Prince Edward Theatre

Prince Edward Theatre
Prince Edward Theatre in 2008
Address	Old Compton Street
City	Westminster, London
Coordinates	51°30′48″N 0°07′51″W / 51.513472°N 0.130778°W / 51.513472; -0.130778Coordinates: 51°30′48″N 0°07′51″W / 51.513472°N 0.130778°W / 51.513472; -0.130778
Designation	Grade II listed
Architect	Edward Stone
Owned by	Delfont Mackintosh
Capacity	1618
Type	West End theatre
Opened	1930
Rebuilt	1946 T. and B. Braddock 1978 RHWL Architects
Previous names	1935 London Casino 1942 Queensberry All Services Club 1954 Casino Cinerama Theatre
Production	Jersey Boys
www.delfontmackintosh.co.uk/theatres/prince-edward/

The Prince Edward Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Old Compton Street, just north of Leicester Square, in the City of Westminster.

The theatre was designed in 1930 by Edward A. Stone,^[1] with an interior designed by Marc-Henri Levy and Gaston Laverdet.^[2] Named after Prince Edward (then the Prince of Wales, briefly Edward VIII and later Duke of Windsor), it opened on April 3, 1930 with a performance of the musical Rio Rita.^[3] Other notable events in its opening years included the London debut of famed cabaret artiste Josephine Baker, who performed her famous 'Bananas Dance'.

In 1935, Stone converted the theatre to a dance and cabaret hall, being renamed the "London Casino". In 1942, stage alterations were undertaken by Thomas Braddock, re-opening as the "Queensberry All Services Club" in 1942 – a club for servicemen, the shows were broadcast on the BBC. After the war, the architects T. and B. Bradock restored the building to theatrical use, becoming the "London Casino"^[2] once again — when the King of Yiddish Music Leo Fuld hit the stage.^{[citation needed]} In 1954, the same architects converted it to a cinema, reopening as the "Casino Cinerama Theatre".^[2]

In 1974, the theatre was acquired by impresario Bernard Delfont, and a new screen installed at a cost of £150,000.^[3] Four years later, in 1978, it was converted back to a theatre, by RHWL Architects and given its original name, reopening with the world première of the musical Evita on 21 June 1978. Further renovations were undertaken by RHWL in 1992–93,^[2] increasing the size of the stage, reopening 3 March 1993 with a revival of Crazy for You. The ABBA musical, Mamma Mia! premièred here on 6 April 1999, transferring to the Prince of Wales Theatre, after a five year run.^[3]

Owned by the Delfont Mackintosh Group, and with a capacity of 1,618, it currently hosts Jersey Boys which opened 18 March 2008. Until 12 January 2008 it hosted Mary Poppins, before the show toured.

Recent and present productions

• Evita (21 January 1978 - 8 February 1986) by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, starring Elaine Paige and David Essex
• Chess (14 May 1986 - 8 April 1989) by Tim Rice, Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, starring Elaine Paige Tommy Koreberg and Murray Head
• Anything Goes (4 July 1989 - 25 August 1990) by Cole Porter, starring Elaine Paige, John Barrowman and Louise Gold.
• Children of Eden (8 January 1991 - 6 April 1991) by Stephen Schwartz and John Caird
• The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber (14 May 1991 - 25 May 1991), starring Sarah Brightman
• The Hunting of the Snark (24 October 1991 - 14 December 1991) by Mike Batt
• Some Like It Hot (19 March 1992 - 20 June 1992) by Jule Styne and Bob Merrill, starring Tommy Steele
• Crazy for You (3 March 1993 - 24 February 1996) by George and Ira Gershwin and Ken Ludwig, starring Ruthie Henshall and Kirby Ward
• Martin Guerre (10 July 1996 - 28 February 1998) by Claude-Michel Schönberg, Alain Boublil and Stephen Clarke
• Show Boat (28 April 1998 - 19 September 1998) by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II
• West Side Story (6 October 1998 - 9 January 1999) by Stephen Sondheim, Leonard Bernstein and Arthur Laurents
• Mamma Mia! (6 April 1999 - 27 May 2004) by Catherine Johnson and Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, starring Siobhán McCarthy, Louise Plowright, and, Jenny Galloway
• Mary Poppins (15 December 2004 - 12 January 2008) by Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. Sherman and Julian Fellows starring Laura Michelle Kelly, Scarlett Strallen, Gavin Lee and Gavin Creel
• Jersey Boys (18 March 2008 - ) by Bob Gaudio based on the music of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons

References

• Guide to British Theatres 1750-1950, John Earl and Michael Sell pp. 132 (Theatres Trust, 2000) ISBN 0-7136-5688-3

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Prince Edward Theatre

• Prince Edward Theatre official website