditorium's gold leaf design. The modern theatre is noted for its circular Regency staircase and the tower and oval gallery.

In 1994, the theatre was again renamed, as Shakespeare's Globe Theatre had a planned 1997 opening and management wanted to avoid unnecessary confusion. It was renamed the Gielgud Theatre in honor of John Gielgud, a British actor. In 2003, it was announced that plans were being made for another major refurbishment of the building. Work began toward these renovations in 2006. The theatre will eventually have a joint entrance foyer shared with the Queen's Theatre. Work began on the fascade of the theatre in March of 2007.

During the last 10 years, shows of note have included 2004's "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"; 2005's "Some Girls," which starred noted actors David Schwimmer and Catherine Tate; 2006's RSC's "The Canterbury Tales"; 2007's "Macbeth" and "Equus"; and 2008's "God of Carnage." "Enjoy," by Alan Bennett and starring Alison Steadman, will begin in 2009.

If you fancy visiting the Gielgud Theatre or buying London Theatre Tickets visit the website.