The History of The Palace Theatre London

THE PALACE THEATRE LONDON

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Having built the Savoy Theatre on The Strand in 1882 to house Gilbert & Sullivan's comic operas and following the construction of Shaftesbury Avenue, in 1886, Richard D'Oyly Carte bought the new, prestigious island site at the junction of Shaftesbury Avenue and Cambridge Circus in London's West End, where he intended to build another theatre.
He and architects G. Holloway and Thomas Colcutt designed a building in the Grand Style to be known as "The Royal English Opera House" and they created a, then, revolutionary system of cantilevering the tiers of seating so that none of the audience in either of the four levels had to sit behind a pillar. Decoration throughout was "scholarly Flemish renaissance." as Sir John Betjemin once called it. Marble was used extensively through the Foyer, Stalls and Dress Circles with pillars and balustrades extending three storeys up to the top of the Main Staircase.

Richard's wife, Helen D'Oyly Carte, laid the foundation stone on the 15th of December 1888 and "The Royal English Opera House" opened, just two years and two months later on January 31st 1891, with Arthur Sullivan's "Ivanhoe". Among the first night audience were the Prince and Princess of Wales. When Ivanhoe closed after 155 performances - not too bad for an English opera, but not good enough to establish the venue - D'Oyly Carte had not managed to acquire more British operas to produce. At least two other composers had failed to deliver specially commissioned works in time for production and, by necessity there followed a French opera, "The Basoche," which did little to please London audiences.

Following a short `dark' period, the theatre was let, in May 1892 to Henry E. Abbey and Maurice Grau who staged a Sarah Bernhardt season, including dramas such as "Cleopatre", "Leah", "La Tosca", "Frou Frou," and "Phedre." Oscar Wilde's "Salome", specially written in French for Bernhardt, was in preparation for this season but rehearsals were abandoned when the Lord Chamberlain (the theatre censor) banned the play, citing an ancient law forbidding the impersonation of biblical characters on the stage.

Failing to make a success of his "Opera House", D'Oyly Carte sold the building in late 1892 to Sir Augustus Harris who, after some minor alterations, re-opened it in December of the same year as
"The Palace Theatre" billing it as "The Handsomest music hall in Europe".

It changed hands again in 1893, passing to Charles Morton who soon brought the theatre a reputation for the very best in entertainment. On his death in 1904 his assistant, Alfred Butt, took over and maintained it's high standards for the next seventeen years. During this time most of the top music hall artists appeared here, including, in 1909 from America, "The Keatons" with a nine year old Buster.

In 1910 the Theatre saw the London debut of Anna Pavlova with Michael Mordkin, bringing a high degree of respectability to what had been, until then, a variety house. Two years later, on July 1st 1912, the theatre was host to the very first "Royal Command Performance" for George V and Queen Mary. The evening was not a huge success; one act - Ida & Crispi Farren - had walked out during rehearsal after being told their performance was "not very nice". The fear of offending the King and Queen was, obviously, too much for the organizers and, controversially, one of the most famous Music Hall performers of the time, Marie Lloyd, was excluded from the bill as it was felt she could not be trusted to "behave with decorum" and, due to certain `indelicacies' in her private life, would not be presentable to the King.

In retribution, Marie Lloyd hired a hall on the same night as the Command Performance and gave her own special performance which she billed as being "by command of the public."

From 1914 onward the Palace became the venue for a series of "Revue shows", such as "The Passing Show", "Bric-a-Brac", "Vanity Fair" and "Airs and Graces".

Throughout the early 20s The Palace saw service as a cinema (something which continued, on and off, for many years) as well as a variety house. From 1925 onward it became much more famous for it's musicals, which included "No, No Nanette", "Princess Charming", "The Girl Friend" and "Virginia".

The first "talkie" to appear at the Palace was probably "The Queen's Necklace" in 1930.

"On Your Toes" made it's first appearance at the Palace in February 1937 for a total of 50 performances and was to return some 47 years later (for a much longer run of some 16 months.)

In 1938 the Palace became the almost permanent home of Jack Hulbert and Cicely Courtneidge, who had a string of hits until 1943. During this time, apart from a brief closure at the outbreak of War, "Gone With The Wind" was given it's European premiere in April 1940 simultaneously at the Empire, Ritz and Palace Theatre.. Later the same year the enemy bombing became so severe that the theatre was closed until July 1941. Whilst it was closed the old Shaftesbury Theatre, across the Avenue on the site presently occupied by the Soho Fire Station, was completely demolished during a bombing raid, The Palace sustaining some blast damage.

1946 the theatre came under the direction of Tom Arnold and Emile Littler.

Ivor Novello's "King's Rhapsody" opened in September 1949 and, during it's three year run, Novello died in his London flat. The show was cancelled that evening as a mark of respect.

Littler took sole control in 1951 but soon sold the building to a finance company who leased it back to him and EMI - thus giving Bernard Delfont a half share in the the theatre. Things improved, and the theatre saw a long run of very successful light musicals and variety bills. Laurence Olivier appeared here in "The Entertainer". Norman Wisdom starred in "Where's Charlie?" (a musical version of "Charley's Aunt") and we were home, most famously, to Maurice Chevalier, "Flower Drum Song", "The Desert Song", "The Sound of Music" and "Cabaret".

During the 1960s Littler caused the entire interior of the building to be painted a "Victoria plum" colour. All the marble in the Foyer and stalls was covered up and the auditorium, with it's cherub light fittings, was painted over.

The end of the 60s was a very disappointing time and following "Cabaret" there were a string of "flops". 1970 saw the beginning of a two year run of Danny La Rue's adult show "At The Palace".

1972 witnessed the arrival of a little thing called "Jesus Christ Superstar" by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice - it stayed here for the next eight years, clocking up 3358 performances. In September 1976 I started work here as "Second Dayman" - i.e. the assistant tea maker to the tea maker's assistant. Superstar became the longest running musical in British Theatre history on October 3rd, 1978 but has since been beaten by "Cats" - another Lloyd Webber scribbling. As "Cats" is still running in it's original home, it looks likely to hold the record for some time yet.

During the "get out" of Superstar in 1980 we found, hanging hidden high above the stage, covered in a (very) thick layer of dust, the old, enormous, Cinema speakers, which were, of course, duly broken up and dumped.

Following "Superstar" were "Oklahoma" (a year's run) and "Song and Dance" (two years), during the run of which, Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Really Useful Group" acquired the Theatre (July 1983). Shortly afterwards, with help from "English Heritage", he spent ś1.6 million renovating the famous terra- cotta exterior of the building - repairing decades of neglect and installing proper, extensive exterior lighting for the first time in it's history. And guess who's responsible for keeping that working?

The ghastly Plum coloured paint was also removed from the marble in the Foyer, Stalls and Main staircase, revealing it all in it's undamaged glory. The auditorium remains maroon until such time as we go `dark' and can get back to the original colours, WHATEVER they may be.

June 1984 saw "On Your Toes" back from the dead and then, in October 1985 a week of Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Variations for 'Cello & Orchestra" with Julian Lloyd Webber and "Requiem" with Sarah Brightman and Aled Jones.

In December of that year "Les Miserables" transferred from The Barbican to The Palace - and it's STILL here after nearly thirteen years and, at the time of writing, a staggering 5,230 performances.

Past Productions at The Palace Theatre
As "The Royal English Opera House"

1891 - Ivanhoe The Basoche 1892 - Cleopatra Pauline Blanchard Leah La Tosca La Dame aux Camelias Fedora Frou Frou Phedre (with Sarah Bernhardt) Re-titled as "The Palace Theatre of varieties" Many variety bills were played until 1914. Those of particular note were as follows; 1907 - Mistinguette 1910 - Anna Pavlova 1914 - Nijinsky 1914/15 - The Passing Show 1915/16 - Bric-a-Brac 1916/17 - Vanity Fair 1917 - Airs and Graces Pamela 1918 - Very Good Edie Hello America 1919 - Monsieur Beaucaire The Lilac Domino The Whirligig 1920 - The Swedish Ballet Company 1921 - Variety - Harry Lauder FILM SEASON; Polyanna, Dawn of the World 1921 - The Co-Optimists 1922 - FILM SEASON; Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse 1923 - The Music Box (Revue) FILM SEASON; Anna Christie 1924 - The Co-Optimists (return) 1925 - No, no, Nanette 1926 - Princess Charming 1927 - The Girlfriend 1928 - Virginia 1929 - Hold Everything Dear Love 1930 - FILM SEASON; Queen's Necklace 1930 - Heads up Frederica 1931 - The Marx Brothers (Variety) Bitter Sweet FILM SEASON; Grand Hotel 1931 - Argentina Victoria and her Hussar 1932 - The Cat and the Fiddle 1933 - Dinner at Eight (show) Dinner at Eight (the film) Gay Divorce 1934 - Why not tonight Streamline 1935 - FILM SEASON; David Copperfield 1935 - Jubilee Co-Optimists Anything goes 1936 - At The Silver Swan The Town Talks The Robber Symphony (film) This'll make you whistle 1937 - On Your Toes The Good Earth (film) Wonderful World Oh You Letty 1938 - Dodsworth Maritza Flashbacks (film) 1938/9 - Under Your Hat 1940 - Gone With The Wind (film) Chu Chin Chow THE THEATRE WAS DAMAGED BY THE BOMBING AND CLOSED UNTIL JULY 1941 1941 - Chu Chin Chow Music Time (concerts) Jack And Jill 1942 - Full Swing 1943 - Hi de Hi Something In The Air 1944 - Keep Going Something In The Air (return) Alice in Wonderland 1945 - Gay Rosalinda 1946 - Song of Norway 1947 - The Red Mill The Bird Seller Henry V (film) 1066 And All That Finian's Rainbow Charley's Aunt 1948 - Carrisima 1949 - Lilac Time Song of Norway (return) Kings Rhapsody 1951 - Zip Goes a Million (George Formby) 1953 - The Glorious Days The Love Match 1954 - Sabrina Fair Happy Holiday 1955 - Antonio (Spanish Ballet) Maurice Chevalier Merry Widow Les Compangon de la Chanson The Shakespeare Memorial Theatre Company - King Lear Much Ado About Nothing Italian Opera Classical Theatre of China Pilar Lopez (Spanish Ballet) Cinderella 1956 - Salzburg Opera Co. Trevallion Les Ballets Africains Ballet de Paris de Roland Petit Hungarian Dance Co. Greta Garbo film season Les Ballets Africains Mother Courage Caucasian Chalk Circle Antonio Dick Whittington 1957 - Edwige Feuillere Co. Victor Borge Three from Rome FILM SEASON; Red Balloon The Entertainer (Laurence Olivier) FILM SEASON; Soviet Films The Entertainer (return) 1958 - Variety with Frankie Vaughan Where's Charlie (Norman Wisdom) Billy Bunter's Mysterious Christmas (matinees) 1959 - The World of Paul Slickey Fine Fettle The Sooty Christmas Show 1960 - Philippine Dance Co. Zambra de Madrid Flower Drum Song 1961 - The Sound of Music (ran for six years) 1967 - 110 in the Shade The Desert Song (John Hanson) 1968 - Cabaret (Judi Dench) Mr. & Mrs. 1969 - Two Cities Belle Star (Bette Grable) Phil the Fluter 1970 - Danny La Rue at The Palace 1972 - Maid of the Mountains Jesus Christ Superstar 1976 - September - Kriss joins the Theatre as Second Electrical Dayman 1978 - Superstar becomes the longest running musical in theatre history October 3. (Overtaken only by "Cats") 1980 - Oklahoma 1981 - Roll on Four O'Clock Her Royal Highness 1982 - Song and Dance 1984 - On Your Toes (return of 1937 version) 1985 - Les Miserables and it's STILL here!