Theatre Royal Drury Lane

History of the Theatre Royal Drury Lane

The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane is a theatre in the West End area of London, officially situated on Catherine Street, but backing onto Drury Lane just to the east of Covent Garden.

A cockpit in that location was converted into a theatre during the reign of James I. After the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, a splendid new theatre was built to designs by Christopher Wren. Having been razed by fire on January 25, 1672, it was succeeded by a larger and still more elaborate building also designed by Wren, which housed two thousand spectators with the opening attended by Charles II on March 26, 1674.

The great English actor David Garrick managed the theatre during the mid-eighteenth century, during which time he produced many plays, including most of Shakespeare's work.

By the end of the 18th century, the building was in need of updating, and was demolished in 1791. A third theatre was designed by Henry Holland and opened on March 12, 1794, lasting for only 15 years before burning down on February 24, 1809.

The present Theatre Royal in Drury Lane, designed by Benjamin Wyatt, opened on October 10, 1812 with a production of Hamlet. The interior has been substantially redesigned and overhauled many times since then: a contemporary sketch of it when it was new is shown on the right, seen from the point of view of the beau monde in the lower gallery. It is one of the West End's largest, and has been the setting for appearances by Edmund Kean and Sarah Siddons, among others.

With a capacity of 2,205, it has been home to many large productions over the years. It is currently showing a revival of Mel Brooks' musical The Producers.

Principal recent productions
Pirates of Penzance (May 26, 1982 - October 29, 1983)
42nd Street (August 8, 1984 - January 7, 1989)
Miss Saigon (September 20, 1989 - October 30, 1999)
The Witches of Eastwick (July 18, 2000 - February 24, 2001)
My Fair Lady (July 21, 2001 - August 30, 2003)
Anything Goes (October 7, 2003 - August 28, 2004)
The Producers (November 9, 2004 - )