Adelphi Theatre

Adelphi Theatre, London, in the Strand, originally the Sans Pareil, was built by a wealthy merchant, to display the talents of his daughter, opening in 1806 with Miss Scott's Entertainment. It prospered and after changing hands in 1818 reopened as the Adelphi, playing mainly melodrama and burletta. Successful productions were Moncrieff's Tom and Jerry; or, Life in London (1821), and several dramatizations of Dickens. In 1844 Mme Céleste and Ben Webster took over the theatre, making it the home of ‘Adelphi drama’, mostly written by Buckstone. A larger theatre was built on the site in 1858, and productions there of The Colleen Bawn (1860) and The Octoroon (1861) by Boucicault were extremely popular. In 1879 the theatre was leased to the Gatti brothers (see GATTI's). A series of Adelphi melodramas followed, starring William Terriss, who was assassinated by a madman at the entrance to the theatre in 1897. Rebuilt, the theatre was briefly called the Century, but the old name was restored by popular demand. Under George Edwardes it housed a series of excellent musical comedies, beginning with The Quaker Girl in 1908. In 1930, after further rebuilding, the theatre reopened with Rodgers and Hart's Ever Green, the first of a series of productions by C. B. Cochran. This was followed by Knoblock's adaptation of Vicki Baum's novel Grand Hotel (1931), Coward's revue Words and Music (1932), and Eric Maschwitz's musical Balalaika (1936). The revival of Novello's The Dancing Years (1942) ran for 969 performances. Cochran returned after the Second World War with the musicals Big Ben (1946), Bless the Bride (1947), and Tough at the Top (1949). The first production to reach 1,000 performances was the revue London Laughs (1952). Later came Auntie Mame (1958) based on Patrick Dennis's novel, with Beatrice Lillie, and two musicals by Lionel Bart, Blitz! (1962) and Maggie May (1964). Charlie Girl (1965), another musical, became the longest-running production at the theatre, completing 2,200 performances. Subsequent successes were Sondheim's A Little Night Music (1975) and revivals of the musicals Irene (1976), My Fair Lady (1979), and Me and My Girl (1985).