Cindy Roper

West End

West End theatre is a common term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London. Along with New York City's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English-speaking world. Seeing a West End show is a common tourist activity in London.
Society of London Theatre (SOLT) has announced that 2017 was a record year for the capital’s theatre industry with attendances topping 15,000,000 for the first time since the organization began collecting audience data in 1986. Box office revenues also exceeded £700,000,000. Famous screen actors, British and international alike, frequently appear on the London stage.
Theatre in London flourished after the English Reformation. The first permanent public playhouse, known as The Theatre, was constructed in 1576 in Shoreditch by James Burbage. It was soon joined by The Curtain. Both are known to have been used by William Shakespeare's company. In 1599, the timber from The Theatre was moved to Southwark, where it was used in building the Globe Theatre in a new theatre district formed beyond the controls of the City corporation. These theatres were closed in 1642 due to the Puritans who would later influence the interregnum of 1649.

After the Restoration (1660), two companies were licensed to perform, the Duke's Company and the King's Company. Performances were held in converted buildings, such as Lisle's Tennis Court. The first West End theatre, known as Theatre Royal in Bridges Street, was designed by Thomas Killigrew and built on the site of the present Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. It opened on 7 May 1663 and was destroyed by a fire nine years later. It was replaced by a new structure designed by Christopher Wren and renamed the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane.

Outside the West End, Sadler's Wells Theatre opened in Islington on 3 June 1683. Taking its name from founder Richard Sadler and monastic springs that were discovered on the property, it operated as a "Musick House", with performances of opera; as it was not licensed for plays. In the West End, the Theatre Royal Haymarket opened on 29 December 1720 on a site slightly north of its current location, and the Royal Opera House opened in Covent Garden on 7 December 1732.

Schedule & Ticket

Place information

• Sendai Sun Plaza
  仙台サンプラザ

  Address

  日本、〒983-0852 宮城県仙台市宮城野区榴岡５丁目１１−１  Map

• Cultural village
  Bunkamura

  Address

  日本、〒150-8507 東京都渋谷区道玄坂２丁目２４−１  Map

• Nagoya City Public Hall
  名古屋市公会堂

  Address

  日本、〒466-0064 愛知県名古屋市昭和区鶴舞１丁目１−３  Map

• Ueno Gakuen Hall (Hiroshima Prefectural Culture and Arts Hall)
  上野学園ホール(広島県立文化芸術ホール)

  Address

  日本、〒730-0001 広島県広島市中区白島北町１９−１  Map

• Osaka Rental Conference Room 【Gran Cube Osaka (Osaka Prefectural International Conference Center)】 Conference Room · Meeting Roo
  大阪府立国際会議場（グランキューブ大阪）

  Address

  日本、〒530-0005 大阪府大阪市北区中之島５丁目３−５１  Map

Visuals help you imagine

Other languages