Lyric Theatre (Shaftesbury Ave)

First opening in 1888, the Lyric Theatre is Shaftesbury Avenue’s oldest surviving theatre, and is best-known for hosting Michael Jackson tribute show Thriller Live. Originally designed by architect C.J. Phillips, the Lyric Theatre was built under producer Henry J Leslie as a venue for operetta. Its premiere production was a transfer of the comic opera Dorothy from the Prince of Wales Theatre. With a seating capacity of 967, the theatre has a Renaissance design. In 1933, Thomas Bostock redecorated the venue interior, re-opening it with a production starring Laurence Olivier. In the years following, prolific writers such as Terence Rattigan and Alan Ayckbourn premiered their plays. In 1974, the Lyric became part of the Stoll Moss Theatres group empire, staging musicals such as Gigi and By Jeeves. In 2000, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Really Useful Group purchased Stoll Moss, taking complete ownership of the venue and hosting several productions produced by Bill Kenwright. 2005 saw veteran producers Nica Burns and Max Weitzenhoffer purchased the Lyric Theatre, which remains a Nimax Theatre to this day.

Past productions

Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical started 1^st October 2021.
Six 21^st May – 29^th August 2021.
Six 5^th – 16^th December 2020.
Thriller Live, 69 Theatre Company 21^st January 2009 – 14^th March 2020.
Showstopper! The Improvised Musical ended 2020.
Cabaret 10^th October 2006 – 21^st June 2008.
Smaller 28^th March – 3^rd June 2006.
The Night of the Iguana, Bill Kenwright 23^rd November 2005 – 25^th March 2006.
Death of a Salesman 16^th May – 5^th November 2005.
Festen 23^rd September 2004 – 16^th April 2005.
Beautiful and Damned 10^th May – 14^th August 2004.
The Secret Rapture 27^th November 2003 – 21^st February 2004.
Hitchcock Blonde 16^th June – 20^th September 2003.
The Dance of Death 20^th February – 7^th June 2003.
Home and Beauty, Bill Kenwright Ltd 29^th October 2002 – 11^th January 2003.
The Constant Wife, Bill Kenwright Ltd 2^nd July – 12^th October 2002.
Daisy Pulls It Off 29^th April – 8^th June 2002.
The Feast Of Snails 18^th February – 16^th March 2002.
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof 18^th September 2001 – 12^th January 2002.
Semi-Monde, Thelma Holt 21^st March – 9^th June 2001.
Long Day’s Journey Into Night 21^st November 2000 – 3^rd March 2001.
Brief Encounter 11^th September – 4^th November 2000.
A Busy Day, Bristol Old Vic Company 7^th June – 2^nd September 2000.
Comic Potential, Michael Codron in association with Lee Dean and Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford 13^th October 1999 – 3^rd June 2000.
Animal Crackers 16^th March – 15^th May 1999.
An Ideal Husband, Peter Hall Company 3^rd November 1998 – 6^th March 1999.
Closer, National Theatre and Robert Fox Productions 31^st March – 31^st October 1998.
Cyrano de Bergerac, Royal Shakespeare Company 27^th November 1997 – 14^th February 1998.
Maddie, Kenny Wax and Salisbury Playhouse 29^th September – 8^th November 1997.
Marlene, Michael Redington, Michael Rose Ltd, and Oldham Coliseum Theatre 8^th April – 6^th September 1997.
By Jeeves 3^rd October 1996 – 22^nd February 1997.
The Village 1996 – 1997.
Ferry Cross The Mersey 12^th August – 7^th September 1996.
Tap Dogs 27^th March – 29^th June 1996.
Hobson’s Choice 11^th October 1995 – 20^th January 1996.
Ain’t Misbehavin’ 13^th March – 30^th September 1995.
Five Guys Named Moe, Theatre Royal Stratford East 14^th December 1990 – 4^th March 1995.
Other People’s Money 17^th October – 1^st December 1990.
Burn This, Hampstead Theatre and Robert Fox Ltd 11^th July – 6^th October 1990.
Vanilla 10^th May – 7^th July 1990.
Bus Stop 27^th February – 5^th May 1990.
Prin, Lyric Hammersmith Productions 1^st December 1989 – 10^th February 1990.
Stop the World I Want to Get Off 19^th October – 25^th November 1989.
Look Back in Anger, Renaissance Theatre Company 7^th August – 2^nd September 1989.
Steel Magnolias 7^th March – 5^th August 1989.
Dry Rot, Lee Menzies 28^th September 1988 – 7^th January 1989.
Pentecost 1988 – 1989.
The Bacchae 1988 – 1989.
Emerald City 9^th May – 25^th June 1988.
One for the Road, Bob Swash 21^st October 1987 – 23^rd April 1988.

29 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, W1D 7ES
Telephone: 0330 333 4812
A proscenium theatre, seats 967.
Opened 1888
Official website

Photographs

If you have a photograph or picture of this place, please sign in to upload it, or add it to Flickr and tag it with .