Shaftesbury Theatre

Theatre History

The History of The Shaftesbury Theatre

The Shaftesbury Theatre was originally known as the Prince's Theatre and it was the first theatre to be built on Shaftesbury Avenue. The theatre then went on to be known as the Globe, but when Shakespeare's Globe was built the name had to be changed. The name changed to the Shaftesbury in 1962 when the theatre was purchased by EMI and redesigned.

The first performances of Hair were shown in the Shaftesbury and it was during one of these performances of the controversial show that the ceiling partly collapsed halting the run of the production.

The theatre has been home to many famous productions including the world famous West Side Story. Most recently the theatre was home to the West End production of High Society.