Apollo Theatre

History of the Apollo Theatre

The Apollo Theatre was opened a month after the death of Queen Victoria - thus making it the first West End theatre of the Edwardian age. The auditorium was renovated in 1932. The balcony (3rd tier) is said to be the steepest in London - you have been warned!

The Apollo Theatre featured mostly musical comedies in the early days. The theatre became the home of Harry Gabriel Pelissier's The Follies from 1908 to 1912. From the thirties it's specialised mostly in light comedies, thrillers and farces - Marc Camoletti's Boeing Boeing opened here in 1962 before transferring to the Duchess Theatre in 1965 where it completed a total of 2,035 performances. History then repeated itself when Camoletti's Don't Dress For Dinner opened here on 26 March 1991 before transferring to the Duchess Theatre on 26 October 1992 where it then closed on 1 March 1997. Other recent productions include Keith Waterhouse's Jeffrey Bernard Is Unwell with Peter O'Toole, Richard Harris's Dead Guilty with Jenny Seagrove and Hayley Mills. The Broadway hit Sylvia by AR Gurney had a short run here in May 1996.