Myspace Layouts - Myspace Editor - Image Hosting
Her Majesty’s Theatre*Haymarket*London SW1Y 4QL
The current theatre is actually the fourth theatre to occupy this site in London's Haymarket. The first, called The Queen's Theatre, was built by Sir John Vanbrugh and opened on 9 April 1705 - then the theatre's name changed to The King's Theatre in 1714 when King George I ascended the throne. The theatre was associated with opera from the early 1710s until 1789 when the theatre was destroyed by fire.
The second theatre was designed by Michael Novosielski and opened in March 1791. This theatre was again associated with opera, as well as ballet. It was here that some of Mozart's operas were first presented in London - La Clemenza de Tito in 1806, Così fan Tutti in 1811 and Don Giovanni in 1816. Between 1816 and 1818 alterations were made to the auditorium and facades by John Nash and George Renton who also added the Royal Opera Arcade which runs along the rear of the theatre and still stands today.
In 1837 the name of the theatre was changed to Her Majesty's Theatre, Italian Opera House when Queen Victoria ascended to the throne.
The 'Italian Opera House' part of the name was subsequently dropped in 1847. Then, in December 1867, the theatre was once again destroyed by fire. It was then rebuilt in 1869 (this time designed by Charles Lee) although the theatre remained dark until 1875 when once again opera was presented here. In 1892 the theatre was demolished, leaving just the Royal Opera Arcade.
In 1895 the play Trilby ran for over 260 performances at the Theatre Royal across the Haymarket and from the profits Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree built the current and fourth theatre on this site, which was designed by C J Phipps and opened on 28 April 1897. In 1904 Beerbohm Tree instigated a drama school in the Dome Room at the top of the theatre, which eventually became The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. During his 18 years of management Tree established the building as a playhouse with more than 46 of his own productions, including Shakespeare, adaptations of novels and melodramas.
Now mostly plays were presented here, with just the occasional opera. Then in 1916 Chu Chin Chow started a record-breaking run of 2,238 performances. In 1929 Noel Coward's Bitter Sweet was produced here and enjoyed a run of 697 performances. After the Second World War the theatre presented many musicals which included Brigadoon in 1949, Paint Your Wagon in 1953, West Side Story in 1958 and Fiddler On The Roof in 1967 which had a run of 2,030 performances. In 1974 Dame Judi Dench and Sir John Mills starred in a musical adaptation of The Good Companions. The current production is the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical The Phantom of the Opera which opened here on 9 October 1986.
A visit below the stage of a theatre in the 1890s must have been very similar to walking round an old sailing ship. From ceiling to floor, a profusion of ropes, pulleys, enormous timber wheels, antediluvian winches, all embellished with that unforgettable aroma of scenery, size, timber, and that unidentifiable something which when added together tells you that you're 'backstage'.
Luckily the sub-stage machinery at Her Majesty's survived the ravages of time quite well, and although it had fallen into disuse it was unquestionably the most complete and intact Victorian wooden stage still in London. It was therefore with great excitement that all at HMs set about incorporating some of the stage machinery into The Phantom of the Opera.
The venue was also the setting for the popular ITV1 variety series Live from Her Majesty's, which ran on television from 1982 to 1985. It was on this programme that the popular comedian Tommy Cooper collapsed and died on stage in 1984.
Renovations took place of the dome and exterior in 1992, and of the interior in 1994. The building was Grade II listed by English Heritage in January 1970. Its capacity is 1,216 seats.
Three of the pictures in the 'Historic Her Majesty's' album found in the pictures section of this website are reproduced by kind permission of Matthew Lloyd, whose amazingly detailed, beautifully photographed and carefully researched website dedicated to Britain's theatres can be found at: http://www.arthurlloyd.co.uk
Historic 'Phantom' Performance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0-nL_H7nwg
Filmed at the Opera Garnier in Paris.