Playhouse Theatre
Sections:
Dreamboats and Petticoats at the Playhouse Theatre, London
The Playhouse Theatre is one of the smaller theatres in London, with a seating capacity of 790. Visit the show page to book Dreamboats and Petticoats Theatre Tickets and also find out more about the venue box office, seating plan and restaurants near the Playhouse Theatre.
Theatre build date:
1882
History:
The Royal Avenue Theatre was built in 1882 with a capacity of just over 1,200. For its first few years, the theatre hosted musical revues without any success, and when even a season of plays starring famous actress Florence Farr failed at the Playhouse, Farr persuaded her friend George Bernard Shaw to come up with a play for her. His contribution was Arms and the Man which in 1894 became the first commercial success for Shaw and for the Playhouse.
In 1905, the theatre closed for renovations, with the auditorium being completely remodelled. While this work was being carried out, a large section of wall from Charing Cross Station collapsed onto the Playhouse, injuring many of the workmen and killing six of them. The work continued and the theatre reopened in 1907 as the Playhouse with a smaller capacity of 679. The theatre played host to a number of long running plays and enjoyed a long period from 1917 to 1933 under the management of legendary actress and director Gladys Cooper. In 1951, the Playhouse was taken over by the BBC and used as a studio for live performance broadcasts for 25 years.
During this time, the Playhouse was also used for concerts, with the Beatles, Rolling Stones and Pink Floyd all playing here during the 1960’s. When the BBC left in 1976, the Playhouse went dark and risked demolition. However, the theatre was restored to its 1907 design (albeit with a slightly larger capacity of 786) and reopened in 1987.
Notable productions at the Playhouse have included Ibsen’s A Doll’s House (1996), Vincent in Brixton (2003) and the controversial My Name is Rachel Corrie (2006).
Previously called:
The Royal Avenue Theatre
Previously showing:
Ring Around The Moon (2008)
The Adventures of Tintin (2007)
Dancing in the Streets (2006)
My Name is Rachel Corrie (2206)
The Creeper (2006)
As You Desire Me (2005)
The Postman Always Rings Twice (2005)
Close to:
Trafalgar Square
Charing Cross Station
Hungerford Golden Jubilee Bridge
Contact Details
Playhouse Theatre
Northumberland Avenue
WC2N 5DE
For all ticket enquiries, call:
020 7492 9968
Map
Facilities
Theatre capacity:
786
Stage door location:
The Playhouse stage door is on Craven Street to the right hand side of the theatre.
Theatre layout:
The Playhouse auditorium is divided into three levels, the stalls in one block and the Dress and Upper Circles each divided into three sections by front-to-back aisles. All levels suffer sidelined views in the end four seats of each row due to the narrow proscenium.
In the Dress Circle, the front row is not divided by the two aisles, and there are some sections which are slightly obstructed by a safety rail. From row G back, the view is very slightly obscured by overhang from the Upper Circle. In the Upper Circle, the view from all aisle seats is obscured by crash barriers at the bottom of each aisle.
Air conditioned:
Yes
