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| View of the restored auditorium with its redone horseshoe-shaped curve. |
Modern times have seen yet another rebirth of the ancient (first built 1635) Theatre Royal Drury Lane in London’s West End. The recent (2021) incarnation celebrates one of the longest-standing places in the UK and is now the largest and thoroughly functional and detailed Georgian Theatre in the realm.
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| 1808 |
Lord Andrew Lloyd-Webber, the icon composer and impresario of musical theatre is the “Lane’s” present owner and chief among those leading its restoration. Lloyd-Webber owns seven London theatres, including Adelphi, Cambridge, Gillian Lynne, Her Majesty’s Theatre, London Palladium, The Other Palace, and as mentioned Theatre Royal Drury Lane.
Lloyd-Webber purchased the acclaimed theatre on Catherine Street in 2000. The Lane’s amazing history includes being renowned for its spectacular Victorian melodramas and pantomimes but since the 1920s its history has mirrored the development of the modern musical. From the original London productions of American musicals Rose Marie, The Desert Song and Show Boat, through Ivor Novello’s romantic operettas and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s groundbreaking post-war shows to The Producers and The Lord of the Rings. My Fair Lady held the record as the theatres longest run for many years but Cameron Mackintosh’s record breaking production of Miss Saigon, at ten years, is the current record holder.
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| Today |
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| The new Saloon |
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Russell Street Entry.
CLICK HERE for a remarkable Dezeen Magazine article on the design and construction elements of the joyous refurbishment of this venerable theatre. |
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The massive stage and reinforced fly now can hold two London double decker
buses if ever needed.
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