Theatre in London
Wyndham's Theatre is a
West End theatre , one of two opened by actor/manager
Charles Wyndham (the other is the
Criterion Theatre ). Located on
Charing Cross Road in the
City of Westminster , it was designed c.1898 by
W. G. R. Sprague , the architect of six other London theatres between then and 1916. It was designed to seat 759 patrons on three levels; later refurbishment increased this to four seating levels. The theatre was
Grade II* listed by
English Heritage in September 1960.
[1]
History
Wyndham had always dreamed of building a theatre of his own, and through the admiration of a patron and the financial confidence of friends, he was able to realise his dream. Wyndham's Theatre opened on 16 November 1899, in the presence of the
Prince of Wales . The first play performed there was a revival of
T. W. Robertson 's
David Garrick . A number of successes followed, including
Lena Ashwell playing the lead role in
Mrs Dane's Defence in 1900,
[2] upon which Wyndham said that “the applause when the curtain fell was the most tremendous he had ever known ”.
[3]
In 1910,
Gerald du Maurier began an association with the theatre which lasted 15 years and to include the stage debut of the screen actress
Tallulah Bankhead . Du Maurier's small daughter,
Daphne , often watched her father's performance from the wings. Thirty years later she presented her own play,
The Years Between , on the same stage. In 1917,
J. M. Barrie 's
Dear Brutus ran for more than 360 performances at Wyndham's. The same play was revived in 1922 for another lengthy run.
In April 1953, the theatre premiered
Graham Greene 's first play,
The Living Room , with a cast including
Dorothy Tutin .
[4] In January 1954, a small-scale musical pastiche,
Sandy Wilson 's
The Boy Friend , which had premiered at the much smaller
Players' Theatre , was moved to the Wyndham stage. It ran for 2,078 performances, before eventually transferring to
Broadway . During the 60s and early 70s, the theatre continued to provide a setting for stars such as
Alec Guinness (
Wise Child ),
Vanessa Redgrave and
Diana Rigg .
The blockbuster of the 1970s decade –
Godspell – opened at Wyndham's in January 1972 and ran to October 1974. The original cast included
David Essex ,
Marti Webb and
Jeremy Irons .
Wyndham's Theatre just before its opening on 16 November 1900.
Among more recent distinguished productions were the world premiere of
The Ride Down Mt. Morgan by American playwright
Arthur Miller and the British premiere of
Edward Albee's
Three Tall Women , starring
Maggie Smith . Twenty-five years after making her debut there, Diana Rigg returned to play a hugely successful season as
Medea . The critically acclaimed comedy,
'Art' , by
Yasmina Reza , began its record-breaking run at Wyndham's in 1996 with
Albert Finney ,
Tom Courtenay and
Ken Stott in the cast. It opened in October 1996, and transferred to the
Whitehall Theatre in October 2001.
Madonna made her West End debut there in 2002, performing in a sell-out production of Up For Grabs . This was followed by many other dramatic productions, including Dinner and the
National Theatre 's
Democracy during 2004,
Holly Hunter in By The Bog Of Cats , American TV star
Ruby Wax in a children's stage version of
The Witches , which ran during March 2005; followed by a controversial limited season of
Eve Ensler 's
The Vagina Monologues , which ran without the stars –
Sharon Osbourne and her daughter Aimee, who dropped out the night before the production opened. In 2005, theatre patrons saw
Helen McCrory star alongside
Sienna Miller ,
Reece Shearsmith and
Clive Rowe in a production of Shakespeare's
As You Like It .
[5]
A large-scale replica of the facade of the theatre was constructed at the
Universal Studios theme park in
Orlando, Florida as part of the park's London-themed area.
[6]
Delfont Mackintosh era
In May 2005, the theatre was taken over by
Cameron Mackintosh 's Delfont-Mackintosh Ltd., which began operations of the venue in September 2005. In October 2005, the theatre presented
Tom Stoppard 's Heroes , a translation of the French play Le vent des peupliers by
Gérald Sibleyras , which starred
Richard Griffiths and
John Hurt .
[7]
The following year the theatre hosted a new production of
Joanna Murray-Smith 's play
Honour starring Diana Rigg,
Martin Jarvis and
Natascha McElhone , which ran between 7 February and 6 May 2006. It later hosted the West End transfer of the
Menier Chocolate Factory 's hit production of
Stephen Sondheim 's musical
Sunday in the Park with George , which starred Daniel Evans and
Jenna Russell and ran till September. Between December 2006 and April 2007, the theatre presented the West End commercial transfer of
Alan Bennett 's National Theatre hit
The History Boys which played to sell-out houses during its run until April 2007.
Bill Kenwright 's production of
Somerset Maugham 's
The Letter played through summer 2007. There was a short hiatus after
Chita Rivera was forced to postpone a scheduled London return. Shadowlands , based on the life story of
C. S. Lewis opened in October 2007, starring
Charles Dance and
Janie Dee , before another return of
Alan Bennett 's
The History Boys from December 2007.
The theatre closed temporarily for refurbishment works, before reopening in September 2008 with
Kenneth Branagh starring in
Michael Grandage 's production of
Chekhov 's
Ivanov . This new version by
Tom Stoppard was the opening play in the
Donmar West End twelve-month season at Wyndham's, with tickets at Donmar Warehouse prices.
[8]
The Donmar West End season also included
Derek Jacobi starring in
Twelfth Night , Judi Dench in
Yukio Mishima 's
Madame de Sade , and
Jude Law in
Hamlet , all staged by Grandage.
Recent, present, and future productions
Dinner (9 December 2003 – 3 April 2004) by Moira Buffini starring
Harriet Walter
Democracy (20 April 2004 – 9 October 2004) by
Michael Frayn , starring
Colm Meaney
Dylan Moran : Monster II (1 November 2004 – 13 November 2004)
By the Bog of Cats (1 December 2004 – 26 February 2005) by
Marina Carr , starring
Holly Hunter
The Witches (9 March 2005 – 2 April 2005) by David Wood, starring
Ruby Wax
The Vagina Monologues (7 April 2005 – 14 May 2005), by
Eve Ensler
As You Like It (21 June 2005 – 17 September 2005) by
William Shakespeare , starring
Helen McCrory ,
Sienna Miller and
Clive Rowe
Heroes (18 October 2005 – 14 January 2006) by
Gérald Sibleyras , starring
Richard Griffiths ,
John Hurt and
Ken Stott
Honour (14 February 2006 – 6 May 2006) by
Joanna Murray-Smith , starring
Diana Rigg and
Martin Jarvis
Sunday in the Park with George (23 May 2006 – 2 September 2006) by
Stephen Sondheim , starring
Daniel Evans and
Jenna Russell
A Voyage Round My Father (21 September 2006 – 18 November 2006) by
John Mortimer , starring
Derek Jacobi
The History Boys (18 December 2006 – 14 April 2007) by
Alan Bennett
The Letter (19 April 2007 – 10 August 2007), by
Somerset Maugham , starring
Jenny Seagrove and
Anthony Andrews
Shadowlands (3 October 2007 – 17 December 2007) by
William Nicholson , starring
Charles Dance and
Janie Dee (transferred to the
Novello Theatre )
The History Boys (20 December 2007 – 26 April 2008) by
Alan Bennett , starring
Desmond Barrit
The Shawshank Redemption (14 September 2009 – 29 November 2009)
An Inspector Calls (3 December 2009 – 10 March 2010) by
J. B. Priestley
Avenue Q (19 March 2010 – 30 October 2010) (following closure at the
Gielgud Theatre )
[9]
Bill Bailey – Dandelion Mind (2 November 2010 – 8 January 2011)
[10]
Clybourne Park (8 February 2011 – 7 May 2011) by
Bruce Norris (transferred from the
Royal Court Theatre )
The official poster for the 2011 production of
Much Ado About Nothing with
David Tennant and
Catherine Tate
Much Ado About Nothing (1 June 2011 – 3 September 2011) by
William Shakespeare , starring
David Tennant and
Catherine Tate
Driving Miss Daisy (5 October 2011 – 17 December 2011) by
Alfred Uhry , starring
James Earl Jones and
Vanessa Redgrave
Christmas with the Rat Pack: Live from Las Vegas (20 December 2011 – 7 January 2012)
The Rat Pack: Live From Las Vegas (9 January 2012 – 21 January 2012)
Jackie Mason – Fearless (13 February 2012 – 17 March 2012)
The King's Speech (22 March 2012 – 12 May 2012) (stage play of the
Oscar-winning film )
Abigail's Party (18 May 2012 – 1 September 2012) by
Mike Leigh , starring
Jill Halfpenny
Dreamboats and Petticoats (16 October 2012 – 19 January 2013) (limited run following closure at the
Playhouse Theatre )
Quartermaine's Terms (29 January 2013 – 13 April 2013) by
Simon Gray , starring
Rowan Atkinson
Relatively Speaking (16 May 2013 – 31 August 2013) by
Alan Ayckbourn , starring
Felicity Kendal and
Kara Tointon
Barking in Essex (16 September 2013 – 4 January 2014) by
Clive Exton , starring
Lee Evans and
Sheila Hancock
The Weir (22 January 2014 – 19 April 2014) by
Conor McPherson , starring
Brian Cox ,
Ardal O'Hanlon and
Dervla Kirwan
Uncle Vanya and
Three Sisters (23 April 2014 – 3 May 2014) (performed in Russian with a Russian cast)
Skylight (18 June 2014 – 23 August 2014) by
David Hare , starring
Bill Nighy and
Carey Mulligan
King Charles III (11 September 2014 – 31 January 2015) by
Mike Bartlett , starring
Tim Pigott-Smith
A View from the Bridge (16 February 2015 – 11 April 2015) by
Arthur Miller , starring
Mark Strong ,
Nicola Walker and
Phoebe Fox
American Buffalo (27 April 2015 – 27 June 2015) by
David Mamet , starring
Damian Lewis ,
John Goodman and
Tom Sturridge
The Mentalists (13 July 2015 – 29 August 2015) by
Richard Bean , starring
Stephen Merchant and
Steffan Rhodri
The Father (5 October 2015 – 21 November 2015) by
Florian Zeller , in a translation by
Christopher Hampton , starring
Kenneth Cranham and
Claire Skinner
Hangmen (7 December 2015 – 5 March 2016) by
Martin McDonagh , starring
David Morrissey
People, Places and Things (23 March 2016 – 18 June 2016) by Duncan Macmillan, starring
Denise Gough
The Truth (27 June 2016 – 3 September 2016) by
Florian Zeller , in a translation by
Christopher Hampton , starring
Tanya Franks and
Alexander Hanson
No Man's Land (20 September 2016 – 17 December 2016) by
Harold Pinter , starring
Ian McKellen and
Patrick Stewart
The Kite Runner (10 January 2017 – 11 March 2017) by
Khaled Hosseini , adapted by
Matthew Spangler , starring
Ben Turner
Don Juan in Soho (28 March 2017 – 10 June 2017) by
Patrick Marber , starring
David Tennant ,
Adrian Scarborough and
Gawn Grainger
Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill (27 June 2017 – 9 September 2017) by Lanie Robertson, starring
Audra McDonald
Heisenberg: The Uncertainty Principle (9 October 2017 – 6 January 2018) by
Simon Stephens , starring
Anne-Marie Duff and
Kenneth Cranham
Long Day's Journey into Night (6 February 2018 – 8 April 2018) by
Eugene O'Neill , starring
Jeremy Irons and
Lesley Manville
The Height of the Storm (9 October 2018 – 1 December 2018) by
Florian Zeller , in a translation by
Christopher Hampton , starring
Jonathan Pryce and
Eileen Atkins
Bill Bailey - Larks in Transit (3 December 2018 – 5 January 2019)
[11]
The Catherine Tate Show Live (7 January 2019 – 12 January 2019)
[12]
The Price (11 February 2019 – 27 April 2019) by
Arthur Miller , starring
David Suchet
The Starry Messenger (29 May 2019 – 10 August 2019) by
Kenneth Lonergan , starring
Matthew Broderick and
Elizabeth McGovern
Fleabag (28 August 2019 – 14 September 2019) by
Phoebe Waller-Bridge , starring
Phoebe Waller-Bridge
The Man in the White Suit (8 October 2019 – 7 December 2019) by
Sean Foley , starring
Stephen Mangan ,
Kara Tointon and
Sue Johnston
Curtains (13 December 2019 – 11 January 2020) by
Kander and Ebb , starring
Jason Manford ,
Ore Oduba and
Carley Stenson
Leopoldstadt (12 June 2021 – 4 September 2021) by
Tom Stoppard (production previously played here from January to March 2020, when theatres closed due to
COVID-19 pandemic )
Life of Pi (15 November 2021 – 15 January 2023)
Oklahoma! (16 February 2023 – 2 September 2023) by
Rodgers and Hammerstein
The Old Man and the Pool (12 September 2023 - 7 October 2023) by
Mike Birbiglia
King Lear (21 October - 9 December 2023) by
William Shakespeare , starring
Kenneth Branagh
The Unfriend (16 December 2023 - 9 March 2024) by
Stephen Moffat starring
Lee Mack ,
Sarah Alexander and
Frances Barber , directed by
Mark Gatiss
Long Day's Journey into Night (19 March 2024 – 8 June 2024) by
Eugene O'Neill , starring
Brian Cox and
Patricia Clarkson
Next to Normal (18 June 2024 – 21 September 2024) by
Tom Kitt and
Brian Yorkey
Donmar West End at Wyndham's
Michael Grandage Company
References
^
Historic England .
"Details from listed building database (1292230)" .
National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 2 March 2017 .
^ Hartnoll, Phyllis (1967). Oxford Companion to the Theatre (Third ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 1018.
^ Walker, Dave (18 September 2014).
"An actor's life for me: Lena Ashwell" . The Library Time Machine . Retrieved 18 October 2019 .
^ Samantha Ellis.
"The Living Room, London, April 1953 | Stage" .
The Guardian . Retrieved 2 March 2017 .
^ Billington, Michael (22 June 2005).
"As You Like It" . The Guardian . Retrieved 16 December 2021 .
^
"On the Road to Diagon Alley: The London Embankment" . Themeparkinsider.com . Retrieved 2 March 2017 .
^ Aleks Sierz,
"Sir Tom in the doghouse" , The Telegraph , 10 October 2005. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
^
"The Stage / Shenton's View / Patron saint of ladies loos" . blogs.thestage.co.uk . Archived from
the original on 19 September 2008. Retrieved 14 January 2022 .
^
"AVENUE Q Finds A New Home In The West End" . Westend.broadwayworld.com . 21 January 2010. Retrieved 2 March 2017 .
^
"Wyndhams Theatre London - The Kite Runner, Don Juan in Soho, Lady Day at Emersons Bar & Grill, Tickets, Info, Reviews" . Wyndhams-theatre.com . 17 December 2016. Retrieved 2 March 2017 .
^
"Bill Bailey - Larks in Transit" . London Theatre Guide . Retrieved 22 September 2018 .
^
"The Catherine Tate Show Live is coming to the West End" . Evening Standard . Retrieved 17 October 2018 .
Bibliography
Guide to British Theatres 1750–1950 , John Earl and Michael Sell pp. 150 (Theatres Trust, 2000)
ISBN
0-7136-5688-3
External links