Theatre Breaks FAQ

If there is anything I’ve not covered do leave a comment & I’ll try to find out for you.

1. What is the difference between the Stalls and the Dress Circle?

Stalls is short for Orchestra Stalls and is the ‘ground floor’ of the theatre. Some of the best views of performances are from the middle of the stalls. You want to be far enough back to not strain your neck but near enough to see all the action. Seats to the sides of the stalls will sometimes not have quite such a good view but are still probably better than anything in the balcony. I always like to try to get the middle of the middle row of the stalls, if I can.
Dress Circle is the next floor above the Stalls. Good views from here usually. The Dress or Upper Circle is the next one up and  has good views, it might feel a bit less intimate than the stalls but you will see everything.  The Upper Circle is sometimes called the ‘Grand’ or ‘Royal’ at some theatres.
The Balcony is the circle above the Upper Circle and is the cheapest in the theatre. You might need opera glasses if you are up here!

2. Can I book tickets for a Sunday or on Bank Holidays?

Nearly all West End theatres are only open Monday to Saturdays.  A few now offer Sunday shows but they are the exception.  Most theatres only close on Christmas Day. Don’t forget you can sometimes get theatre break packages which include a matinee performance.

3. Are Matinee Performances as Good as Evening Ones? 

Surprisingly enough, yes, especially mid-week matinees! It really can be quite magical to disappear into a theatre on a rainy London afternoon and be transported somewhere totally different for a few hours. Mamma Mia is particularly good for this!

4. When Should I Arrive at the Theatre?

Try to get to the theatre foyer for about 30 minutes before your show.  This will give you chance to pick up your tickets if you need to, order interval drinks, find your seats etc. without a panic. If you are really late you might find yourself not being allowed in until the interval, (which is a real pain!)so give yourself plenty of time to get there.

5. The show I want to see is sold out, is there any way to get a ticket?

If you are having trouble getting the show you want for the dates you have available then it is worth remembering that some nights are busier than others. Saturdays are often the most popular so if you can manage a mid-week show, particularly Monday or Tuesday then you might do better. Agencies that offer theatre breaks packages often have block bookings for the newest, hotest shows. You book your tickets, hotel and maybe travel as an inclusive package and you get to see shows that appear to be sold out, even for Fridays and Saturdays Have a look at our TBM Readers Offers if you are looking for anything in particular or just browsing.

2012 is a special year for the United Kingdom and theatre breaks, not just because of the London 2012 Olympic Games, but also because it’s the The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee year as well. That means a lot of extra activity and tourism in central London which will have an effect on the West End venues and on Theatre Breaks bookings.  Over twenty shows  have responded by extending booking dates early so that you can book early, right now, for all the popular musicals and plays right through into the 2012 celebration year, which may help a lot of people to combine tourism trips and spectating with theatre breaks in London. First the two main events of the year:

The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee

The Department for Culture, Media and Sports is responsible for coordinating the Government’s role for Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

Buckingham Palace will be coordinating the Queen’s programme for the Diamond Jubilee, including the arrangements for the central Jubilee weekend in the first week of June 2012.

For further information about the Diamond Jubilee and the events taking place during 2012, please visit direct.gov.uk/diamondjubilee

The London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games

Olympic Games 27 July-12 Aug 2012

The London 2012 Olympic Games will feature 26 sports, which break down into 39 disciplines.

Paralympic Games 29 Aug-9 Sept 2012

There are 20 sports in the Paralympic programme for the London 2012 Games. Paralympic Cycling breaks down into two disciplines: Road and Track.

Cultural Olympiad

The London 2012 Cultural Olympiad is the largest cultural celebration in the history of the modern Olympic and Paralympic Movements.

London 2012 Festival

The London 2012 Festival is the finale of the four-year Cultural Olympiad, taking place from 21 June to 9 September 2012.

Complementing the sport events at the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Festival will be the biggest party the UK has ever seen, with a huge range of events from leading artists from all over the world.

Theatre Breaks

To be honest, nobody really knows exactly what effect all of this is going to have on London theatre breaks during the 2012 celebration year. Obviously there is going to be a high demand for hotel accommodation and London is going to be prominent in the world’s attention.  People who are in London anyway may well wish to visit the West End theatres as part of the whole London experience, and there are certainly plenty of great shows on offer this year. Meanwhile the traditional theatre going public may decide to avoid certain dates in order not to get caught up in the crowds and busier traffic. In order to make the most of the 2012 opportunity presented though, the London theatres as a whole have announced extensions to the booking dates for more than 20 popular shows well in advance, so that those with Olympics tickets or other intentions can book theatre breaks as part of their overall London trip  of a lifetime. The shows which have extended so far are as follows:

Some of the shows announcing 2012 booking dates extensions are the following West End musicals and plays:

We Will Rock You

Wicked

The Wizard of Oz

Billy Elliot the Musical

Blood Brothers

Dreamboats and Petticoats

Jersey Boys

The Phantom of the Opera

Mamma Mia!

Legally Blonde the Musical

Ghost The Musical 

Les Misérables

Shrek The Musical

Disney’s The Lion King

Million Dollar Quartet 

The Mousetrap

The 39 Steps

Stomp

Thriller Live

War Horse

The Woman in Black

Rock of Ages 

Matilda The Musical

Christopher is based in Boston. He started out as a writer and journalist and later became a teacher at the Boston Conservatory of Music. He teaches courses in musical-theater history and the neuro-psychology of music. Don’t be put off though, the blog is not at all academic.

If you love musicals and you don’t know his blog, you really should. It is one of the most influential theatre blogs online, but a far better reason is that it is always beautifully written and very readable.

Have a good look round especially at the archives and pages. See if you agree with his list of The 100 Greatest Musicals of All Time or his list of The Most Beautiful Theatre Songs Ever.

This post is part of Theatre Blogger Week.

We’re always on the look out for new plays and venues for visitors here on London breaks to add to the possibilities for an extra evening out at the theatre, and it doesn’t always have to be in the West End by any means. There are theatre pubs, fringe theatres, off-west-end theatres and regional theatres all within the M25, many within central London itself. The play that was brought to our notice is called “Enlightenment” written by Shelagh Stephenson and directed by Edward Hall, Hampstead Theatre’s new Artistic Director.

So Monday night took us to see the venue for the first time, right next to the Swiss Cottage roundabout and tube station. Arriving inside Hampstead Theatre felt more like visiting a leading performing arts centre for one of the major UK cities, like Canterbury or St Andrews, or Exeter. Not knowing anything much about ‘Enlightenment’ beforehand, I was able to deliberately keep an unprepared mind for the unfolding emotional drama as the plot weaved its way through the minefields of improbability. There was a small scientific thread in there somewhere, citing a theory akin to or possibly preceding chaos theory which needs further investigation but the big story was a classic human tragedy investigating the nature of identity and touching themes designed to disturb the audience’s sensibilities particularly poignant to parents. As a father myself, I feel particularly well placed to understand the two main characters anguish at not knowing the fate of their missing son.

The Hampstead Theatre is an impressive modern theatre venue, small enough to be intimate and with perfect acoustics and yet large enough to stage quality serious theatre productions, drawing in audiences from all over the capital, with excellent transport links on the fast Jubilee line and all the central connections just a few stops away, so this would be a sensible logistical addition to any London Breaks package.

Enlightenment is a traditionally constructed play in two acts with a beginning, middle and end, realistic characters, a straightforward time line and just about believable events. There are moments where the sanity of everybody is questioned, but that is a reasonable thing for a play to do. The staging is impressively modern and effective with good use of additional sound and video, back projection and slick scene changes with transparent rising and falling furniture. Maybe it was just me but upstairs and downstairs became strangely confused, or was it deliberate? Nothing is quite as it seems with this play which has been running since September, so the acting should be well bedded in by now. There were times when I though the playscript was possibly a class above the performance, but in the second act I dropped that misgiving, particularly with all three female characters who worked well together, and the addition of a sixth character in the second act pulls the whole play together and leaves you on the edge.

Cast:
Daisy Beaumont
Richard Clothier
Paul Freeman
Julie Graham
Polly Kemp
Tom Weston-Jones

An occasional list post about current musicals and plays for London theatre breaks.  With a few shows closing at the end of October or in November the list of what’s on for December theatre breaks in the West End should look like this:

Musicals for Theatre Breaks

• We Will Rock You
• Jersey Boys
• Oliver!
• Flashdance
• Wicked
• Love Story
• Blood Brothers
• Dirty Dancing
• Love Never Dies
• Mamma Mia
• Billy Elliot
• Phantom of the Opera
• Lion King
• Les Miserables
• Priscilla Queen of the Desert
• Thriller Live
• Grease
• Chicago
• Stomp
• Legally Blonde

Plays and Other Theatre Breaks

• The Mousetrap
• War Horse
• Deathtrap
• An Ideal Husband
• Ghost Stories
• Yes Prime Minister
• Birdsong
• Onassis
• The 39 Steps

For example, just arrived in London is a play called Deathtrap which is a big production with four great actors and a fantastic set, a proven playscript because it’s been on before in Broadway for a very long run as it happens, and in London once before in the 1980s. But if you want to book theatre breaks to see Deathtrap then you would need to have a date in mind that is before 22nd of January,  2011. That may seem a long way away, but once you start thinking about Christmas and New Year theatre breaks , the time has been and gone!

Simon Russel Beale is in Deathtrap

Deathtrap is one of the bigger productions but there are some others coming up for short runs as well.

The Arthur Miller play – “All My Sons” finished on 2nd October 2010

Season’s Greeting by Alan Ayckbourn starring Catherine Tate opens on December 8th 2010

Top tip for 2011 drama theatre breaks will be Blithe Spirit, a Noel Coward comedy starring Ruthie Henshall and others.

But if you want to see a Noel Coward before next year then Design For Living is on at the Old Vic until November 27th 2010.

Yes Prime Minister is a comedy play based on the TV series but brought up to date for Gielgud Theatre which opened on 16th September 2010 booking through til 15th January 2011. This would be a good bet for theatre breaks in London too.

And if you prefer Oscar Wilde, then “An Ideal Husband” is at the Vaudeville Theatre from 4th November 2010 to 19th February 2011

Theatre breaks in London are an excellent way of having a short holiday in the capital. You can combine a show with sight-seeing and a little shopping and turn a couple of days into a real mini-break.

When you are choosing your main show you need to decide whether you want to see a musical, a play or even an opera or ballet. There is lots of choice in the West End and you can be sure of finding something just right for you.

Choose Your Show

Many people have no clear idea of which show they want to see and are more fixed on what is available for their chosen dates. That’s a perfectly good starting point and most of the theatre breaks companies will let you search their site by date not just by show. If you are still not sure what you fancy then this is a brief guide:

If you like the classics then go for Les Miserables, Phantom of the Opera, Oliver! or Love Never Dies, which is the sequel to Phantom.

If you prefer something lighter then try Mamma Mia, Hairspray or the unexpected hit of the moment Legally Blonde.

Those of you who like a bit more rock in your musicals might enjoy We Will Rock You, Jersey Boys or maybe Grease.

Finally if you want something a little more steamy there are Dirty Dancing and Chicago.

There are usually at least twenty big shows on offer in the West End so there should be something for everyone.

One Night or Two

Once you have chosen your show and hotel you will often see that it is easy and very reasonably priced to add an extra night. This is a great idea if your budget can run to it as it lifts your theatre break from a quick trip into a mini-holiday . It opens lots of opportunities for other things to do in London.

I’ve included a few ideas for what to do with the extra time:

See more shows

theatre breaks in London

If you have only got a limited time in London and you are a big theatre fan you might even want to see more than one show. The best way to do this is to book your main show as part of your theatre break package, see the show on your first night and then the following morning pop down to Leicester Square and look for the official discount ticket booth. You want the official one in the middle of the square.

There are others but that is where you get the best deal. They have a large digital display of all the discount tickets available for that day and if you are early enough you can often get a real bargain, especially for weekday matinees. I usually like to book a blockbuster musical as my main show and see either a comedy or a serious play on the following afternoon. Try to choose something you would happily pay full price for and then you will really feel you have got a bargain. There are often tickets for Blood Brothers or 39 Steps matinees at good prices and these are both excellent shows.

Sightseeing

You might want to cram in a little sightseeing in London and that can be quite hard work. London is a busy working city and quite spread out to get around on foot. Luckily there are several other ways of seeing the sites. My favorite way of seeing London is a river cruise but open top bus trips are good fun too. If you are feeling adventurous you can even try the Duck which is an amphibious truck that combines both a road and river trip. You can book bus trips, river trips and even the Duck at the same time as you book your theatre breaks package and usually get quite a good discount.

Other Attractions

• The Southbank including the National Theatre
• London’s famous street  Markets
• Dennis Severs House
• 21 top attractions to add to theatre breaks in London

Dennis Severs House is actually a brilliant place to visit. Having been there several times I’d especially recommend going soon before Christmas because they do it up just like old Christmases past, and the smells are simply heavenly. Each floor of the house depicts a different era. You have to be silent though. A great place to just sit & relax. Dennis Severs lived here & created it & invited special guests to experience it in the way he wanted it to be experienced. One of the truly greatest experiences that London has to offer, a unique experience.

Dennis Severs House - 18 Folgate Street

Oliver! London Theatre At It’s Best

I think Oliver! is a great choice for a theatre break. The elements of an emotional story from the master storyteller, a superb cast and  wonderful songs we all already know and love is hard to beat. Add in some delightful urchins, a backdrop of semi-familiar London sights and you have got a real treat!

The Story, Oliver! London musical

The musical version of Oliver! is not quite as bleak a vision as that of the book. Fagin is transformed and although still a rogue he does have moments of being almost lovable. We are treated to some marvelous set pieces like the scene in the orphanage and of course Fagin’s Den with his band of ragamuffins. What happens to Nancy is still a shock but in the end good triumphs over evil and we all have the feeling we’ve just enjoyed a wonderfully satisfying meal with all the trimmings.

The Cast of Oliver!

Oliver London

We all followed the story of Jodie Prenger as she fought her way through each round of I’d Do Anything but few of us realised what a great Nancy she would actually be. Since the show started back in December 2008 Jodie has consistently given stunning performances. She has provided the chore around which a number of Olivers and Fagins have been able to weave their own interpretations of Dickens’s heart-breaking story. Without a totally believable, warm and lovable Nancy the whole story would fall flat.  Jodie has filled that role with a passion.

Soon, though, Jodie is moving on and the next few months will give us our last chance to see her in the role.  That alone would be enough to make this a ‘must see’ show but the exciting news is that the wonderful Kerry Ellis is going to take over in the role. Kerry has a very different quality to her voice and I think she will give us a much more waif like Nancy. In some ways her fragility with that inner steel that she showed so well in her performances as Elphaba (Wicked) will be much closer to Dickens’s vision. It’s going to be an interesting transfer and  one that will definitely be worth seeing.

The newest member of the cast at the moment is Griff Rhys Jones who has just taken over as Fagin. He will be in the show for at least the next 6 months and seems to be relishing the part of the wily, old scoundrel. Jones has a good strong voice and plenty of West End experience having won a double Olivier award for his roles in Charlie’s Aunt and An Absolute Turkey

Also new in the current cast  is Stephen Hartley, though he is far from new to the role of Bill Sikes. He played Sikes in the Palladium production of Oliver in the 1990s. Physically he is closer to Dickens’s description of Sikes than the role is sometimes played and none the worse for that.

The Music

I think I’ll just let the music speak for itself!

Hotels for Oliver! London Theatre Breaks

As Oliver! plays at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane I’d go for a central hotel, somewhere like the 4* Strand Palace would be ideal. It is definitely a bit of affordable luxury and is close to the theatre and to the shops, restaurants and bars of Covent Garden. If you are on a slightly tighter budget the 3* St Giles Hotel is only 1/2 a mile away and is jolly nice.

So there you have it, a quick guide to Oliver! London, one of my top 5 choices for theatre breaks. You can click through to read more about Oliver! London.

Billy Elliot London

Billy Elliot London

Billy Elliot the musical started in London in 2005 at the Victoria Palace Theatre. It was based on the 2000 film Billy Elliot with a book by Lee Hall (who wrote the original screen play) and music by Sir Elton John. The film was a hard act to follow. Everyone remembered Julie Walters as the ballet teacher and Gary Lewis as Billy’s coal mining father and it was tricky to see how Billy could ever become a musical. Despite any worries the show was an instant hit with both the public and the critics and it has remained so ever since.

The Story of Billy and of the Miners Strike

Billy Elliot is a young boy who develops a passion for ballet growing up in County Durham in the early 1980s at the time of the miners’ strike. It’s quite strange to see a time I vividly remember portrayed on the stage and they do play slightly with the chronology of events. You really don’t need to know the history of the miners strike to appreciate the show. Your emotions and sympathies are guided through the passage of the story and in some ways knowing too much about the real events of the time can get in the way.

It is interesting to note that two of the best loved musicals on in London at the moment both have their origins in Northern working class sensibilities (Billy and Blood Brothers). Both shows focus on the warmth and humour of the North but neither shies away from some fairly grim aspects. The musical show tells the human story of Billy and his family with great compassion and clarity. I’m not going to go into the plot in great depth here as there may be some people (from Mars?) who don’t already know the story. suffice it to say the story is moving and entertaining.

The Music

The music is stunning. Elton John was definitely on top form when he wrote this and it’s really hard to pick out one or two numbers to share with you. So I decided to go for this medley to give you a flavour of the show:

The Billys

The role of Billy Elliot is hugely demanding of young actors. Billy has to be between 9 and 13 years old, 5′ or less, a terrific dancer and have a beautiful unbroken voice. To find one boy like that would not be easy but the role is actually shared between at least 3 or 4 Billy Elliots. This allows the boys to work within the UK legislation regarding child actors. Whilst there are several children in West End shows at the moment few carry the weight of the show in the same way that the child who plays Billy must.

Typically the boys who have play Billy are aged around 12 and have usually been dancing for at least 3 years before auditioning for the show. Often they will have studied ballet, tap, jazz and contemporary dance, competed in several competitions before they eventually audition for Billy Elliot London. Auditions for the show go on continuously and successful applicants move to London live in Billy Elliot House. There they continue with their normal school studies in addition to working on their singing and dancing.

Hotels for Billy Elliot

Billy is not in the main area of the West End but in Victoria, near to the Apollo (Wicked). You can either decide you want to stay somewhere closer to the shops or look for a hotel that’s handy for the theatre. I’m quite fond of the area round Victoria so I’d probably opt for a hotel near the theatre if it was just overnight. There are lots of nice little places to eat, there’s St James’s Park if you fancy a walk, you are not far from the river and Tate Britain if you feel like some art. Actually the restaurant in Tate Britain is lovely for lunch, a little pricey but very pleasant! Victoria is also very convenient for public transport and at weekends buses provide a surprisingly good way of getting round the city. I’m not a huge fan of the tube and London buses do give a chance to see where you are going!

My first choice would be the 4* Crown Palace London St James. It’s a lovely hotel, usually offers a full English breakfast in with the price and is handy both for the theatre and for St James’s Park. It’s less that 1/4 of a mile from the theatre and offers a bit of surprisingly affordable luxury. Keep in mind that a more central 3* hotel could end up costing more per person and often does not include a substantial English breakfast.

Seats at Billy Elliot London

When you book with some agencies they will give you quite a wide range of seating options. It is often the case that you get what you pay for with these deals, lowest cost seats will be further away from the action. Having said that it would be very unusual for the theatre break package companies to offer tickets with a restricted view without telling you in advance. Other agencies offer a choice of top seats ( in the stalls or dress circle) or best available seats (stalls, dress circle, or upper circle). The upper circle is known as the grand circle in the Victoria Palace Theatre.

The Victoria Palace is an old theatre and my recommended seats are undoubtedly those in the middle of the stalls as they offer the most leg room, a good view and good value for money.

So there you go, a quick guide to Billy Elliot, London, an ever popular choice for theatre breaks. You can click through to read more about Billy Elliot London