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Theatre Royal, Drury Lane

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Architecture; Theatre


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   The interior of the third and largest theatre to stand at Drury Lane,
   c. 1808.
   Enlarge
   The interior of the third and largest theatre to stand at Drury Lane,
   c. 1808.

   The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane is a theatre in the Covent Garden
   district of London, facing Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or
   Brydges Street) and backing onto Drury Lane. The building standing
   today is the most recent in a line of four theatres at the same
   location dating back to 1663. For its first two centuries, Drury Lane
   could "reasonably have claimed to be London's leading theatre" and thus
   one of the most important theatres in the English-speaking world.
   Through most of that time, it was one of a small handful of patent
   theatres that were granted monopoly rights to the production of
   "legitimate" drama in London.

   The first theatre on the location was built on behest of Thomas
   Killigrew in the early years of the English Restoration. Actors
   appearing at this "Theatre Royal in Bridges Street" included Nell Gwyn
   and Charles Hart. It was destroyed by fire in 1672. Killigrew built a
   larger theatre in the same spot, designed by Christopher Wren; now
   called the "Theatre Royal in Drury Lane", it opened in 1674. This
   building would last nearly 120 years, under leadership including Colley
   Cibber, David Garrick, and Richard Brinsley Sheridan. In 1791, under
   Sheridan's management, the building was demolished to make way for a
   larger theatre, which opened in 1794. This enormous new Drury Lane
   survived just 15 years, burning down in 1809. The building that stands
   today opened in 1812. It has been home to actors as diverse as
   Shakespearean Edmund Kean, comedian Dan Leno, and musical composer and
   performer Ivor Novello. Today, the theatre is owned by composer Andrew
   Lloyd Weber and generally stages popular musical theatre.

First theatre: 1663

   Thomas Killigrew as he appeared in 1650.
   Enlarge
   Thomas Killigrew as he appeared in 1650.

   After the decade-long Puritan Interregnum, which had seen the banning
   of pastimes regarded as frivolous, including theatre, the English
   monarchy was restored to the throne with the return of Charles II in
   1660. Soon after, Charles issued Letters Patent to two parties
   licensing the formation of new acting companies. One of these went to
   Thomas Killigrew, whose company would become known as the King's
   Company, and who would build a new theatre in Drury Lane. The Letters
   Patent also granted the two companies a shared monopoly on the public
   performance of legitimate drama in London; this monopoly would be
   challenged in the 18th century by new venues and by a certain
   slipperiness in the definition of "legitimate drama", but remained
   legally in place until 1843. The new playhouse, architect unknown,
   opened on 7 May 1663 and was known from the placement of the entrance
   as the "Theatre Royal in Bridges Street". It went by other names as
   well, including the "King's Playhouse". The building was a three-tiered
   wooden structure, 112  feet long and 59 feet wide; it could hold an
   audience of 700. Set well back from the broader streets, the theatre
   was accessed by narrow passages between surrounding buildings.

   The King himself was a not infrequent attendee of the theatre's
   productions, as was Samuel Pepys, whose private diaries provide much of
   what we know of London theatre-going in the 1660s. The day after the
   Theatre Royal opened, Pepys attended a performance of Francis Beaumont
   and John Fletcher's The Humorous Lieutenant. He has this to say in his
   diary:

     The house is made with extraordinary good contrivance, and yet hath
     some faults, as the narrowness of the passages in and out of the
     Pitt, and the distance from the stage to the boxes, which I am
     confident cannot hear; but for all other things it is well, only,
     above all, the musique being below, and most of it sounding under
     the very stage, there is no hearing of the bases at all, nor very
     well of the trebles, which sure must be mended.

   Performances usually began at 3 p.m. to take advantage of the daylight:
   the main floor for the audience, the pit, had no roof in order to let
   in the light. A glazed dome was built over the opening, but judging
   from another one of Pepys' diary entries, the dome was not entirely
   effective at keeping out the elements: he and his wife were forced to
   leave the theatre to take refuge from a hail storm.
   Location of the Theatre Royal on a map of London from 1700; the inset
   shows the streets as they are in 2006.
   Enlarge
   Location of the Theatre Royal on a map of London from 1700; the inset
   shows the streets as they are in 2006.

   Green baize cloth covered the benches in the pit and served to decorate
   the boxes, additionally ornamented with gold-tooled leather, and even
   the stage itself. The backless green benches in the pit were in a
   semicircular arrangement facing the stage, according to a May 1663
   letter from one Monsieur de Maonconys: "All benches of the pit, where
   people of rank also sit, are shaped in a semi-circle, each row higher
   than the next." The three galleries formed a semicircle around the
   floor seats; both the first and second galleries were divided up into
   boxes.

   The King's Company was forced with some reluctance to commission the
   technically advanced and expensive Theatre Royal playhouse by the
   success of the rival Duke's Company, which was drawing fascinated
   crowds with their "moveable" or "changeable" scenery and visually
   gorgeous productions at Lincoln's Inn Fields. Imitating the innovations
   at Lincoln's Inn Fields, the Theatre Royal also featured moveable
   scenery with wings or shutters that could be smoothly changed between
   or even within acts. When not in use, the shutters rested out of sight
   behind the sides of the proscenium arch, which also served as a visual
   frame for the on-stage happenings. The picture-frame-like separation
   between audience and performance was a new phenomenon in English
   theatre, though it had been found on the Continent earlier. However,
   theatre design in London remained ambivalent about the merits of the
   "picture-box" stage, and for many decades to come, London theatres
   including Drury Lane would have large forestages protruding beyond the
   arch, oftentimes including the thrust stages found in the Elizabethan
   theatres. The players could still step forward and bridge the distance
   between performer and audience, and more than that, it was not unusual
   for audience members to mount the stage itself.

   Killigrew's investment in the new playhouse put the two companies on a
   level as far as technical resources were concerned, but the offerings
   at the Theatre Royal nevertheless continued to be dominated by
   actor-driven "talk" drama, contrasting with William Davenant's baroque
   spectacles and operas at Lincoln's Inn Fields. Internal power
   structures were the main reason for this difference: while Davenant
   skilfully commanded a docile young troupe, Killigrew's authority over
   his veteran actors was far from absolute. Experienced actors Michael
   Mohun (who Pepys called "the best actor in the world") and Charles Hart
   held out for shares and good contracts in the King's Company, and they
   despised baroque spectacle. Such a division of power between the
   patentee Killigrew and his chief actors led to frequent conflicts.
   These were bad for the Theatre Royal as a business venture; but on the
   other hand, its strong and confident actors and their insistence on
   dialogue and literary quality over ornament and visual effects were
   good for the rebirth of English drama. It was mostly at struggling
   Theatre Royal, rather than at efficiently run Lincoln's Inn Fields,
   that the plays were acted that are classics today. This applies
   especially to the new form Restoration comedy, dominated in the 1660s
   by William Wycherley and the Theatre Royal's house dramatist John
   Dryden. Actors such as Hart and Charles II's mistress Nell Gwyn
   developed and refined the famous scenes of repartee, banter, and
   flirtation in Dryden's and Wycherley's comedies, and these actors made
   a creative contribution almost, John Harrington Smith has claimed, on a
   level with that of the dramatists. Another factor in the direction the
   drama took at this time was the appearance of actresses for the first
   time on the British stage. Their presence encouraged playwrights to
   focus on outspoken female characters, daring love scenes, and
   provocative breeches roles.

   The Great Plague of London struck in the summer of 1665, and the
   Theatre Royal, along with all other public entertainment, was shut down
   by order of the Lord Mayor and Aldermen of the City of London on 5
   June. It remained closed for 18 months, until the autumn of 1666,
   during which time it received at least a little interior renovation,
   including widening of the stage. Although the theatre survived the
   Great Fire of London, which raged through the city in September 1666,
   it was to burn down six years later on 25 January 1672.

Second theatre: 1674

   A longitudinal section through a playhouse drawn by Christopher Wren,
   believed to be Wren's plan for the second Theatre Royal on Drury Lane.
   1: Proscenium arch. 2: Four pairs of shutters across the stage. 3: Pit.
   4: Galleries. 5: Boxes.
   Enlarge
   A longitudinal section through a playhouse drawn by Christopher Wren,
   believed to be Wren's plan for the second Theatre Royal on Drury Lane.
   1: Proscenium arch. 2: Four pairs of shutters across the stage. 3: Pit.
   4: Galleries. 5: Boxes.

   The King's Company never recovered financially from the loss of the
   theatre in Bridges Street. The competitive pressure from the Duke's
   Company forced them to keep investing, however, and construction work
   began immediately on an even larger and more luxurious theatre which
   housed an audience of 2,000. This was the Theatre Royal in Drury Lane,
   designed by Christopher Wren, which opened on 26 March 1674. The new
   house was financed through selling more company shares, which meant
   that yet more money had now to be made from ticket sales.

   The second theatre complex was composed of the large auditorium by Wren
   and, by the time of Garrick's management, comprised ten connected
   structures. These buildings contained a warren of offices, practice
   rooms, storage space and dressing rooms used by the theatre management
   and performers, nearly seventy people total, as well as some fifty
   technical staff members. Additionally three rooms were provided for
   scripts, including a library for their storage, a separate room for
   copying actor's parts and a special library for the theatre's account
   books, ledger books and music scores. This jumble of rooms often made
   communication among various departments difficult, a problem that David
   Garrick would correct during his tenure as manager. The entire complex
   occupied 13,134 square feet bounded by Drury Lane (east), Brydges
   Street (west), Great Russell Street (north) and Little Russell Street
   (south).

   Entering the theatre from Drury Lane, theatre-goers navigated narrow
   passages that lead under over-hanging apartments to entrances for the
   various lobbies; one for each of the three main sections of the
   theatre: the pit, gallery and boxes. The new theatre interior retained
   the green cloth of the first, but seems to have been built according to
   a more rectilinear plan. Henri Misson, a visitor from France, offers a
   description of the theatre in 1698:

     The Pit is an Amphitheatre, fill'd with Benches without Backboards,
     and adorn'd and cover'd with green Cloth. Men of Quality,
     particularly the younger Sort, some Ladies of Reputation and Virtue,
     and abundance of Damsels that haunt for Prey, sit all together in
     this Place, Higgledy-piggledy, chatter, toy, play, hear, hear not.
     Farther up, against the Wall, under the first Gallery and just
     opposite to the Stage, rises another Amphitheatre, which is taken by
     persons of the best Quality, among whom are generally very few Men.
     The Galleries, whereof there are only two Rows, are fill'd with none
     but ordinary People, particularly the Upper one.

   As Misson points out, the seating was divided by class and tickets were
   priced accordingly. Box seats, used by the nobility and wealthy gentry
   cost 5 shillings; the benches in the pit which often sat some gentry,
   but also critics and scholars, cost 3 shillings; tradesmen and
   professionals occupied the first gallery with seats costing 2 shillings
   while servants and other "ordinary people," as Misson refers to them
   occupied the 1 shilling seats of the upper gallery. Seats were not
   numbered and offered on a "first come first served" basis leading many
   members of the gentry to send servants to reserve seats well ahead of
   performances.

   The image to the right shows a cross-section of a playhouse drawn by
   Wren, and is thought to be a plan for the 1674 Theatre Royal. The
   second Amphitheatre mentioned by Misson, in the rear, is the lower
   gallery.
   The stage in 1674.
   Enlarge
   The stage in 1674.

   All of these spectators had a clear view of the stage. The stage was 45
   feet wide and 30 feet deep with a raked floor from the footlights to
   the back drop. The angle of the rake rose one inch for every 24 inches
   of horizontle stage, therefore an actor standing at the back of the
   stage was 15 inches above an actor at the footlights. The stage floor
   included grooves for wings and flats in addition to trap doors in the
   floor. The proscenium arch covered the stage equiptment above the stage
   that included a pair of girondels--large wheels holding many candles
   used to counteract the light from the footlights. Towards the latter
   part of the 18th century, doors were placed on either side of the stage
   and a series of small spikes traced the edge of the stage apron to
   prevent audiences from climbing onto the stage. At the very back of the
   stage, a large door was placed that opened to reveal Drury Lane.

   An added difficulty for Killigrew and his sons Thomas and Charles was
   the political unrest of 1678–84 with the Popish Plot and the Exclusion
   crisis distracting potential audiences from things theatrical. This
   affected both the King's and the Duke's companies, but most of all the
   King's which had no profit margin to carry them through the lean years.
   In 1682 the companies merged, or rather, the King's was absorbed by the
   Duke's. Led at the time by Thomas Betterton, the United Company, as it
   was now called, chose Drury Lane as their production house, leaving the
   Duke's Company's theatre in Dorset Garden closed for a time. In 1688
   Betterton was removed from managerial control by Alexander Davenant,
   son of William Davenant, the original patent holder for the Duke's
   Company. Davenant's management (with Charles Killigrew) proved brief
   and disastrous, and by 1693 he was fleeing to the Canary Islands in the
   wake of embezzlement charges. The Theatre Royal would find itself in
   the hands of lawyer Christopher Rich for the next 16 years.

   Neither Davenant's nor Killigrew's sons were much better than crooks,
   and Rich attempted to recoup their depredations of the company's
   resources by cost-cutting tyranny, pitting actor against actor and
   slashing salaries. By 1695 the actors, including day-to-day manager and
   acting legend Thomas Betterton, were alienated and humiliated enough to
   walk out and set up a cooperative company of their own. Nine men and
   six women departed, all established professional performers, including
   such draws as tragedienne Elizabeth Barry and comedienne Anne
   Bracegirdle, leaving the United Company — henceforth known as the
   "Patent Company" — in "a very despicable condition", according to an
   anonymous contemporary pamphlet:

     The disproportion was so great at parting, that it was almost
     impossible, in Drury Lane, to muster up a sufficient number to take
     in all the parts of any play; and of them so few were tolerable,
     that a play must of necessity be damned, that had not extraordinary
     favour from the audience. No fewer than sixteen (most of the old
     standing) went away; and with them the very beauty and vigour of the
     stage; they who were left being for the most part learners, boys and
     girls, a very unequal match for them that revolted.

   A private letter from 19 November 1696 reported that Drury Lane "has no
   company at all, and unless a new play comes out on Saturday revives
   their reputation, they must break." The new play, Rich's last hope, is
   assumed to have been John Vanbrugh's The Relapse, and it turned out the
   success the company needed. Christopher Rich would continue as its head
   until 1709, when the patent in question was actually revoked amid a
   complex tangle of political machinations. A lawyer named William
   Collier was briefly given the right to mount productions in Drury Lane,
   but by 1710 the troupe was in the hands of the actors Colley Cibber,
   Robert Wilks, and Thomas Doggett — a triumvirate that would eventually
   find themselves sharply satirised in Alexander Pope's Dunciad. In 1713
   Barton Booth replaced Doggett.
   David Garrick, the theatre manager 1747–1776, is portrayed in the title
   role of Richard III in this painting by William Hogarth.
   Enlarge
   David Garrick, the theatre manager 1747–1776, is portrayed in the title
   role of Richard III in this painting by William Hogarth.

   Cibber was the de facto leader of the triumvirate, and he led the
   theatre through a controversial but generally successful period until
   1733, when he sold his controlling interest to John Highmore. It is
   likely that the sale was at a vastly inflated price and that Colley's
   goal was simply to get out of debts and make a profit (see Robert Lowe
   in his edition of Cibber's Apology). Members of the troupe at the time
   were most displeased; an actor's revolt was organised and executed;
   Charles Fleetwood came to control the theatre. Fleetwood's tenure was
   tumultuous; his abolition of the practice of allowing footmen free
   access to the upper gallery led to riots in 1737, and Fleetwood's
   gambling problems entangled the theatre in his own financial
   difficulties. It was during this period that actor Charles Macklin rose
   to fame, propelled by a singular performance as Shylock in an early
   1741 production of The Merchant of Venice, in which he introduced a
   realistic, naturalistic style of acting, abandoning the artificial
   bombast typical to dramatic roles prior.
   The facade on Bridges Street. Added in 1775, this gave the theatre its
   first on-street entrance.
   Enlarge
   The facade on Bridges Street. Added in 1775, this gave the theatre its
   first on-street entrance.

   In 1747 Fleetwood's playhouse patent expired. The theatre and a patent
   renewal were purchased by actor David Garrick (who had trained under
   Macklin earlier) and partner James Lacy. Garrick served as manager and
   lead actor of the theatre until roughly 1766, and continued on in the
   management role for another ten years after that. He is remembered as
   one of the great stage actors and is especially associated with
   advancing the Shakespearean tradition in English theatre — during his
   time at Drury Lane, the company mounted at least 24 of Shakespeare's
   plays. Some of Shakespeare's surge in popularity during this period can
   be traced to the Licensing Act of 1737, which mandated governmental
   approval of any play before it could be performed and thereby created
   something of a vacuum of new material to perform. Garrick shared the
   stage with company including Peg Woffington, Susannah Cibber, Hannah
   Pritchard, Kitty Clive, Spranger Barry, Richard Yates and Ned Shuter.
   It was under Garrick's management that spectators were for the first
   time barred from the stage itself.

   Garrick commissioned Robert Adam and his brother James to renovate the
   theatre's interior, which they did in 1775. Their additions included an
   ornate ceiling and a stucco facade facing Bridges Street. This facade
   was the first time any structure that might be considered part of the
   theatre proper actually abutted the street: the building, like the 1663
   original, had been built in the centre of the block, hemmed in by other
   structures. The narrow passage from Bridges street to the theatre now
   became an interior hallway; some theatre office space also went up
   behind the new facade.

   With a series of farewell performances, Garrick left the stage in 1776
   and sold his shares in the theatre to the Irish playwright Richard
   Brinsley Sheridan. Sheridan and his partners would complete their
   purchase of Drury Lane two years later, and Sheridan would own it until
   1809. Sheridan premiered his own comedy of manners The School for
   Scandal in 1777. Active management of the theatre was carried out by a
   number of parties during Sheridon's ownership, including himself, his
   father Thomas, and, from 1788 to 1796 and 1800 to 1802, the popular
   actor John Philip Kemble.

Third theatre: 1794

   The theatre pictured as it was in 1809 (from an 1811 engraving). The
   view is from the north-east, looking down Russell Street at its
   intersection with Drury Lane. This shows the rear of the theatre with
   its dressing rooms and stage door.
   Enlarge
   The theatre pictured as it was in 1809 (from an 1811 engraving). The
   view is from the north-east, looking down Russell Street at its
   intersection with Drury Lane. This shows the rear of the theatre with
   its dressing rooms and stage door.

   The theatre was in need of updating by the end of the 18th century and
   was demolished in 1791. A third theatre was designed by Henry Holland
   and opened on 12 March 1794. This was a cavernous theatre,
   accommodating more than 3,600 spectators. The motivation behind
   building on such a large scale? In the words of one owner:

     I was aware of the very popular notion that our theatres ought to be
     very small; but it appeared to me that if that very popular notion
     should be suffered to proceed too far it would in every way
     deteriorate our dramatic performances depriving the proprietors of
     that revenue which is indispensable to defray the heavy expenses of
     such a concern.

   New technology facilitated the expansion: iron columns replaced bulky
   wood, supporting five tiers of galleries. The stage was large, too:
   83 feet wide and 92 feet deep. Holland, the architect, said it was "on
   a larger scale than any other theatre in Europe". Except for churches,
   it was the tallest building in London.

   The "very popular notion that our theatres ought to be very small"
   proved hard to overcome, however. Various accounts from the period
   bemoan the mammoth size of the new theatre, longing for the "warm close
   observant seats of Old Drury", as one May 1794 theatre-goer put it.
   Actress Sarah Siddons, then part of the Drury Lane company, called it
   "a wilderness of a place" (and would leave Drury Lane along with her
   brother John Philip Kemble in 1803). Not only was any sense of intimacy
   and connection to the company on stage lost, but the very size of the
   theatre put a great deal of the audience at such a distance from the
   stage so as to make hearing a player's voice quite difficult. To
   compensate, the productions mounted in the new theatre tended more
   toward spectacle than the spoken word. An example of such a spectacle
   is a 1794 production that featured real water flowing down a rocky
   stream into a lake large enough on which to row a boat. This water
   issued from tanks in the attics above the house, which were installed —
   along with a much-touted iron safety curtain — as proof against fire.
   After standing only 15 years, the third Drury Lane theatre building
   burned down on 24 February 1809. This painting from the period, artist
   unknown, shows the view of the fire from the Westminster Bridge.
   Enlarge
   After standing only 15 years, the third Drury Lane theatre building
   burned down on 24 February 1809. This painting from the period, artist
   unknown, shows the view of the fire from the Westminster Bridge.

   Richard Sheridan continued as theatre owner during the entire lifetime
   of this third building. He had grown in stature as a statesman during
   this time, but troubled finances were to be his undoing. The 1794
   rebuilding had cost double the original estimate of £80,000, and
   Sheridan bore the entirety of the debt. Productions were more expensive
   to mount in the larger structure, and increased audience revenues
   failed to make up the difference.

   An assassination attempt against King George III took place at the
   theatre on 15 May 1800. James Hadfield fired two pistol shots from the
   pit toward the King, sitting in the royal box. The shots missed by
   inches, Hadfield was quickly subdued, and George, apparently unruffled,
   ordered the performance to continue.

   On 24 February 1809, despite the previously mentioned fire safety
   precautions, the theatre burned down. Already on the shakiest financial
   ground, Sheridan was ruined entirely by the loss of the building. He
   turned to brewer Samuel Whitbread, an old friend, for help. Whitbread
   agreed to head a committee that would manage the company and oversee
   the rebuilding of the theatre, but asked Sheridan to withdraw from
   management himself, which he did entirely by 1811.

Modern theatre: 1812

   The present-day Theatre Royal in Drury Lane, sketched when it was new,
   in 1813.
   Enlarge
   The present-day Theatre Royal in Drury Lane, sketched when it was new,
   in 1813.

   The present Theatre Royal in Drury Lane, designed by Benjamin Wyatt on
   behalf of the committee led by Whitbread, opened on 10 October 1812
   with a production of Hamlet featuring Robert Elliston in the title
   role. The new theatre made some concessions toward intimacy, seating
   3,060 people, about 550 fewer than the earlier building. In 1820 the
   portico that still stands at the theatre's front entrance on Catherine
   Street was added, and in 1822, five years after gas lighting was
   installed, the interior underwent a significant remodelling. The
   colonnade running down the Russell Street side of the building was
   added in 1831.

   Productions relying more on scenery and effects than on dialogue and
   acting remained commonplace in the new facility. The 1823 production of
   Cataract of the Ganges had a finale featuring a horseback escape up a
   flowing cataract "with fire raging all around". Effects for an 1829
   production were produced by hydraulic apparatus that reportedly could
   discharge 39 tons of water.

   There were those concerned that the theatre was failing in its role as
   one of the very few permitted to show legitimate drama. Management of
   the theatre after it reopened in 1813 fell to Samuel Arnold, overseen
   by an amateur board of directors and a subcommittee focusing on the
   theatre as a centre for national culture. ( Lord Byron was briefly on
   this subcommittee, from June 1815 until leaving England in April 1816.)
   Actor Edmund Kean was the on-stage highlight; like Macklin before him,
   he made his reputation as Shylock, premiering in the role in 1814. Kean
   would remain until 1820, but despite his popularity, the committee-led
   efforts to appeal to culture yet still turn a profit eventually proved
   a failure, and in 1819 the theatre and all its accompanying rights were
   leased to Robert Elliston.

   Elliston was bankrupt and unable to renew his lease in 1826. An
   American, Stephen Price, followed (1826–30); then through most of the
   remainder of the 19th century, Drury lane passed quickly from one set
   of hands to another. Even well-remembered efforts like William Charles
   Macready's 1841–43 seasons were financial disasters. The theatrical
   monopoly first bestowed by Royal Letters Patent 183 years earlier was
   abolished by Parliament in 1843, but the patent had been largely
   toothless for decades and this had little immediate effect. The
   19th-century run of financial and artistic failures at Drury Lane
   culminated with F. B. Chatterton's 1878 resignation; in his words,
   "Shakespeare spells ruin, and Byron bankruptcy." During the 19th
   century, Drury Lane staged ballet as well, with performers including
   Italy's Carlotta Grisi.
   The theatre today. The sign for The Producers faces Russell Street; the
   front entrance is through the portico facing Catherine Street on the
   right.
   Enlarge
   The theatre today. The sign for The Producers faces Russell Street; the
   front entrance is through the portico facing Catherine Street on the
   right.

   Productions relying on spectacle became even more the norm at Drury
   Lane in the later parts of the century, particularly under the
   managements of Augustus Harris (1879–96) and Arthur Collins
   (1896–1923). Examples include the successful 1909 The Whip, which
   featured not only a train crash complete with hissing steam, but also a
   horserace: twelve real horses jockeying on an on-stage treadmill.
   Harris instituted an annual pantomime in 1889; starring already
   well-known comedian Dan Leno, the performances were a major success.
   Earlier, Harris hosted the Carl Rosa Opera Company for many of their
   productions in the 1880s and early 1890s.

   The last major interior renovation was in 1922, leaving a four-tiered
   theatre able to seat between 2,200 and 2,300 people. Composer and
   performer Ivor Novello, immensely popular in his time though
   little-remembered today, presented his musicals in Drury Lane from 1931
   until the theatre was closed in 1939 because of World War II. During
   the war the theatre served as the headquarters for the Entertainments
   National Service Association; it sustained some minor bomb damage as
   well. The theatre reopened with Noel Coward's Pacific 1860 in 1946.

   In the post-war years, a number of Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals
   made their London debuts in Drury Lane, including Oklahoma! (1946),
   South Pacific (1951) and The King and I (1953). American imports also
   included Lerner and Loewe's My Fair Lady, which began a five-year run
   in 1958. Comedy troupe Monty Python also performed one of their reunion
   shows here. Today, the theatre is part of the West End theatre scene,
   still generally staging popular musical productions. It is owned and
   managed by Really Useful Theatres, a division of Andrew Lloyd Weber's
   Really Useful Group. Long-running recent productions include 42nd
   Street (1984–89) and Miss Saigon (1989–99). It is currently showing a
   revival of Mel Brooks' musical The Producers, which is scheduled to
   close in January 2007, to be followed by a musical version of The Lord
   of the Rings.

Ghosts

   Drury Lane has been called one of the world's most haunted theatres.
   The appearance of almost any one of the handful of ghosts that are said
   to frequent the theatre signals good luck for an actor or production.
   The most famous ghost is the "Man in Grey", who appears dressed as a
   nobleman of the late 18th century: powdered hair beneath a tricorne
   hat, a dress jacket and cloak or cape, riding boots and a sword. Legend
   says that the Man in Grey is the ghost of a knife-stabbed man whose
   skeletal remains were found within a walled-up side passage in 1848.

   The ghosts of actor Charles Macklin and comedian Joe Grimaldi are
   supposed to haunt the theatre. Macklin appears backstage, wandering the
   corridor which now stands in the spot where, in 1735, he killed his
   fellow actor Thomas Hallam in an argument over a wig. ("Goddamn you for
   a blackguard, scrub, rascal!" he shouted, thrusting a cane into
   Hallam's face and piercing his left eye.) Joe Grimaldi is a helpful
   apparition, purportedly guiding nervous actors skilfully about the
   stage on more than one occasion.
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