Leicester Square Theatre - History
The Leicester Square Theatre is located on Leicester Square in the City of Westminster in London. Its nearest underground tube station is Leicester Square whilst its nearest railway station is Charing Cross.
This 420 seat venue is a very modern theatre with a history that (in its current form) only dates back to 2002. Before this the building that houses the Leicester Square Theatre was the Notre Dame Hall, built in 1953 and used to host live music. The current auditorium is a studio theatre that is admired for offering a more intimate experience during performances. This is not only due to its size but because of its shape (wider than it is long). The seats are in a grandstand style with a flexible stage that can be changed to suit the production at hand. All in all, it means that everyone will feel close to the action and find their visit to the theatre a pleasing and fulfilling experience. As well as this larger auditorium, there is also a smaller basement theatre where smaller scale shows take place.
Since it opened in 2002 it has hosted a number of great shows and comedy acts. The world premiere of Boy George’s musical Taboo (2002) took place at the Leicester Square Theatre. It was a very successful show that proved popular enough to transfer to a Broadway venue. Round the Horne also appeared at the venue in 2004 under the creative talent of Brian Cooke. Saucy Jack and the Space Vixens (2005) and Pete & Dud (2006) followed before the venue hosted the likes of The Vegemite Tales in 2006 by Melanie Tait with Blair McDonough from Neighbours, which was a comedy concerning Australians living in a London flat in the 1920s/30s.
In 2007 the venue housed Icons in London which starred Greg London then Side By Side By Sondheim, which was a musical revue based on the stage and film composer Stephen Sondheim which starred Christopher Cazenove, Angela Rippon and Les Dennis. This was followed by a return of The Vegemite Tales before 2008 brought with it one of many comedians who enjoy to use the venue to showcase their talents. Joan Rivers: A Work In Progress By A Life In Progress was the show in question, which ran from August to September of that year followed by Alex. Other comedy shows to grace the stage at the venue (or will do in the future) include the likes of Defending The Caveman (with Mark Little), Jim Jeffries, Roseanne Barr, The Umbilical Brothers and Richard Herring.
This great venue is likely to continue to host great acts over the coming years, so make sure you catch one of the memorable plays and comedians when they arrive in the nation’s capital to show off their talents.
