PIN The Apollo Victoria

History

The Apollo Victoria Theatre has a history stretching back to 1929, when it opened as a state-of-the-art cinema. It was commissioned by Provincial Cinematograph Theatres (PCT) to accommodate the growing popularity of ‘talking pictures’. Designed by architect Ernest Walmsley Lewis, the theatre is in an Art Deco style that is now decorated to reflect the glittering Emerald City. Officially opened in 1930, the Gaumont British News charmingly called the theatre interior ‘a fairy cavern under the sea, or a mermaid’s dream of heaven’. It was known as the New Victoria Cinema a building renowned as a place to watch film, big band and variety performances, all within walking distance of the bustling Victoria station.

In 1975, the building was refurbished and reopened as the New Victoria Theatre, shifting its focus on to more musical content. A concert celebrated the new opening, starring Dame Shirley Bassey as the headline act. In following years, the the theatre hosted a series of well-loved musicals in the late 1970’s and early 80’s, including Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music and Camelot, before becoming the venue for the premiere of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s revolutionary new musical Starlight Express. The interior of the auditorium was completely redesigned for the production, with race tracks running through the audience and modifications to incorporate a split-level roller-skating rink.

Starlight Express proved to be a huge success, playing at the theatre for an amazing 18 years before finally closing in 2002 to make way for another Lloyd Webber musical, the Bollywood-inspired Bombay Dreams. A R Rahman’s production ran for 2 successful years before ending in 2004, after which the classic Saturday Night Fever played for a brief time, followed by the Billy Joel musical Movin’ Out. In February 2006, Wicked moved into the theatre, opening in September to rapturous praise and overwhelming commercial success.

TripTide Thoughts

The staff were amazing and very helpful and assisted with every query we had. The theatre was very busy when we went on a Saturday afternoon and everything was dealt with quickly and efficiently. Top Tip: there are two entrances to the theatre so don't panic when you get there and think you are in the wrong place. The interior is similarly impressive and you get a good view wherever you are sitting. The new Ordertorium concept to order refreshments is a great idea to save queueing up at the bar and getting drinks delivered to you at your seat.

How to get there

Tube and Rail:

The Apollo Victoria Theatre is well within walking distance of Victoria Station, which has both underground links to the Victoria, District and Circle lines and National Rail links to the South East. This means the whole of London can easily be accessed, and main rail stations such as Kings Cross St Pancras are just a tube ride away.

Bus:

It is also possible to take the bus from Victoria Station to and from local London areas. Alternatively, coach services including National Express and Megabus also travel to and from the area.

Available bus routes are: 2, 16, 36, 38, 73, 82, 170, 507, C2, C10

Car or Taxi:

Those who prefer to drive to the theatre can access various meters on the roads surrounding the Apollo Victoria Theatre, located on Allington Street, Bressenden Place and Carlisle Place. Standard tariff is usually £2 per hour, although due to the business, prices may differ and the area can get crowded. Alternatively, London Victoria Car Park is just a 6 minute walk away from the theatre, and is only £22 for the day. It could be cheaper to hail a black cab from various ranks across the city.

Tags

• Culture
• , Theatreland
• , West End
• , Victoria
• , Downtown Westminster
• , theatre