Prince Of Wales Theatre
Book Mamma Mia! at the Prince of Wales Theatre
Theatre build date:
1884 (rebuilt in 1937)
History:
Built in 1884, the Prince’s Theatre was renamed The Prince of Wales in honour of the future King, Edward VII, two years later. From its inception, The Prince of Wales Theatre had great success; the musical comedy Dorothy that ran from 1886 to 1888 made its author enough money to build the Lyric Theatre just around the corner on Shaftesbury Avenue. Initially, the Prince of Wales Theatre was known for its musical comedies and wordless mime performances, but staged its first straight play in 1898, Pelléas et Mélisande. From then on, the Prince of Wales Theatre varied its productions and these varying styles brought varying success. Following an unsuccessful spell under the management of actress Edith Evans, from 1932, the Prince of Wales Theatre exclusively staged revues in the Folies style with comedians and risqué dancers. These shows proved so lucrative that the income from these performances alone paid for the demolition of the original Prince Of Wales Theatre and the construction of the larger, existing building in its place in 1937.
Since the current building was opened, the Prince of Wales Theatre has enjoyed great success in a variety of productions, notably a run of Broadway musicals in the 1960’s, including Funny Girl with Barbra Streisand (1966), Sweet Charity (1967) and Burt Bacharach’s Promises Promises (1969). Other notable productions in recent years include Underneath The Arches (1982-1983) and Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s record breaking Aspects of Love starring Michael Ball (1989-1992), which was the Prince of Wales’ longest running production before Mamma Mia.
Hauntings:
The original theatre’s manager, the actor Edgar Bruce is said to regularly walk the stage left wing.
Previously called:
For its first two years, the original theatre on the site was called the Prince’s Theatre.
Previously showing:
Cliff: The Musical (2003)
Rent (2002)
The Full Monty (2002)
Close to:
Leicester Square
Piccadilly Circus
Contact Details
Prince of Wales Theatre
Coventry Street
W1D 6AS
For all ticket enquiries, call:
0871 789 1004
Map
Facilities
Theatre capacity:
1160
Stage door location:
The Prince of Wales Theatre stage door is just down from the main entrance on Oxendon Street.
Theatre layout:
There are only two levels in the Prince of Wales Theatre, the Stalls with the Circle above it. The Circle is positioned high above the Stalls so it is only towards the very back of the Stalls that any overhang might affect your view. Because the seating in the Stalls is very slightly curved, sidelined views are minimal, with only the very end seats in rows J and K affected.
As the Circle is set back from the stage (row A reaches across the stalls to about row M), great views are offered throughout, even right up in the corners. There are four boxes also available, each containing four seats. Like in many theatres, the view from the boxes is restricted in the sense that they do not face the stage but they are not priced as such and are always subject to availability.
Air conditioned:
Yes
