The Garrick Theatre is a

West End theatre West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.Christopher Innes, "West End" in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194� ...

, located in

Charing Cross Road Charing Cross Road is a street in central London running immediately north of St Martin-in-the-Fields to St Giles Circus (the intersection with Oxford Street) and then becomes Tottenham Court Road. It leads from the north in the direction ...

, in the

City of Westminster The City of Westminster is a city and borough in Inner London. It is the site of the United Kingdom's Houses of Parliament and much of the British government. It occupies a large area of central Greater London, including most of the West En ...

, named after the stage actor

David Garrick David Garrick (19 February 1717 – 20 January 1779) was an English actor, playwright, theatre manager and producer who influenced nearly all aspects of European theatrical practice throughout the 18th century, and was a pupil and friend of Sa ...

. It opened in 1889 with ''The Profligate'', a play by

Arthur Wing Pinero Sir Arthur Wing Pinero (24 May 185523 November 1934) was an English playwright and, early in his career, actor. Pinero was drawn to the theatre from an early age, and became a professional actor at the age of 19. He gained experience as a supp ...

, and another Pinero play, '' The Notorious Mrs. Ebbsmith'', was an early success at the theatre. In its early years, the Garrick appears to have specialised in the performance of

melodrama A modern melodrama is a dramatic work in which the plot, typically sensationalized and for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodramas typically concentrate on dialogue that is often bombastic or exce ...

. The theatre later became associated with comedies, including '' No Sex Please, We're British'', which played for four years from 1982 to 1986.

History

There was previously another theatre that was sometimes called the Garrick in London, in Leman Street, opened in 1831 and demolished in 1881.Allingham, Philip V
"Theatres in Victorian London"
The Victorian Web, 29 November 2015 The new Garrick Theatre was financed in 1889 by the playwright W. S. Gilbert, the author of over 75 plays, including the

Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan was a Victorian era, Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900), who jointly created fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which ...

comic opera Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue. Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a n ...

s. It was designed by Walter Emden, with C. J. Phipps brought in as a consultant to help with the planning on the difficult site after an underground river was discovered in the excavation. Originally the theatre had 800 seats on four levels, but the gallery (top) level has since been closed and the

seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile tha ...

reduced to 656."Garrick Theatre – Theatre history"
Best of Theatre, accessed 24 December 2015 The theatre's first manager was Gilbert's friend John Hare. The first play at the theatre, ''The Profligate'', by

and starring Hare, opened on 24 April 1889.

Sydney Grundy Sydney Grundy (23 March 1848 – 4 July 1914) was an English dramatist. Most of his works were adaptations of European plays, and many became successful enough to tour throughout the English-speaking world. He is, however, perhaps best remembe ...

's long-running French-style comedy ''A Pair of Spectacles'' opened here in February 1890.

Mrs Patrick Campbell Beatrice Rose Stella Tanner (9 February 1865 – 9 April 1940), better known by her stage name Mrs Patrick Campbell or Mrs Pat, was an English stage actress, best known for appearing in plays by Shakespeare, Shaw and Barrie. She also toured th ...

starred five years later in Pinero's '' The Notorious Mrs. Ebbsmith''. Afterwards, the theatre suffered a short period of decline until it was leased by

Arthur Bourchier Arthur Bourchier (22 June 186314 September 1927) was an English actor and Actor-manager, theatre manager. He married and later divorced the actress Violet Vanbrugh. Bourchier was noted for roles both in classical drama, particularly William S ...

for six years, whose wife, Violet Vanbrugh, starred in a series of successful productions ranging from farce to

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

. In 1900, the theatre hosted J. M. Barrie's ''The Wedding Guest''.

Rutland Barrington Rutland Barrington (15 January 1853 – 31 May 1922) was an English singer, actor, comedian and Edwardian musical comedy star. Best remembered for originating the lyric baritone roles in the Gilbert and Sullivan operas from 1877 to 1896, his p ...

presented several stage works at the Garrick, including his popular "fairy play" called ''Water Babies'' in 1902, based on

Charles Kingsley Charles Kingsley (12 June 1819 – 23 January 1875) was a broad church priest of the Church of England, a university professor, social reformer, historian, novelist and poet. He is particularly associated with Christian socialism, the worki ...

book A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical ...

, with music by

Alfred Cellier Alfred Cellier (1 December 184428 December 1891) was an English composer, orchestrator and conductor. In addition to conducting and music directing the original productions of several of the most famous Gilbert and Sullivan works and writing th ...

, among others. The only piece actually premiered by W. S. Gilbert here was '' Harlequin and the Fairy's Dilemma'' (retitled ''The Fairy's Dilemma'' after a few days), a "Domestic Pantomime" (1904). In 1921,

Basil Rathbone Philip St. John Basil Rathbone MC (13 June 1892 – 21 July 1967) was a South African-born English actor. He rose to prominence in the United Kingdom as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in more than 70 films, primarily costume ...

played Dr. Lawson in ''The Edge o' Beyond'' at the Garrick, and the following year Sir

Seymour Hicks Sir Edward Seymour Hicks (30 January 1871 – 6 April 1949), better known as Seymour Hicks, was a British actor, music hall performer, playwright, actor-manager and producer. He became known, early in his career, for writing, starring in and p ...

appeared in his own play, ''The Man in Dress Clothes''. In 1925,

Henry Daniell Charles Henry Pywell Daniell (5 March 1894 – 31 October 1963) was an English actor who had a long career in the United States on stage and in cinema. He came to prominence for his portrayal of villainous roles in films such as '' Camille'' (1 ...

played there as Jack Race in ''Cobra'' and appeared there again as Paul Cortot in ''Marriage by Purchase'' in March 1932. Let it Be, Garrick Theatre

A proposed redevelopment of

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist si ...

by the GLC in 1968 saw the theatre under threat, together with the nearby

Vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

, Adelphi, Lyceum, and Duchess Theatres. An active campaign by

Equity Equity may refer to: Finance, accounting and ownership *Equity (finance), ownership of assets that have liabilities attached to them ** Stock, equity based on original contributions of cash or other value to a business ** Home equity, the diff ...

, the Musicians' Union, and theatre owners under the auspices of the ''Save London Theatres Campaign'' led to the abandonment of the scheme."Theatre History"
Vaudeville Theatre, accessed 12 June 2013 The gold-leaf auditorium was restored in 1986 by the stage designer

Carl Toms Carl Toms OBE (29 May 1927 – 4 August 1999) was a British set and costume designer who was known for his work in theatre, opera, ballet, and film. Education Carl Toms was born in 1927 at Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, England. His p ...

, and in 1997 the front façade was renovated. The theatre has mostly been associated with comedies or comedy-dramas. More recent productions are listed below and include '' No Sex Please, We're British'' (1982), which played for four years at the theatre before transferring to the

Duchess Theatre The Duchess Theatre is a West End theatre in the City of Westminster, London, located in Catherine Street near Aldwych. The theatre opened on 25 November 1929 and is one of the smallest West End theatres with a proscenium arch. It has 494 sea ...

in 1986. In 1995, the

Royal National Theatre The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...

's multi-award-winning production of J. B. Priestley's '' An Inspector Calls'' opened here, having played successful seasons at the Royal National Theatre's Lyttelton and Olivier theatres as well as the Aldwych Theatre and a season on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

. In 1986, the Garrick was acquired by the Stoll Moss Group, and in 2000 it became a ''Really Useful Theatre'' when

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948), is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 21 musical ...

Really Useful Group The Really Useful Group Ltd. (RUG) is an international company set up in 1977 by Andrew Lloyd Webber. It is involved in theatre, film, television, video and concert productions, merchandising, magazine publishing, records and music publishing. ...

and

Bridgepoint Capital Bridgepoint Group plc is a British private investment company listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. History Bridgepoint was founded as NatWest Equity Partners, a private equity firm part of NatWest. T ...

purchased Stoll Moss Theatres Ltd. In October 2005,

Nica Burns Lounica Maureen Patricia "Nica" Burns OBE (born August 1954) is a London theatre producer and co-owner with her business partner Max Weitzenhoffer of the Nimax Theatres group, comprising six West End theatres: the Palace, Lyric, Apollo, Ga ...

and Max Weitzenhoffer purchased the Garrick Theatre, and it became one of five playhouses operating under their company name of

Nimax Theatres Nimax Theatres Ltd. is a theatre group owned and operated by Nica Burns and Max Weitzenhoffer. In July 2005, Weitzenhoffer and Burns announced they were forming Nimax to buy four of London’s playhouses from Andrew Lloyd Webber, namely the Apollo ...

Ltd, alongside the Lyric Theatre,

Apollo Theatre The Apollo Theatre is a Grade II listed West End theatre, on Shaftesbury Avenue in the City of Westminster, in central London.

, Vaudeville Theatre and

. The interior retains many of its original features, and was

Grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern I ...

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

in September 1960.

Notable productions

* 1890 – ''A Pair of Spectacles'' by

* 1895 – '' The Notorious Mrs. Ebbsmith'', starring

* 1902 – ''Water Babies'', an adaptation by

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itself ...

, with music by

and others. * 1924 – '' The Rat'', written by and starring

Ivor Novello Ivor Novello (born David Ivor Davies; 15 January 1893 – 6 March 1951) was a Welsh actor, dramatist, singer and composer who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century. He was born into a musical ...

* 1947 –

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage ...

directed Jack Buchanan in ''Born Yesterday'' * 1955 – '' La Plume de Ma Tante'' ran to 1957 * 1960 –

Lionel Bart Lionel Bart (1 August 1930 – 3 April 1999) was a British writer and composer of pop music and musicals. He wrote Tommy Steele's " Rock with the Caveman" and was the sole creator of the musical ''Oliver!'' (1960). With ''Oliver!'' and his wor ...

's ''

Fings Ain't Wot They Used T'Be ''Fings Ain't Wot They Used T'be'' is a 1960 West End musical comedy about Cockney low-life characters in the 1950s, including spivs, prostitutes, teddy-boys and corrupt policemen. The work is more of a play with music than a conventional m ...

'' began a two-year run with Miriam Karlin * 1967 –

Brian Rix Brian Norman Roger Rix, Baron Rix, (27 January 1924 – 20 August 2016) was an English actor-manager, who produced a record-breaking sequence of long-running farces on the London stage, including ''Dry Rot'', ''Simple Spymen'' and ''One for ...

presented and appeared in ''Stand By Your Bedouin'', the first in several seasons of farces, including ''Uproar in the House'' and ''Let Sleeping Wives Lie'' * 1971 – The last of these farces was '' Don't Just Lie There, Say Something!'' * 1972 – Anthony Shaffer's ''

Sleuth Sleuth may refer to: *Detective *Sleuth, collective noun for a group of bears Computing * The Sleuth Kit, a collection of forensic analysis software *SLEUTH assembler language for the UNIVAC 1107 Entertainment and media *Cloo Cloo (stylized ...

'' transferred * 1977 – ''

Side By Side By Sondheim ''Side by Side by Sondheim'' is a musical revue featuring the songs of Broadway and film composer Stephen Sondheim. Its title is derived from the song "Side by Side by Side" from ''Company''. History The musical had its origins when David ...

'' transferred and was a continuing success * 1978 –

Ira Levin Ira Marvin Levin (August 27, 1929 – November 12, 2007) was an American novelist, playwright, and songwriter. His works include the novels '' A Kiss Before Dying'' (1953), '' Rosemary's Baby'' (1967), ''The Stepford Wives'' (1972), '' This Perfe ...

's thriller '' Deathtrap'' ran until 1981 GarrickTheatre

* 1982 – '' No Sex Please, We're British'' transferred from the Strand Theatre and remained until 1986 * 1995 – '' An Inspector Calls'' played its second prolonged West End season * 2002 – '' This Is Our Youth'' played two seasons * 2009 – '' A Little Night Music'' played until 2011 * 2011 – ''

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

'' transferred from the

Cambridge Theatre The Cambridge Theatre is a West End theatre, on a corner site in Earlham Street facing Seven Dials, in the London Borough of Camden, built in 1929–30 for Bertie Meyer on an "irregular triangular site". Design and construction It was de ...

; closed in 2012 after 15 years in the West End * 2013 – ''

Rock of Ages Rock of Ages may refer to: Films * ''Rock of Ages'' (1918 film), a British silent film by Bertram Phillips * ''Rock of Ages'' (2012 film), a film adaptation of the jukebox musical (see below) Music * ''Rock of Ages'' (musical), a 2006 rock ...

'' transferred from the

Shaftesbury Theatre The Shaftesbury Theatre is a West End theatre, located on Shaftesbury Avenue, in the London Borough of Camden. Opened in 1911 as the New Prince's Theatre, it was the last theatre to be built in Shaftesbury Avenue. History The theatre was ...

for its last year in the West End * 2014 – '' Let It Be'' transferred from the Savoy Theatre; played briefly in 2014 and through most of 2015 * 2019 – ''Bitter Wheat'', written and directed by

David Mamet David Alan Mamet (; born November 30, 1947) is an American playwright, filmmaker, and author. He won a Pulitzer Prize and received Tony nominations for his plays ''Glengarry Glen Ross'' (1984) and '' Speed-the-Plow'' (1988). He first gained cri ...

, starring

John Malkovich John Malkovich (born December 9, 1953) is an American actor. He is the recipient of several accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, two Screen Actors Guild Aw ...

. *2020 – '' Death Drop'', starring

Courtney Act Shane Gilberto Jenek (born 18 February 1982), better known under the stage name Courtney Act, is an Australian drag queen, singer and television personality. Courtney first came to prominence competing on the first season of '' Australian Id ...

and Monét X Change. After closing due to

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...

the show reopened in May 2021 starring Willam Belli and Latrice Royale. * 2021 – '' The Drifters Girl'', musical starring

Beverley Knight Beverley Knight (born Beverley Anne Smith, 22 March 1973) is an English recording artist and musical theatre actress. She released her first album, '' The B-Funk'', in 1995. Heavily influenced by American soul music icons such as Sam Cooke and ...

The Drifters The Drifters are several American doo-wop and R&B/ soul vocal groups. They were originally formed as a backing group for Clyde McPhatter, formerly the lead tenor of Billy Ward and his Dominoes in 1953. The second group of Drifters, formed i ...

manager Faye Treadwell.Official London Theatre
Official London Theatre, accessed 29 May 2022

Notes

References

* *

External links

*

{{Theatres in London West End theatres Theatres in the City of Westminster Grade II* listed buildings in the City of Westminster Theatres completed in 1889 Charles J. Phipps buildings Charing Cross Road