The Duchess Theatre

This small theatre is quite cramped with very little leg room and narrow chairs. One of the less comfortable ones for sure.
Staff are fantastic and the play I saw here was very good with great stage design. Sound is really good here as well. So, if you don’t mind uncomfortable seating for a while, it’s worth going!

Saw ‘The Play That Goes Wrong’ here. Fantastic play, but the theatre itself wasn’t too great. I had a great seat in the stalls, but just wish the seats were not on the same level, as I had a really tall person in front of me, as a result I had to keep bobbing my head from side to side in order to see. Other than that I had a really clear view of the stage and was so close I could see the facial expressions of the actors.

I watched the Play that Goes Wrong here and thought the show was fantastic! Lotsa slapstick and really brings out the true meaning of British humour (I think funnier than Monty Python!). One of those shows where you can get entertained throughout.
As for the theatre, it needs a bit of an update but what I appreciated is that you can get relatively cheap seats in the back of the stalls and still have really good views of the stage. I wouldn’t mind seeing another show at this theatre.

The theatre is slightly run down, small, and cramped. It looks like it may have once been a very nice theatre, but has been renovated in the worst way and now looks ugly and dirty. The seats are very cramped and like Alex S remarked you will be having a cuddle with the person next to you so hopefully you know them! However, it’s hard to imagine a bad seat in the house as the place is so small.
I went to ‘The Play That Goes Wrong’, which I personally hated. However, my very English mother and father-​in-​law were laughing through their noses. I think that your view of that specific play may vary wildly depending on your culture and age. The audience seemed to be mostly middle aged British people, whom did find it funny. As an American, I did not find it funny. Slap stick humor i. e people embarrassing themselves and others isn’t exactly my type of humor. However, American humor is VERY different from English humor and this may explain the differences in opinion. I would seriously consider your personal view on the subject before buying tickets as while my parents-​in-​laws loved the show I felt ripped off and angry that I had paid money to see it.

The theatre itself is a little run down and could use a but of TLC but it’s current offering of The Play that Goes Wrong is a complete riot! It certainly lived up to it’s name. A play within a play, The Play That Goes Wrong will have you rolling around on the floor with laughter. Before the show even begins it has already started with various members of the cast weaving their way through the audience as they prepare for the show; Murder at Haversham Manor. Parts of the set are falling apart or just plain missing, lines are forgotten and there are technical difficulties. Obviously everything that goes wrong is meant to go wrong (or is it?) and I can’t begin to think how difficult it must have been to choreographed the whole thing absolutely brilliant and a fab bargain at £20!

This theatre is small so makes it feel like a more intimate affair especially if it’s not a play and say a one man band (stand up comedy show or something). Chairs red and quite small and not great leg room. Would I rush back to this theatre maybe not for its not great in comfort but would for its intimacy and depends what is being shown.

Had an opportunity to see Michael McIntyre & Guests perform to a small audience (but a full house) at this Theatre, I must admit it’s the smallest West End Theatre I have been to and certainly needs some care and attention in certain places, but other than that it’s a cosy Theatre, I think the seats could do with updating as they were starting to get a little uncomfortable after a while and during the interval it was a blessing to stand for a while and people seem quite close to each other in this Theatre as many other Theatres I have been to there seems to be more ‘seat room’. Not sure if I will ever venture back to this Theatre unless there is a production and cast that is a must see!

Summary based on one evening performance:
–just ok leg room
–good sound
–good sight lines from center seating, at least
–ok toilets, which is better than average for London theatre
Saw the Play That Goes Wrong, booked through TKTS. Recommended.

A larger theatre just off Aldwych in Covent Garden. We recently came to see The Play That Goes Wrong, which basically a farce. It was funny however it was a little bit ridiculous and the plot does get a bit tired after a while.
We sat in the dress circle right at the front. The view was great and there was lots of space for my legs.

I went here for a show the other night. The play was fantastic. The theatre? … Not so much.
The Dutchess Theatre needs some serious love. It’s easy the most run down theatre I’ve been to in London. The seats as well worn and if someone bigger is sitting next to you, they’re really going to be sitting next to you. The space is also very small and it’s hard to move from one side of the theatre to the other.
Also, we were sitting to the right of the stage and literally could not see anything happening on that side of the stage. As soon as they walked one step too far, they disappeared from sight completely. That’s an awful way for a theatre to be designed.
That being said, the sound was excellent and because it is a smaller of a theatre, we were in the back and could still see everything perfectly, so there is something to be said for that. Also the staff is incredibly friendly and helpful with anything you need.
So I would see a show here again, but I would know what I was getting into.

I love the Duchess, it is a delightful theatre, one of the youngest and smallest West End theatres, so you are always very intimate with the actors, you can see them, and they can see you! The theatre seats feel a lot more roomy and there is aircond (very welcomed on a hot summer’s day!) The ladies toilets are the best, more cubicles for a change, very modern, clean and light, and room to move, unlike the tight squeeze of most other theatres. Bakersfield Mist, with Kathleen Turner and Ian McDiarmid, a one act play, debating the authenticity of art and people, is playing until 9 August.

Arturo Ui might not be the easiest afternoon in the theatre but we found a deal…£20 tickets with a glass of champagne … and not just any champagne but my favourite Lanson Black Label. Delicious.
We sat on the very back row of the dress circle and could see and hear perfectly and we had more leg room than in some other theatres.
So, overall, an enjoyable afternoon.

Now I had read other peoples reviews of this theatre before I went to see The Fences starring Lenny Henry.
The theatre is old built in 1929 apparently, so if i can survive for 84 years and not actually look old and weather battered like this place I would suggest that would be a good innings in anyones book.
The theatre is on the small side and for the taller person the seating does not provide a great deal of leg room but you can cope especially if you know there is an interval coming.
When we entered the theatre there were a couple of staff members selling programs along with selling you your interval drinks, which we bought as we thought this would avoid the cue at interval.
So interval came and the drinks were exactly where they said they would be, on the side with a copy of our receipt. The only issue I have is that there was no member of staff checking your ticket it would not be difficult for someone to walk off with your drinks, I think this needs improvement!
Now the night we visited this theatre it was to use a phrase ‘raining cats and dogs’ outside. The problem is that the building is 84 plus years old and the ‘cats and dogs’ were getting in directly onto the stage so this caused a hold up to the second half of the play starting, however they did explain they had a technical problem and the show did get back underway.
I quite liked this theatre for the age it is and its location, not to far from Charing Cross so the train home is possible. It is surrounded by bars and restaurants which most of them do a pre-​theatre meal, otherwise after the event the bars are still open some longer then others.

A little tired and battered. The seats are small, even for west end sizes. The only decent leg room row seemed to be F, but I would check with theatre monkey — that website that theatres hate and I love!
The stalls bar (marked American Airlines) is so discrete that we walked past it several times before venturing in. It’s hot, small and crowded. I was expecting a diamond at the bottom of my wine as the only explanation for the price of alcohol there, but found nothing…

Very nice theatre, I especially loved the production of Love Story running early 2011, which I had to see twice in a week I loved it so much. Smaller theatre but not lacking in amenities. I will always give 4 stars though to these theatre’s that have terrible leg room.

Krapp’s Last Tape, with Michael Gambon.
I arrived late — bad, I know — and the polite staff ushered me quickly upstairs to a box (not the seat I paid for) so I could see the play but not disturb other patrons. Perfect ushering. The theatre is small, which is fine, but it shows it’s age.
As for the play, I was glad it was only 50 minutes. Mr. Gambon is a talent, of course, but this version of the production dragged.

A nice if small theatre very conveniently located between Covent garden and Holborn stations.
The bar areas get a little cramped during the intervals but this is to be expected of most theatres in london.
The ladies toilets, however, are refreshingly many and although a little cramped while queuing, being more than the usual 2 – 3 offered by most theatres, allows time to visit the bar or buy ice-​cream after the wait time!
The seats are an average size and I found there to be plenty of leg room.
Can be a little hard to find so look it up before you leave home!
A very enjoyable experience overall.

The Duchess opened on 25^th November, 1929 and is one of the smallest ‘proscenium arched’ West End theatres. It has 479 seats on two levels.
The nearest Underground stop in Covent Garden. I consider myself really good at finding my way around various cities around the world. London at Covent Garden was one exception. With all the people and dense street configurations, it took me a longer and more confusing period of time to find the Duchess.
I came here years ago to see Copenhagen, which was a mesmerizing 3 person show about WWII, nuclear physics, and Niels Bohr. The nuclear-​influenced staging was also an integral and fascinating part of the show.
And the fact that my son’s grandfather and Gayle’s Dad spent a great deal of their careers in the nuclear field was an interesting counterpoint to this first class production.