Seating Plan
The Queen’s Theatre is located on Shaftesbury Avenue, in the heart of London’s Soho district, with several other West End theatres nearby. Constructed as a pair, with the Gielgud Theatre as its counterpart, it opened on October 8th 1907 with a capacity of just over 1,000. Both theatres were designed by W. G. R. Sprague, who had worked on several other theatres in the West End as well outside of London. After considering several other names, including the Central Theatre, the Queen’s Theatre was chosen and acknowledged by displaying a painting of Queen Alexandra in the opulent foyer.
The first few years of the Queen’s Theatre’s history was dogged by a run of short-lived plays and comedies, from the inaugurating Sugar Bowl which ran for just 36 shows. However, its luck changed in 1913 with the Queen’s Theatre Tango Teas, which were very successful. It involved a transformation of the auditorium into a tea room with the stalls seating being swapped for tables and chairs, and patrons watched tango displays on stage while taking afternoon tea.
Decades later, in 1937-38, the Queen’s saw an illustrious set of stars gather for the Gielgud season. These included Michael Redgrave, Alec Guinness, Anthony Quayle, Leon Quartermaine, George Devine, Glen Byam Shaw, Peggy Ashcroft and Rachel Kempson in four plays – Three Sisters, The School for Scandal, Richard II and The Merchant of Venice. It is said this period resulted in the beginnings of the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre.
However, the theatre’s fortunes took a turn for the worse – going dark for nearly 20 years as it was hit during a bombing raid in September 1940. It was then rebuilt with a price tag of £250,000, keeping its overall Edwardian style except for the exterior, bars and foyer. The Queen’s Theatre reopened on July 8th 1959 with John Gielgud’s Ages of Man, which received rave reviews.
Since then, the Queen’s Theatre has housed a range of shows, including the National Theatre’s Shaftesbury Avenue debut in 1966 with A Flea in her Ear, The Royal Hunt of the Sun and Othello, whose cast included distinguished names such as Laurence Olivier, Frank Finlay and Maggie Smith. Marlene Dietrich also performed in two short cabaret seasons, and demonstrated that her sex appeal was stronger than ever.
Kenneth Branagh caught attention by gaining a principal role in Another Country fresh out of RADA, alongside the likes of Rupert Everett, Daniel Day Lewis and Colin Firth. More recent shows include The Lady in the Van with Maggie Smith, Medea with Fiona Shaw, and The Taming of the Shrew and The Tamer Tamed by the RSC.
On April 3rd 2004, Les Miserables transferred to the Queen’s Theatre. Billed as London’s longest-running musical, Cameron Mackintosh’s epic piece previously ran at the Palace Theatre for over 7,600 performances.
Queen’s theatre tickets in London:
To make a booking or to find ticket prices for Les Miserables at the Queen’s theatre, London, you can select your ticket preferences at the top of this page. To get further information on Les Miserables please click here.
Theatre tickets for Les Miserables at the Queen’s theatre are booked through Shows In London secure online booking system with credit card merchant services provided by Barclaycard.
Once tickets are booked through Shows In London you will receive an e-mail confirmation receipt and your tickets will be despatched to you within 48 hours of booking or alternatively left for your collection at the theatre Box Office.
At Shows In London we provide access to the full range of tickets from best seats to the cheapest ticket deals for all London West End Theatre, including half-price and discount ticket offers.
