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NEWS: Kenny Wax appointed new President of Society of London Theatre

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Society of London Theatre (SOLT) has announced that Kenny Wax has been appointed as its new President. Kenny brings extensive experience to SOLT having produced plays, musicals and family theatre in the West End. His current London productions include The Play That Goes Wrong (also running on Broadway), The Comedy About A Bank Robbery and La Strada. He has several …

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NEWS: London theatre attendances down but revenues up in 2016

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The Society of London Theatre’s 2016 Box Office figures demonstrate another robust year for the capital’s thriving theatre industry. Comparative highlights are: Gross revenue of £644,719,639, up 1.7% compared to 2015 Sales generated VAT receipts for the Treasury of £107,453,273 Attendances of 14,328,121 (down 2.8% year on year but number of performances down 5.95% on 2015) 76.7% of available seats filled, up 4.1% compared to 2015 and …

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NEWS: Mayor opens booking for annual Get into London Theatre scheme

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Booking has opened for Get Into London Theatre 2017, one of the theatre industry’s longest running audience development initiatives. Since 2002, London’s biggest and best-loved shows have offered tickets from £10, £20, £30 or £40 and this year Get Into London Theatre will run from 1 January to 10 February 2017.

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COMPETITION: Answer Ian McKellen to win £100 of Theatre Tokens!

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To celebrate the release of the Official London Theatre Audio Tour with Ian McKellen, we’ve teamed up with the Society of London Theatre to give away £100 of Theatre Tokens! Theatre Tokens can be redeemed at over 240 venues, including the historic theatres visited in this first-ever immersive walking tour of the West End, voice by six-time Olivier Award winner, Sir Ian McKellen.

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7 things I learned about Theatreland from Ian McKellen

In Audio, Features, London theatre, Native, Video by Terri PaddockLeave a Comment

I thought I knew Theatreland pretty well… not so! As I found out when I downloaded the Official London Theatre Audio Tour with Ian McKellen.  Here are seven interesting titbits I learned en route around the West End with McKellen talking in my ear. There are many more fascinating facts, as well as personal anecdotes from McKellen’s years treading the boards. …

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NEWS: West End Live features 25 shows & stars including Samantha Barks, Matt Cardle & Tom Chambers

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WEST END LIVE with MasterCard takes place in Trafalgar Square on Saturday 18 and Sunday 19 June 2016. Celebrating its 12th year, the free musical extravaganza showcases the best of the West End. Attracting crowds of more than 500,000 people over the course of the weekend, WEST END LIVE with MasterCard is the largest event of its type in the world. The 2016 performance line-up, announced today, includes over 25 shows and stars including Beverley Knight, Michael Xavier, Kerry Ellis, Tom Chambers, Samantha Barks, Matt Cardle and Pixie Lott.

Where’s SOLT when you need it?

In London theatre, Musicals, News, Opinion, Plays by Mark ShentonLeave a Comment

I came out of a matinee today at the Vaudeville to find that bus routes to take me from the Strand back across the river had been suspended: there was a fire in Holborn (see inset), and none were operating. After a few minutes, a bus arrived that was going as far as Waterloo — so I jumped on board that to get me part of the way. On the other side of Waterloo Bridge, it got held up in traffic — just as the northbound lanes of the bridge were being shut off.
Oops. It looked like a controlled kind of chaos was about to hit the West End. And as ever, it seemed that Twitter was providing (some of) the answers. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory tweeted, “Due to incident at Holborn, tonight’s 7.30pm performance of @CharlieChoc_UK has been CANCELLED.” On The Lion King’s website, they posted this update at 16:22: “Due to circumstances beyond our control, we have been left with no option than to cancel this evening’s performance.”

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