Prince Edward Theatre history

Designed by the architect Edward A. Stone, the man behind the nearby Piccadilly theatre, the Prince Edward opened on 3rd April 1930 and is a Grade II listed building.

The venue was built as a multi-purpose place to house musicals, revue and films. The first production at the theatre was a musical comedy called Rio Rita, which failed to woo audiences. On 2nd April 1936 the theatre re-opened as The London Casino, a cabaret restaurant, soon becoming notorious for its lavish stage shows.

During the Second World War the premises was used as a club for servicemen, The Queensbury All Services Club, which entertained the troops with superstars like Glenn Miller and Vera Lynn. A suite of musicals and revues returned briefly in 1949 but in 1954 the building was converted yet again for screenings of state-of-the-art Cinerama films.

In 1978, the year the musical Evita started a run of nearly eight years, the theatre reverted to its original name, The Prince Edward. It hosted Chess and the Broadway revival production of Cole Porter’s Anything Goes, followed by three rather short-lived musicals: Some Like It Hot, Children of Eden and The Hunting of the Snark.

From late 1992 to early 1993 the venue was extensively refurbished, re-opening on 18th February 1993 with the Broadway production of the reworked Gershwin musical Crazy For You. The theatre became the home to the original production of Mamma Mia! In 1999, which ran for five legendary years. After Mamma Mia! moved to the Prince of Wales theatre, the stage musical Mary Poppins ran from 2004 until 2008. Then along came the rags-to-riches tale of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, the hit musical Jersey Boys.

2014 saw the theatre host the return of Miss Saigon to the West End. It's still running.