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     London Theatre Tickets » List of London Theatres » Phoenix Theatre » History
Phoenix Theatre - Information & History
The Phoenix Theatre is situated on Charring Cross Road and first opened its doors on the 24th of September 1930, with the highly successful play by Noel Coward called 'Private Lives' staring Noel Coward himself along with Laurence Olivier, Gertrude Lawrence and Adrianne Allen. The production ran for 101 performances.
The Phoenix Theatre was built on the same site which was once occupied by a Music Hall called the Alcazar, before which it had been a factory. The Phoenix Theatre was designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, Bertie Crew and Cecil Masey and the builders were Bovis Ltd.
The Phoenix Architecture is a curious mixture of traditional classical theatre architecture and the Art Deco style. Above the boxes are panels by Vladimir Polunin, reproductions of Tintoretto, Titian and Giorgione. The classical formal designs of the auditorium are in direct contrast with the 1930's style art deco mirrored corridors and elaborate geometrical patterns that feature heavily in the interior.
The Alcazar, which stood on the site prior to the Phoenix Theatre, was a very different kind of music hall in which the audience had the choice of no less than 3 stages and performances going on at the same time. People could wander from one to the other to experience the differing acts and 'turns'.
The idea behind it was a clever one and it was intended that previously unknown acts could try their hand at the Alcazar and, like auditions, even though the public paid admission, theatre managers entered for free and would frequent the Alcazar to perhaps pick up unknown talent for their own theatres and music halls.
Whilst the concept worked for a brief while, the idea seemed to lose public interest, and without fee paying public no show can continue for long. The owner Lucien Samett had to attract punters with other attractions which included slot machines and gambling on the ground floor and rather dubious exhibitions on the first floor including Posing Female Models and 'Beautiful Artists'. The Stage magazine for the theatre referred to the Alcazar as more like a 'Fun City' than a theatre.
The Phoenix Theatre was one of many theatres which were built in 1930, several of them opening in the same month! First came the Prince Edward on April 3rd, then the Cambridge Theatre on the 4th of September, then the Phoenix Theatre on the 24th of September, and the Whitehall theatre on the 29th of September. After this came the re-constructed Adelphi Theatre on the 3rd of December and finally the Leicester Square Theatre on the 19th of December. That's a lot of new theatres for one year all vying for the audiences to make them successful. It must have been an exciting time for the theatre goer with new theatres literally opening every few months.
The Stage magazine gave the following review of the opening day of the Phoenix, here contained from the 'Theatres of London' by Mander & Mitchenson which said:
'The distinguished columns here are blues and pinks on a cream ground, and the whole is lavishly picked out with modelling in gold. Large windows in the adjacent promenade allow late-comers and others who might for some reason or other be prevented from getting to their seats to view the stalls level and the stage. The circle appears to come far forward and has a commodious upper circle above it. Care has been taken in the comfort of the seating. Each seat has sufficient body and leg room and is provided with its own hat rack. There are six roomy private boxes. The upholstery has a touch of the medieval, and is in a rare shade of dark pink with a touch of heliotrope or light purple in its pattern. In the front of the house rich reds, blues, and gold appear to be the prime colours. Bars and cloakrooms are well appointed, but no attempt has been made here in the shape of elaborate decoration. A striking feature in the interior decoration will be found in the fine reproductions of works by old masters. Here we have well executed copies of pictures by Titian, Giorgione, Tintoretto and Pinturicchio. The safety curtain carries Jacopo del Sellaio's 'The Triumph of Love' the original of which can be seen in the Oratorio di S. Ansano, Fiesole. These reproductions are the work of Vladimir Polunin.'
The Phoenix Theatre has 2 entrances of separate streets, one from the Charring Cross Road and the other from Phoenix Street, from which the theatre was given its name. From the ashes will rise a new theatre like a phoenix.
Following the opening success the Phoenix had another modest success with 'Late Bight Final' by Louis Weitenkom, which ran for 132 performances. After this the Phoenix was not so lucky and eventually it was converted into a Variety Theatre with similar results.
Noel Coward returned to the Phoenix in 1936, and the audience levels increased with his performances of short one act plays called 'Tonight at 8:30', which did very well and ran for 157 nights. This was not a new thing as showing short one act plays had been done before. Known as 'triple bill', it was used by theatre owners over the centuries to retain audience interest so as not to possibly bore them with a play they found uninteresting or not funny. It had lost public favour during the last quarter of the Victorian era from 1875 to 1900. All that Noel Coward did was to revive the idea.
The idea of using a short performance was used as a curtain teaser before the main performance, which transferred to the cinema, for those old enough to remember the main picture being supported by a second movie which was screened first.
Noel Coward was recorded as saying about such triple billing:-
'From our point of view behind the footlights the experiment will obviously be interesting. The monotony of repetition will be reduced considerably and it is to be hoped that the stimulus Miss Lawrence, the Company and I will undoubtedly derive from playing several roles during a week instead of only one, will communicate itself to the audience, thereby ensuring that a good time be had by all.'
The Phoenix Theatre had a change of ownership in 1966 which led to a refurbishment programme, including the construction of the Noel Coward bar in the Phoenix Street foyer, which was opened by the great man himself in 1969.
The Phoenix Theatre has had a mixed history peppered with highs and lows of success stories and flops. Most recently the Phoenix Theatre can lay claim to fame when, in March 1968, it staged a highly successful run of 'Canterbury Tales', which ran for over 2,000 performances. More recently the Phoenix Theatre can boast an equally popular show with 'Blood Brothers', which transferred from the Lyric Theatre to the Phoenix Theatre in November 1991 and is still running after 15 long years as at December 2006.
The theatre is currently owned by the Ambassador Theatre Group.
Showing: Blood Brothers Phoenix Theatre | Performances | Information | Directions | History
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