Theatre Information for Theatre Royal Haymarket
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Theatre Royal Haymarket details
Address:
Theatre Royal Haymarket
Haymarket
SW1Y 4HT
Theatre location
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Seating plan
Theatre Royal Haymarket
Nearest tube
Charing Cross/Piccadilly Circus
Theatre Royal Haymarket History
The Theatre Royal Haymarket or Haymarket Theatre is a theatre on The
Haymarket in London which dates back to 1720. The original building was
a little further north in the same street. It has been at its current
location since 1821, when it was redesigned by John Nash.
The Haymarket has been the site of a couple of significant innovations
in theatre. In 1873, it was the venue for the first scheduled matinée
performance, establishing a custom soon followed in theatres
everywhere. Six years later, its auditorium was reconstructed and the
stage was enclosed in the first use of the picture frame proscenium.
Its managers have included Squire Bancroft, John Baldwin Buckstone,
Cyril Maude, and Herbert Beerbohm Tree. Its current capacity is 888.
History
Its first major success was a 1729 production of Samuel Johnson''s
Hurlothrumbo, or The Supernatural, which ran for 80 nights -- a record
surpassing John Gay''s The Beggar''s Opera and not to be matched until
The Dragon of Wantley. In the 1720''s, the Haymarket was an alternative
to the patent theatres in every sense. When there was an actor''s revolt
at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in 1719, for example, the actors walked
out to go to the Haymarket. They returned when they won their demands.
In the eight to ten years before the Licensing Act of 1737, the
Haymarket was an alternative to John Rich''s Covent Garden theatre and
the opera-dominated Drury Lane. In particular, it was an alternative to
the pantomime and special-effects dominated stages, and it presented
opposition (Tory) satire. Hurlothrumbo was just one play in that series
of anti-Walpolean satires. Henry Fielding staged his plays at the
Haymarket, and so did Henry Carey. Hurlothrumbo would be followed by
Tom Thumb, The Dragon of Wantley, Pasquin and others. Additionally,
refugees from Drury Lane''s and Covent Gardens''s internal struggles
would show up at the Haymarket, and thus Charlotte Charke would act
there in a parody of her father, Colley Cibber, one of the owners and
managers of Drury Lane. The Theatrical Licensing Act, however, put an
end to the anti-ministry satires, and it all but entirely shut down the
theatre.
In 1862, the theatre was host to a 400-night run of Our American
Cousin, with Edward Southern as Lord Dundreary. The play''s success
brought the word "dreary" into common use.
Stage and prosceniumJohn Gielgud produced a 1939 repertory season,
including Maugham''s The Circle, Congreve''s Love for Love, and
Shakespeare''s Hamlet.
In 1893, Oscar Wilde premiered A Woman of No Importance, his first
comedy, at the Haymarket. The play returned for a 2003 production
directed by Adrian Noble and starring Rupert Graves, Samantha Bond,
Prunella Scales and Rachael Stirling.
The theatre underwent a major refurbishment in 1994. In May 2004 it
closed for two nights after bits of the ceiling fell down during a
performance. About 13 people suffered mainly cuts and bruises when
plaster fell into the auditorium during the "When Harry Met Sally..."
Show. Since then, the theatre has played host to a short-lived run of
Becket directed by John Caird followed in January 2005 by the world
premiere of Victoria Wood''s new musical Acorn Antiques - based upon the
TV series of the same name. This starred Julie Walters, Celia Imrie,
Duncan Preston, Neil Morrissey, Sally Ann Triplett and Josie Lawrence
and ran until 21 May 2005. The Genius Of Ray Charles - a new American
musical followed in the Summer of 2005 running for eight weeks to 13
August 2005. More recently, Bill Kenwright''s new production of A Few
Good Men played to packed houses starring Rob Lowe, Suranne Jones, John
Barrowman and Jack Ellis. Bringing us up to the present day, the
theatre is currently hosting Bill Kenwright''s A Man For All Seasons
starring Martin Shaw.
Judi Dench is set to return to the theatre in April 2006 with a new
production of Hayfever.
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