The Palace Theater has a very notable building - an unusual building of red brick, facing the central entrance and facade to the bustling Charing Cross street. It is very large (for almost 1, 5 thousand spectators), quaint and in a noisy, breezy Soho looks a bit strange. But it is justified by its history - it was built as the residence of the Royal Opera.

The opera has not been delayed, and the building has been an opera, theater, variety, cabaret, concert hall and cinema for the years of its existence (more than 100 years). Sarah Bernhard and Laurence Olivier played here, Anna Pavlova danced, then the stars of the Paris variety show performed, and now it's a musical theater. Do not be afraid of this definition - there are musicals that became a legend, and until recently the theater was owned by Andrew Lloyd Webber - yes, the same, the famous author of the musicals "Cats" and "Phantom of the Opera."

History

The theater was opened in 1890 as the Royal Opera, but the Opera closed after 2 year, and later her troupe was placed in another building. The same building was bought by Charles Morton - a famous person who entered the history of the theater as "the father of the music hall." He arranged here, respectively, the music hall, and from 1897, they also began to show the cinema. Over time, the music hall replaced musical comedies, and then musicals appeared.

Andrew Lloyd Webber owned this theater for almost 30 years and sold it only a couple of years ago. It was here that many of the most famous musicals of the world went, including the Cabaret, Les Miserables and some musicals of Webber himself.

Musicals

Like all musical theaters, the Palace Theater shows at the same time only one performance that goes 1 -2 times a day. One and the same musical can go on a daily basis for years and even decades. Therefore, it's very easy to evaluate whether this theater is suitable for you, it only has one point in the program, there is not much to choose from.

Musicals are not loved by everyone, and if you do not really like them, then here it is worth going - maybe then your opinion will change. But in this case it's better to wait until the program changes and something more interesting begins here. Now (in winter 2014) there is the musical The Commitments - a modern musical comedy about the company of musicians

Building

The building of the theater was built by a famous architect, and it was recently restored very well, restoring the original look. It is included in the Sheet of national heritage of Britain, therefore for the sake of one it is already worth it to come here. Although it is located in such a way that it is difficult to miss.

Practical Information

Address: London, Shaftesbury avenue, The Palace Theater. 2 metro stations Leicester Square (it's closer and more convenient) and Tottenham Court Road are suitable for a trip here.

In this theater (like in most other musical theaters) you do not need to buy a ticket in advance: you can buy it in a few days , and right on the day of the performance at Leicester Square or Charing Cross (they are sold very, very much). But usually you can buy tickets inexpensively and directly at the theater ticket office.