Add a review about the Coliseum Theater in London

The Coliseum Theater has a very notable building - everyone notices it. A huge structure with a sphere fixed at the top looks unusual. There is nothing strange about this - the building was built to surprise humanity, to create the world's largest theater-variety show. And its creator did it.

Now it's still a theater, but it's already classical; the residence of two companies - the English National Ballet and the English National Opera.

The history of the establishment

The theater building was built in the beginning of the 20th century and opened in 1904. It was built by the architect Frank Matcham at the request of the famous theatrical impresario Oswald Stoll. Stoll was one of the most successful British impresario in the era (and later the owner of one of the most successful English studios for the production of silent films), so theaters preferred to build their own for their performances.

Matcha built the building, it immediately began the performances light genre: variety show, music hall and so on. The building turned out to be the most interesting: a masterpiece of the art deco style, it is included in the British National Heritage Sheet.

About the

troupe Now it is still a theater, but already classical; the residence of two companies - the English National Ballet and the English National Opera. Both of them were once very good and serious (the ballet was founded by the soloists of the company of Sergei Diaghilev, the famous one), Rudolf Nuriyev once danced there, but now these are ordinary companies.

Interesting moment: most Russians, seeing the word "national" in the title, take this as the designation of the main, leading and best troupe in the country . But this is not true: in Britain, the monarchy, and the leading troupes (and everything else leading as well) are denoted by the word "royal" ". The leading opera troupe is, accordingly, the coronet the Loving opera at Covent Garden . The word "national" here does not matter much, and in this case the troupe added it itself - to refer to the fact that she is touring all over the country (this, we must admit , the only classical troupe in Britain that does so) .

Because of this, a huge number of Russian tourists are disappointed with the production: people expect something comparable to the Bolshoi Theater, but they get the show a little less expressive. It should be taken into account when planning: all the performances here are simpler than the Bolshoi's, let's say so.

But if there is an opportunity to go here, you should not abandon it. You are unlikely to see a masterpiece here, but this is still a high level, they have a good orchestra, and here, unlike the royal opera, it is quite possible to buy tickets a few days before the performance. Also it gives an opportunity to see the theater from the inside, and such a wonderful building is worth seeing.
Inside the theater

Repertoire

Classic and modern ballets are coming here, there are a lot of guest performers (and usually all the performances are very good). Also there is a huge number of different big shows (like Doctor Who), musicals and a lot of concerts

Practical information

All works with voice are only in English, including German, French or Italian operas.

Cash desks are open daily from 10:00 to 20:00 on the days of the performances and from 10:00 to 18:00 on other days. If you come for a ticket immediately, as soon as you arrive, then you can buy it for a play, which will be a week later - one and a half.

It's better to come early to the play - to walk around an interesting building, it's big. If necessary, you can have a snack: there is a restaurant in the theater.

Official address: London, WC2N 4ES, London Coliseum St Martin's Lane. Three metro stations are suitable for the trip: Charing Cross, Leicester Square and Covent Garden (it is a little further away)

Around the mass of sights and other theaters, Covent Garden has many historic buildings and restaurants - in Britain before the theater, dinner is not accepted at home. Restaurants here for such cases offer a "pre-theatrical menu", it consists of dishes that are prepared quickly and do not have to wait long.