Opened in 1907 as the Queen's Theatre, the Sondheim Theatre is a West End playhouse on the corner of Shaftesbury Avenue and Wardour Street. For decades it has been the London home of the musical Les Miserables. It was designed by the architect W. G. R. Sprague as a twin to the neighbouring theatre now called the Gielgud, the pair forming a matching corner on the avenue. A bomb badly damaged the building in 1940, and it stood closed for some twenty years before reopening in 1959. The long-running production of Les Miserables transferred here in 2004 and has drawn audiences ever since. In 2019 the theatre closed for a major restoration that repaired the war damage and returned the auditorium to something closer to its original look. When it reopened that December it was renamed in honour of the American composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim, marking his 90th birthday year. The change made Sondheim the only living figure with a theatre named after him in both London's West End and New York's Broadway. The auditorium seats around 1,070 across three levels and is a Grade II listed building. It stands in the heart of theatreland, close to Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square. Les Miserables, based on the novel by Victor Hugo, is among the longest-running musicals in the world and has been seen by audiences across the globe. During the 2019 closure the show continued in a concert version at the neighbouring Gielgud Theatre so that its run was not broken. The restoration brought back the boxes and decoration of the original 1907 auditorium, lost in the wartime bombing. Shaftesbury Avenue, on which it stands, is the main street of London's commercial theatre and holds several historic playhouses. The theatre stands a short walk from Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square, in the heart of the West End, and is served by several nearby Underground stations.

Type: Theater / Concert Hall

Address: 51 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, United Kingdom, W1D 6BA

Website: https://www.sondheimtheatre.co.uk

Capacity: 1074

Opening Date: 08/10/1907