After two years of work and $80 million invested, the landmark Drury Lane Theatre has reopened.
The goal of the Drury Lane Theatre renovation was to keep this historic cultural venue open year-round, not just for performances. Known as The Lane and founded in 1663, it is the oldest theater in London.
The auditorium has been completely renovated, as have the massive staircases and the champagne bar inspired by the Pantheon in Rome and the cocktail bar named after photographer Cecil Beaton. Composer Lloyd Webber purchased the theater in 2019 with his wife Madeleine.
Together, they organized the £60 million ($82 million) renovation to honor the theater’s history. Located in the Covent Garden neighborhood and known as “the oldest theater site in continuous use in the world.”
“The task of restoring the Theatre Royal was threefold. How to restore architect Benjamin Dean Wyatt’s glorious proscenium rooms, how to repair the 1922 auditorium, and finally, how to make this extraordinary building a versatile and vibrant heart of Covent Garden’s artistic soul,” Lloyd Webber said in a statement.
“The restoration of the Theatre Royal, which brings together my two great passions, theater and architecture, has been a colossal task made very difficult by the covid pandemic. It simply would have come to a halt without the dedication of our extraordinary craftsmen and the team that oversaw the project under sometimes nearly impossible circumstances,” he adds.
Last month, the renovations to the Drury Lane Theatre Royal were opened by Prince Charles and his wife Camilia. Starting Friday, the first floor will be open to the public and for the month of August, the play “Frozen, The Musical” will be performed.
The composer Lloyd Webber, behind the musicals of “Cats” or “The Phantom of the Opera“, announced that he would present his last London production on August 18, the play “Cinderella“, postponed due to the health crisis.
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