Criterion Theatre
Encyclopedia
The Criterion Theatre is a West End theatre
situated on Piccadilly Circus
in the City of Westminster
, and is a Grade II* listed building. It has an official capacity of 588.
winning out of 15 entries. He was commissioned to design a large restaurant, dining rooms, ballroom, and galleried concert hall in the basement. The frontage, which was the façade of the restaurant, showed a French Renaissance influence using Portland stone.
After the building work began, it was decided to change the concert hall into a theatre. The composers' names, which line the tiled staircases, were retained and can still be seen. The redesign placed the large Criterion Restaurant and dining rooms above the theatre, with a ballroom on the top floor.
When Spiers and Pond applied for a licence to operate, the authorities were unhappy because the theatre was underground and lit by gas, creating the risk of toxic fumes. The Metropolitan Board of Works had to vote twice before the necessary licence was issued, and fresh air had to pumped into the auditorium to prevent the audience from being asphyxiated. It was not until October 1881, at the Savoy, that the first theatre was lit electrically.
The building was completed in 1873 with the interior decoration carried out by Simpson and Son.
, with music by Alfred Cellier
, entitled Topsyturveydom
. The event apparently did not make much of an impression on Gilbert. In a letter to Edgar Pemberton, author of the book on The Criterion in 1903, Gilbert wrote: "I am sorry to say that in my mind is an absolute blank to the opening of The Criterion. I never saw Topseyturveydom. If you happen to have a copy of it and could lend it to me for a few hours it might suggest some reminiscences: as it is I don't even know what the piece was about!" Nevertheless, Gilbert was back at the theatre in 1877 with his farce, On Bail (a revised version of his 1874 work, Committed for Trial); in 1881, with another farce, Foggerty's Fairy
; and in 1892, with a comic opera
, Haste to the Wedding
, with music by George Grossmith
(an operatic version of Gilbert's 1873 play, The Wedding March). Haste to the Wedding
was a flop, but it introduced the 18-year old George Grossmith, Jr.
, the composer's son, to the London stage. The younger Grossmith would go on to become a major star in Edwardian musical comedies.
Charles Wyndham became the manager and lessee in 1875 and under his management The Criterion became one of the leading light comedy houses in London. The first production under the manager was The Great Divorce Case, opening on 15 April 1876. When Wyndham left in 1899 to open his own theatre, The Wyndham's Theatre
(and then the New Theatre, now called the Noel Coward Theatre
, in 1903) he remained the lessee bringing in various managements and their companies.
In March 1883 the theatre closed for alterations demanded by the Metropolitan Board of Works. The pumping of fresh air into the ten year-old auditorium, some thirty feet below street level, was deemed unsatisfactory. Thomas Verity supervised the alterations (Verity by now had also designed the Comedy Theatre in 1881 and The Empire Theatre
in 1882). The new direct access ventilation shaft meant cutting off a considerable portion of the adjoining Criterion Restaurant. New corridors were built, with several new exits. The auditorium was reconstructed and the stage re-equipped. The old dressing rooms were demolished and new ones built. Most importantly, electricity was installed. Dramatic Notes (1884) states The Criterion Theatre, transformed from a stuffy band-box to a convenient, handsome, and well ventilated house, reopened on April 16". Further alterations and redecorations took place in 1902-03, when the theatre was closed for seven months.
and in 1936, French Without Tears which ran for 1,039 performances and launched the writing career of Terence Rattigan
.
During World War II, the Criterion was requisitioned by the BBC
- as an underground theatre it made an ideal studio safe from the London blitz - and light entertainment programmes were both recorded and broadcast live.
After the war, the Criterion repertoire included avant-garde works such as Samuel Beckett
's Waiting for Godot
. The early part of 1956 saw the arrival of Anouilh's popular comedy, The Waltz of the Toreadors
, with impressive performances by Hugh Griffith
and Beatrix Lehmann
.
In the 1970s the Criterion site was proposed for redevelopment, which caused protest as people feared the theatre would be lost. In February 1975 the GLC Planning Committee approved the development on the condition that the theatre continued in full, continuous and uninterrupted use while the redevelopments took place. Throughout the 1970s and early 1980s the row increased and the Equity Save London's Theatre Committee organised high profile demonstrations (campaigners included John Gielgud
, Edward Woodward
, Diana Rigg
, Robert Morley
and Prunella Scales
) as they feared that the theatre would still be lost.
In the 1980s, the theatre building was purchased by Robert Bourne, a property tycoon and patron of the arts, and his wife, theatre impresario Sally Greene. The couple set up the Criterion Theatre Trust, a registered charity created to protect the Criterion's future. From April 1989 to October 1992 the theatre was closed whilst it underwent major renovations both in the back and front of the house. During that time, the block that exists today was built around it. After the refurbishment, the Criterion retains a well-preserved Victorian auditorium with an intimate atmosphere.
, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)
, The Complete History of America, and The Bible, The Complete Word of God. The theatre was used to hold the first round of recalls for successful auditionees in ITV
's Pop Idol
. The theatre is also used by leading drama institution Academy of Live and Recorded Arts
as a venue for their graduating students' annual showcase.
The Criterion's current production is The 39 Steps
, adapted for the stage by Patrick Barlow from John Buchan's novel, filmed by Alfred Hitchcock
in 1935.
Peppa Pig
's Party transferred to the Criterion Theatre for the 2010 Christmas period to play alongside The 39 Steps
and will return for the 2011 Christmas period.
Criterion Presents, launched in October 2011, is an ancillary programme of shows, events and platforms that run alongside the main production, taking place at lunchtimes, early evenings and late nights.
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
situated on Piccadilly Circus
Piccadilly Circus
Piccadilly Circus is a road junction and public space of London's West End in the City of Westminster, built in 1819 to connect Regent Street with the major shopping street of Piccadilly...
in the City of Westminster
City of Westminster
The City of Westminster is a London borough occupying much of the central area of London, England, including most of the West End. It is located to the west of and adjoining the ancient City of London, directly to the east of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and its southern boundary...
, and is a Grade II* listed building. It has an official capacity of 588.
Building the theatre
In 1870, the caterers Spiers and Pond began development of the site of the White Bear, a seventeenth-century posting inn. The inn was located on sloping ground stretching between Jermyn Street and Piccadilly Circus, known as Regent Circus. A competition was held for the design of a concert hall complex, with Thomas VerityThomas Verity
Thomas Verity was an English theatre architect during the theatre building boom of 1885–1915.Verity began his career articled in the architecture department of the War Office, assisting in the erection of the South Kensington Museum...
winning out of 15 entries. He was commissioned to design a large restaurant, dining rooms, ballroom, and galleried concert hall in the basement. The frontage, which was the façade of the restaurant, showed a French Renaissance influence using Portland stone.
After the building work began, it was decided to change the concert hall into a theatre. The composers' names, which line the tiled staircases, were retained and can still be seen. The redesign placed the large Criterion Restaurant and dining rooms above the theatre, with a ballroom on the top floor.
When Spiers and Pond applied for a licence to operate, the authorities were unhappy because the theatre was underground and lit by gas, creating the risk of toxic fumes. The Metropolitan Board of Works had to vote twice before the necessary licence was issued, and fresh air had to pumped into the auditorium to prevent the audience from being asphyxiated. It was not until October 1881, at the Savoy, that the first theatre was lit electrically.
The building was completed in 1873 with the interior decoration carried out by Simpson and Son.
Early years
The first production opened on 21 March 1874 under the management of Henry J. Byron & EP Hingston. The programme consisted of An American Lady written and performed by Byron and a piece by W. S. GilbertW. S. Gilbert
Sir William Schwenck Gilbert was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his fourteen comic operas produced in collaboration with the composer Sir Arthur Sullivan, of which the most famous include H.M.S...
, with music by Alfred Cellier
Alfred Cellier
Alfred Cellier was an English composer, orchestrator and conductor.In addition to conducting and music directing the original productions of several of the most famous Gilbert and Sullivan works and writing the overtures to some of them, Cellier conducted at many theatres in London, New York and...
, entitled Topsyturveydom
Topsyturveydom
Topsyturveydom is a one-act operetta by W. S. Gilbert with music by Alfred Cellier. Styled "an entirely original musical extravaganza", it is based on one of Gilbert's Bab Ballads, "My Dream". It opened on 21 March 1874 at the Criterion Theatre in London and ran until 17 April, for about 25...
. The event apparently did not make much of an impression on Gilbert. In a letter to Edgar Pemberton, author of the book on The Criterion in 1903, Gilbert wrote: "I am sorry to say that in my mind is an absolute blank to the opening of The Criterion. I never saw Topseyturveydom. If you happen to have a copy of it and could lend it to me for a few hours it might suggest some reminiscences: as it is I don't even know what the piece was about!" Nevertheless, Gilbert was back at the theatre in 1877 with his farce, On Bail (a revised version of his 1874 work, Committed for Trial); in 1881, with another farce, Foggerty's Fairy
Foggerty's Fairy
Foggerty's Fairy, subtitled "An Entirely Original Fairy Farce", is a three-act farce by W.S. Gilbert based loosely on Gilbert's short story, "The Story of a Twelfth Cake", which was published in the Christmas Number of The Graphic in 1874, and elements of other Gilbert plays...
; and in 1892, with a comic opera
Comic opera
Comic opera denotes a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending.Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a new operatic genre, opera buffa, emerged as an alternative to opera seria...
, Haste to the Wedding
Haste to the Wedding
Haste to the Wedding is a three-act comic opera with a libretto by W. S. Gilbert and music by George Grossmith, based on Gilbert's 1873 play, The Wedding March. The opera was the most ambitious piece of composition undertaken by Grossmith....
, with music by George Grossmith
George Grossmith
George Grossmith was an English comedian, writer, composer, actor, and singer. His performing career spanned more than four decades...
(an operatic version of Gilbert's 1873 play, The Wedding March). Haste to the Wedding
Haste to the Wedding
Haste to the Wedding is a three-act comic opera with a libretto by W. S. Gilbert and music by George Grossmith, based on Gilbert's 1873 play, The Wedding March. The opera was the most ambitious piece of composition undertaken by Grossmith....
was a flop, but it introduced the 18-year old George Grossmith, Jr.
George Grossmith, Jr.
George Grossmith, Jr. was a British actor, theatre producer and manager, director, playwright and songwriter, best remembered for his work in and with Edwardian musical comedies...
, the composer's son, to the London stage. The younger Grossmith would go on to become a major star in Edwardian musical comedies.
Charles Wyndham became the manager and lessee in 1875 and under his management The Criterion became one of the leading light comedy houses in London. The first production under the manager was The Great Divorce Case, opening on 15 April 1876. When Wyndham left in 1899 to open his own theatre, The Wyndham's Theatre
Wyndham's Theatre
Wyndham's Theatre is a West End theatre, one of two opened by the actor/manager Charles Wyndham . Located on Charing Cross Road, in the City of Westminster, it was designed by W.G.R. Sprague about 1898, the architect of six other London theatres between then and 1916...
(and then the New Theatre, now called the Noel Coward Theatre
Noël Coward Theatre
The Noël Coward Theatre, formerly known as the Albery Theatre, is a West End theatre on St. Martin's Lane in the City of Westminster. It opened on 12 March 1903 as the New Theatre and was built by Sir Charles Wyndham behind Wyndham's Theatre which was completed in 1899. The building was designed by...
, in 1903) he remained the lessee bringing in various managements and their companies.
In March 1883 the theatre closed for alterations demanded by the Metropolitan Board of Works. The pumping of fresh air into the ten year-old auditorium, some thirty feet below street level, was deemed unsatisfactory. Thomas Verity supervised the alterations (Verity by now had also designed the Comedy Theatre in 1881 and The Empire Theatre
Empire Theatre
Empire Theatre or Empire Theater may refer to:In the United Kingdom:*Empire Theatre of Varieties, now the Empire, Leicester Square, City of Westminster, London*Glasgow Empire Theatre, Glasgow*Hackney Empire, in Hackney...
in 1882). The new direct access ventilation shaft meant cutting off a considerable portion of the adjoining Criterion Restaurant. New corridors were built, with several new exits. The auditorium was reconstructed and the stage re-equipped. The old dressing rooms were demolished and new ones built. Most importantly, electricity was installed. Dramatic Notes (1884) states The Criterion Theatre, transformed from a stuffy band-box to a convenient, handsome, and well ventilated house, reopened on April 16". Further alterations and redecorations took place in 1902-03, when the theatre was closed for seven months.
20th century
Between the world wars productions included Musical Chairs with John GielgudJohn Gielgud
Sir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH was an English actor, director, and producer. A descendant of the renowned Terry acting family, he achieved early international acclaim for his youthful, emotionally expressive Hamlet which broke box office records on Broadway in 1937...
and in 1936, French Without Tears which ran for 1,039 performances and launched the writing career of Terence Rattigan
Terence Rattigan
Sir Terence Mervyn Rattigan CBE was one of England's most popular 20th-century dramatists. His plays are generally set in an upper-middle-class background...
.
During World War II, the Criterion was requisitioned by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
- as an underground theatre it made an ideal studio safe from the London blitz - and light entertainment programmes were both recorded and broadcast live.
After the war, the Criterion repertoire included avant-garde works such as Samuel Beckett
Samuel Beckett
Samuel Barclay Beckett was an Irish avant-garde novelist, playwright, theatre director, and poet. He wrote both in English and French. His work offers a bleak, tragicomic outlook on human nature, often coupled with black comedy and gallows humour.Beckett is widely regarded as among the most...
's Waiting for Godot
Waiting for Godot
Waiting for Godot is an absurdist play by Samuel Beckett, in which two characters, Vladimir and Estragon, wait endlessly and in vain for someone named Godot to arrive. Godot's absence, as well as numerous other aspects of the play, have led to many different interpretations since the play's...
. The early part of 1956 saw the arrival of Anouilh's popular comedy, The Waltz of the Toreadors
The Waltz of the Toreadors
The Waltz of the Toreadors [La Valse des toréadors] is a play by Jean Anouilh.Written in 1951, this farce is set in 1910 France and focuses on General Léon Saint-Pé and his infatuation with Ghislaine, a woman with whom he danced at a garrison ball some 17 years earlier. Because of the General's...
, with impressive performances by Hugh Griffith
Hugh Griffith
Hugh Emrys Griffith was a Welsh film, stage and television actor.-Early life:Griffith was born in Marianglas, Anglesey, Wales, the son of Mary and William Griffith. He was educated at Llangefni County School and attempted to gain entrance to university, but failed the English examination...
and Beatrix Lehmann
Beatrix Lehmann
Beatrix Alice Lehmann was a British actress, theatre director and author.She trained at the RADA and made her stage debut as Peggy in a 1924 production The Way of the World at the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith. As well as her extensive theatrical career she appeared in films and on television...
.
In the 1970s the Criterion site was proposed for redevelopment, which caused protest as people feared the theatre would be lost. In February 1975 the GLC Planning Committee approved the development on the condition that the theatre continued in full, continuous and uninterrupted use while the redevelopments took place. Throughout the 1970s and early 1980s the row increased and the Equity Save London's Theatre Committee organised high profile demonstrations (campaigners included John Gielgud
John Gielgud
Sir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH was an English actor, director, and producer. A descendant of the renowned Terry acting family, he achieved early international acclaim for his youthful, emotionally expressive Hamlet which broke box office records on Broadway in 1937...
, Edward Woodward
Edward Woodward
Edward Albert Arthur Woodward, OBE was an English stage and screen actor and singer. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art , Woodward began his career on stage, and throughout his career he appeared in productions in both the West End in London and on Broadway in New York...
, Diana Rigg
Diana Rigg
Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg, DBE is an English actress. She is probably best known for her portrayals of Emma Peel in The Avengers and Countess Teresa di Vicenzo in the 1969 James Bond film On Her Majesty's Secret Service....
, Robert Morley
Robert Morley
Robert Adolph Wilton Morley, CBE was an English actor who, often in supporting roles, was usually cast as a pompous English gentleman representing the Establishment...
and Prunella Scales
Prunella Scales
Prunella Scales CBE is an English actress, known for her role as Basil Fawlty's long-suffering wife in the British comedy Fawlty Towers and her award-nominated role as Queen Elizabeth II in the British film A Question of Attribution.-Career:Throughout her long career, Scales has usually been cast...
) as they feared that the theatre would still be lost.
In the 1980s, the theatre building was purchased by Robert Bourne, a property tycoon and patron of the arts, and his wife, theatre impresario Sally Greene. The couple set up the Criterion Theatre Trust, a registered charity created to protect the Criterion's future. From April 1989 to October 1992 the theatre was closed whilst it underwent major renovations both in the back and front of the house. During that time, the block that exists today was built around it. After the refurbishment, the Criterion retains a well-preserved Victorian auditorium with an intimate atmosphere.
Recent years
From 1996 to 2005 it was home to productions of the Reduced Shakespeare CompanyReduced Shakespeare Company
The Reduced Shakespeare Company is an American acting troupe that writes and performs unsubtle, fast-paced, seemingly improvisational condensations of huge topics.- Overview :...
, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)
The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)
The Complete Works of William Shakespeare is a parody of the plays written by William Shakespeare with all of them being performed during the show by only three actors. Typically, the actors use their real names and play themselves rather than certain characters...
, The Complete History of America, and The Bible, The Complete Word of God. The theatre was used to hold the first round of recalls for successful auditionees in ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
's Pop Idol
Pop Idol
Pop Idol is a British television series which debuted on ITV on 6 October 2001. The show was a talent contest to decide the best new young pop singer in the United Kingdom, based on viewer voting and participation. Two series were broadcast - one in 2001-02 and a second in 2003...
. The theatre is also used by leading drama institution Academy of Live and Recorded Arts
Academy of Live and Recorded Arts
The Academy of Live and Recorded Arts is a British drama school situated on Wandsworth Common, South West London and in Wigan, Greater Manchester making it the only CDS drama school to offer identical training at two separate institutions across The United Kingdom...
as a venue for their graduating students' annual showcase.
The Criterion's current production is The 39 Steps
The 39 Steps (play)
The 39 Steps is a farce adapted from the 1915 novel by John Buchan and the 1935 film by Alfred Hitchcock. Patrick Barlow wrote the adaptation, based on the original concept by Simon Corble and Nobby Dimon of a two-actor version of the play...
, adapted for the stage by Patrick Barlow from John Buchan's novel, filmed by Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
in 1935.
Peppa Pig
Peppa Pig
Peppa Pig is a British animated television series created directed and produced by Astley Baker Davies and distributed by eOne Entertainment. To date, three series have been aired. It is shown in 180 territories.-Background:...
's Party transferred to the Criterion Theatre for the 2010 Christmas period to play alongside The 39 Steps
The 39 Steps (play)
The 39 Steps is a farce adapted from the 1915 novel by John Buchan and the 1935 film by Alfred Hitchcock. Patrick Barlow wrote the adaptation, based on the original concept by Simon Corble and Nobby Dimon of a two-actor version of the play...
and will return for the 2011 Christmas period.
Criterion Presents, launched in October 2011, is an ancillary programme of shows, events and platforms that run alongside the main production, taking place at lunchtimes, early evenings and late nights.
Recent notable productions
- Tom FooleryTom FooleryTom Foolery is a musical revue based on lyrics and music that Tom Lehrer first performed in the 1950s and 1960s.Devised and produced by Cameron Mackintosh, it premiered in London at the Criterion Theatre, directed by Gillian Lynne, on 5 June 1980, where it had a successful run...
(June 5, 1980 – May 30, 1981) - Can't Pay? Won't Pay! (July 23, 1981 – June 11, 1983)
- Woza Albert!Woza Albert!Woza Albert! is a political satire that imagines the second coming of Christ in apartheid-ridden South Africa.-The play:The play opened at Johannesburg's Market Theater and toured in Europe and America as the most successful play to come out of South Africa, winning more than 20 prestigious awards...
(June 15, 1983 – December 10, 1983) - Run for Your Wife (December 12, 1983 – March 4, 1989)
- Misery (December 17, 1992 – May 15, 1993)
- Looking Through a Glass Onion - John Lennon in Word & Music (October 18, 1993 – January 1, 1994)
- The Flying Karamazov BrothersThe Flying Karamazov BrothersThe Flying Karamazov Brothers are a juggling and comedy troupe who have been performing since 1973. They learned their trade while performing as street artists in Santa Cruz, California...
: Juggle & Hyde (July 20, 1994 – September 3, 1994) - My Night with RegMy Night with RegMy Night with Reg is a play by British playwright Kevin Elyot which was produced in 1994 by the Royal Court Theatre, London, directed by Roger Michell...
(November 21, 1994 – June 24, 1995) - Taking Sides (June 30, 1995 – December 9, 1995)
- The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)The Complete Works of William Shakespeare is a parody of the plays written by William Shakespeare with all of them being performed during the show by only three actors. Typically, the actors use their real names and play themselves rather than certain characters...
(March 7, 1996 - April 3, 2005) - What the Butler SawWhat the Butler SawWhat the Butler Saw may refer to:Drama* What the Butler Saw , by Joe OrtonFilm* What the Butler Saw , an early soft-core erotic film* What the Butler Saw , by George Dewhurst, Edward Mouillot, and Edward Parry...
(August 24, 2005 – October 22, 2005) - Otherwise EngagedOtherwise EngagedOtherwise Engaged is a bleakly comic play by English playwright Simon Gray. The play previewed at the Oxford Playhouse and the Richmond Theatre, and then opened at the Queen's Theatre in London on 10 July 1975, with Alan Bates as the star and Harold Pinter as director, produced by Michael Codron....
(October 28, 2005 – January 28, 2006) - Mack & MabelMack & MabelMack & Mabel is a musical with a book by Michael Stewart and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. The plot involves the tumultuous romantic relationship between Hollywood director Mack Sennett and Mabel Normand , who became one of his biggest stars...
(April 10, 2006 – July 1, 2006) - The 39 StepsThe 39 Steps-Film adaptations based on the novel The Thirty-Nine Steps:* The 39 Steps , directed by Alfred Hitchcock* The 39 Steps , directed by Ralph Thomas* The Thirty Nine Steps , directed by Don Sharp...
(September 20, 2006 – )
External links
- Official website
- Theatre History With 1800s programmes and other archive material.