Dominion Theatre London
Posted on 24 October 2011
Built in 1928-1929, the Dominion Theatre London is ideally located at the point where Charing Cross Road, Oxford Street and Tottenham Court Road all meet, right in the centre of London. It was designed and built by W and TR Milburn as a private theatre for Moss empires at a cost of £459,000. At the time it was described by the press as technically faultless. In the following years after it's opening it was home to a number of musicals before Universal hired the venue to screen it's motion pictures and to this day it is still occasionally used for movie premieres.
During the 1980's it was a very popular venue to stage music concerts including Tangerine Dreams and Dolly Parton's 1983 concert which was also filmed at the venue and released as a television special "Dolly in London". In the 1990's the Dominion hosted the Royal Variety Performance on a number of occasions and comedian Bill Hicks filmed his well known comedy special "Revelations" at the theatre also.
The Dominion Theatres seating capacity is one of the biggest in London's West End with a current capacity of 2,069 over 2 levels. In the early 1940's the capacity was at its largest at 2,858 however the former upper circle was closed many years ago when the theatre was used as a cinema.
In 2008 the large disused space above the main foyer (formerly the Rank offices and originally the theatre’s Circle Lounge) was redeveloped into a fully equipped Studio and Events space at a cost of over £650,000.
The hit stage musical by Queen and Ben Elton, We Will Rock You, now calls the Dominion Theatre London home and has done so since May 2002. It was originally planned to close in October 2006 but due to its huge popularity, it has been extended indefinitely and is in its ninth year. It is now hurtling towards it's milestone 10th anniversary in 2012. We Will Rock You plays Monday to Saturday evenings at 7.30pm with matinees on Saturday at 2.30 and on the last Wednesday of the month also at 2.30pm. During the school holidays there is a 2.30pm matinee performance every Wednesday.
The Dominion Theatre London is a fabulous old venue and an important part of London's theatre history, staging many exceptional events since it's opening in 1929. If you are in London then be sure to give the Dominion Theatre a visit.
During the 1980's it was a very popular venue to stage music concerts including Tangerine Dreams and Dolly Parton's 1983 concert which was also filmed at the venue and released as a television special "Dolly in London". In the 1990's the Dominion hosted the Royal Variety Performance on a number of occasions and comedian Bill Hicks filmed his well known comedy special "Revelations" at the theatre also.
The Dominion Theatres seating capacity is one of the biggest in London's West End with a current capacity of 2,069 over 2 levels. In the early 1940's the capacity was at its largest at 2,858 however the former upper circle was closed many years ago when the theatre was used as a cinema.
In 2008 the large disused space above the main foyer (formerly the Rank offices and originally the theatre’s Circle Lounge) was redeveloped into a fully equipped Studio and Events space at a cost of over £650,000.
The hit stage musical by Queen and Ben Elton, We Will Rock You, now calls the Dominion Theatre London home and has done so since May 2002. It was originally planned to close in October 2006 but due to its huge popularity, it has been extended indefinitely and is in its ninth year. It is now hurtling towards it's milestone 10th anniversary in 2012. We Will Rock You plays Monday to Saturday evenings at 7.30pm with matinees on Saturday at 2.30 and on the last Wednesday of the month also at 2.30pm. During the school holidays there is a 2.30pm matinee performance every Wednesday.
The Dominion Theatre London is a fabulous old venue and an important part of London's theatre history, staging many exceptional events since it's opening in 1929. If you are in London then be sure to give the Dominion Theatre a visit.
Tagged as
