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For other uses, see Criterion Theatre (disambiguation).
Criterion Theatre
The Criterion Theatre
Address
Piccadilly Circus
City
Westminster, London
Designation Grade II*
Architect Thomas Verity
Owned by Criterion Theatre Trust (lease)
Capacity 588 on 3 levels
Type West End theatre
Opened 21 March 1874
Production The 39 Steps
www.criterion-theatre.co.uk
Coordinates: 51°30′35″N 0°08′03″W / 51.509778, -0.134056

The Criterion Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Piccadilly Circus in the City of Westminster, and is a Grade II* listed building. Piccadilly Circus is a famous road junction and public space of London 's West End in the City of Westminster,built in 1819 to connect Regent The City of Westminster ( is a borough of London with city status. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. A listed building in the United Kingdom is a building or other structure officially designated as being of special architectural historical or cultural significance Thomas Verity (1837&ndash1891 was an English Theatre Architect during the theatre building boom of 1885&ndash1915 West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London 's "Theatreland" A geographic coordinate system enables every location on the Earth to be specified in three coordinates using mainly a spherical coordinate system. West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London 's "Theatreland" Piccadilly Circus is a famous road junction and public space of London 's West End in the City of Westminster,built in 1819 to connect Regent The City of Westminster ( is a borough of London with city status. A listed building in the United Kingdom is a building or other structure officially designated as being of special architectural historical or cultural significance It has an official capacity of 588.

Contents

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 Verity winning out of 15 entries. Thomas Verity (1837&ndash1891 was an English Theatre Architect during the theatre building boom of 1885&ndash1915 He was commissioned to design a large restaurant, dining rooms, ballroom, and galleried concert hall in the basement. The frontage, which was the facade 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 21st March 1874 under the management of Henry J. Byron & EP Hingston. Henry James Byron ( 8 January 1835 &ndash 11 April 1884) was a prolific English Dramatist, as well as a writer and actor The programme consisted of An American Lady written and performed by Byron and a piece by W. S. Gilbert, with music by Alfred Cellier, entitled Topsyturveydom. Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (18 November 1836 &ndash 29 May 1911 was an English Dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his fourteen Alfred Cellier (1 December 1844&ndash28 December 1891 was an English composer orchestrator and conductor Background 1874 was a busy year for both Gilbert and Cellier Gilbert illustrated The Piccadilly Annual; supervised a revival of Pygmalion and Galatea Unfortunately, the opening does not seem to have made much impression on Mr. 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). Comic opera, or light opera, denotes a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature usually with a happy ending Haste to the Wedding is a three-act Comic opera with a libretto by W George Grossmith (9 December 1847 &ndash 1 March 1912 was an English Comedian, Writer, Composer, Actor, and singer 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. George Grossmith Jr (11 May 1874 &ndash 6 June 1935 was a British actor theatre producer and manager director playwright and songwriter best remembered for his work The younger Grossmith would go on to become a major star in Edwardian musical comedies. Edwardian Musical Comedies are those British Musical theatre shows from the period between the 1890s when Gilbert and Sullivan began to lose their dominance to the

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. Sir Charles Wyndham ( 23 March 1837 &ndash 1919 was an English Actor, was born Charles Culverwell in Liverpool, the son The first production under the manager was The Great Divorce Case, opening on 15th 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. Wyndham's Theatre is a West End theatre, one of two opened by the actor/manager Charles Wyndham (cp Criterion Theatre) The Noël Coward Theatre is a West End theatre on St Martin's Lane in the City of Westminster.

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). For the theatre in Melbourne Australia see Comedy Theatre Melbourne The Comedy Theatre, is a West End Theatre, and opened on Panton 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 16th". 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 Gielgud and in 1936, a three year run of French Without Tears which launched the career of Terence Rattigan. Sir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH ( 14 April, 1904 – 21 May 2000) known as Sir John Gielgud, was an Sir Terence Mervyn Rattigan ( June 10 1911 – November 30 1977) was one of England 's most popular 20th century Dramatists

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 and pieces by Anouilh, Dario Fo and others. Samuel Barclay Beckett (13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989 was an Irish Writer, Dramatist and poet Waiting for Godot is a play by Samuel Beckett, in which two characters wait for someone named Godot who never arrives Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh (ʒɑ̃ anwi June 23, 1910 &ndash October 3, 1987) was a French Dramatist. Dario Fo (born March 24, 1926) is an Italian satirist, Playwright, Theater director, Actor, and Composer

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. Sir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH ( 14 April, 1904 – 21 May 2000) known as Sir John Gielgud, was an Edward Albert Arthur Woodward OBE (born June 1, 1930 Croydon) is an English Actor and Singer. Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg DBE (born 20 July 1938 is an English actress. Robert Morley CBE ( May 26, 1908 &ndash June 3, 1992) was an Oscar -nominated English Actor who Prunella Margaret Rumney Illingworth CBE (born 22 June 1932) is an English actress.

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 Company, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged), The Complete History of America, and The Bible, The Complete Word of God. The Reduced Shakespeare Company is an American acting troupe that writes and performs unsubtle fast-paced seemingly improvisational condensations of huge topics The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged (also known as The Complete Wrks of Wllm Shkspr (Abridged) is a Parody of the plays written

The theatre was used to hold the first round of recalls for successful auditionees in ITV's Pop Idol

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. Independent Television (generally known as ITV) is a public service network of British commercial television broadcasters set up under the Independent Pop Idol was a British Television series which debuted on ITV on October 5 2001; the show was a talent contest to decide John Buchan 1st Baron Tweedsmuir GCMG GCVO CH PC ( August 26, 1875 &ndash February 11, 1940 Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE (13

Recent and present productions

References

External links

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