Mayflower Theatre
Encyclopedia
The Mayflower is a Grade II listed theatre
, in the city centre
of Southampton
, United Kingdom
, with a capacity of 2,300. It features West End theatre
shows when they tour the UK
. The theatre opened on the 22 December 1928, as The Empire Theatre, part of the Moss Empire theatre group. It was part of the company's expansion of the late 1920s, which also saw theatres constructed in Edinburgh
, Glasgow
, Liverpool
, Oxford
and The Dominion
, in London
.
At the time of construction, it was the largest theatre in the south of England
, a title it still holds. In the early days, many shows were transported by train. The theatre's proximity to Southampton Central railway station
made its location ideal, but meant that many shows were not as spectacular as their London counterparts. The theatre suffered in early days, to the arrival of cinema
, with sound or 'talkies'. This led to the 1933 installation of a projection box in the balcony and a screen, which could be raised and lowered at the front of the stage. By 1942, the theatre was mainly used as a cinema and was taken over by The Gaumont British Picture Corporation
.
As part of the Rank Organisation
, the theatre has hosted concerts by many famous artists, including Bill Haley & His Comets
in 1957, The Beatles
in 1963, The Rolling Stones
in 1966, Led Zeppelin
in 1972, Queen
in 1974, 1975 and 1977 and The Police
in 1979 and 1982.
The building was still, however, mainly used as a cinema, which was in decline, due to the rise of television. This led to Rank investigating a change of use to, either dance hall
or ten-pin bowling
alley. This did not happen and many other acts appeared, until the end of the 1980s, when acts preferred larger concert halls and arenas.
The theatre was threatened, with a change of use, again, in 1970, when an application was made to convert it into a bingo hall. This also did not happen, but the owners were still not making money. In 1982, the Rank, again, applied to Southampton City Council, for a change of licence, to turn the building into a bingo hall. This was refused in 1983, the year the building also achieved grade II listed status. The council instead offered to buy the building, for £650,000 and a refurbishment of £3 million. This led to the 1989 setting up of a charitable trust, with the lease for a peppercorn rent, to stop the theatre from becoming a political tool.
The theatre closed for major redevelopment in January 1986, with the entire stage area being improved and additional facilities, such as computerised box office, being added. The theatre opened, as The Mayflower, on 24 February 1987, with a production of Peter Pan
starring Bonnie Langford
, with the official opening gala, televised in May. Initial audiences proved disappointing and there was talk of the project being a white elephant
. This changed, with the introduction of major pantomime
s. These attracted huge audiences, peaking with 1994's Dick Whittington, starring Lesley Joseph
and John Nettles
, which attracted 126,256 theatregoers.
Musicals also made up a big part of the turnaround of the theatre. 1990 brought a full scale version of the West End
's 42nd Street
, followed by Evita. These proved huge successes and, along with the pantomimes, ensured the continued success of the theatre. Cats
arrived in 1994, bringing an audience of 125,000. This was followed by many other shows, including The Phantom of the Opera
, which achieved the record attendance of 185,000 in 2000.
In 2003, the theatre closed, again, for refurbishment. The main aspect, being the change of stage from a raked stage to a flat stage. Improvement for disabled access were also made, including the construction of a new lift. The theatre reopened, with the large scale production of Miss Saigon
, which would not have previously been possible. The run of major musicals has continued with a five-week run of Starlight Express
, in 2005 and shows, such as Saturday Night Fever
, Miss Saigon, The Rocky Horror Show
and Disney's
Beauty and the Beast
, in 2006. The tour of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
visited The Mayflower, for almost 3 months, in 2007. The 2007 Christmas show was Michael Rose and Chris Moreno's production of The Wizard of Oz
, starring Russ Abbot
, Gregor Fisher
, Gary Wilmot
and Matthew Kelly
, as The Wicked Witch of the West
. The 2008 season included Andrew Lloyd Webber's
Aspects of Love
and Cats
and the new productions of Zorro
and The Wedding Singer
. In 2009, the traditional Christmas show was Cinderella
, starring Christopher Biggins
, Matthew Kelly
and Stefanie Powers
.
Also in 2009, The Mayflower welcomed West Side Story
, Calendar Girls
and Evita, among other shows, before closing for three months, for massive development of the backstage areas, including a new scene dock and also refurbishment of the stalls and circle bar. The Season then continued, with LazyTown Live! The Pirate Adventure
, followed by shows, including The Sound of Music
and High School Musical 2. Shows already announced for 2010 included a return of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and the first national tour of Hairspray
. The Theatre has also been chosen for the 25th anniversary tour of Les Misérables
booking from 24 August to 11 September.
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
, in the city centre
Southampton City Centre
Southampton City Centre is the commercial and organisational centre of the City of Southampton, and the transport hub of the city. Because Southampton is on the South Coast of England, the city centre is not at the geometric centre of the city, but at the southern extremity.The traditional heart...
of Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, with a capacity of 2,300. It features West End theatre
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
shows when they tour the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The theatre opened on the 22 December 1928, as The Empire Theatre, part of the Moss Empire theatre group. It was part of the company's expansion of the late 1920s, which also saw theatres constructed in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
and The Dominion
Dominion Theatre
The Dominion Theatre is a West End theatre on Tottenham Court Road close to St Giles Circus and Centre Point Tower, in the London Borough of Camden.-History:...
, in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
At the time of construction, it was the largest theatre in the south of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, a title it still holds. In the early days, many shows were transported by train. The theatre's proximity to Southampton Central railway station
Southampton Central railway station
Southampton Central railway station is a main line railway station serving the city of Southampton in Hampshire, southern England. It is on the Wessex Main Line, the South Western Main Line and the West Coastway Line...
made its location ideal, but meant that many shows were not as spectacular as their London counterparts. The theatre suffered in early days, to the arrival of cinema
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, with sound or 'talkies'. This led to the 1933 installation of a projection box in the balcony and a screen, which could be raised and lowered at the front of the stage. By 1942, the theatre was mainly used as a cinema and was taken over by The Gaumont British Picture Corporation
Gaumont British
Gaumont-British Picture Corporation was the British arm of the French film company Gaumont. The company became independent of its French parent in 1922, when Isidore Ostrer acquired control of Gaumont-British....
.
As part of the Rank Organisation
Rank Organisation
The Rank Organisation was a British entertainment company formed during 1937 and absorbed in 1996 by The Rank Group Plc. It was the largest and most vertically-integrated film company in Britain, owning production, distribution and exhibition facilities....
, the theatre has hosted concerts by many famous artists, including Bill Haley & His Comets
Bill Haley & His Comets
Bill Haley & His Comets was an American rock and roll band that was founded in 1952 and continued until Haley's death in 1981. The band, also known by the names Bill Haley and The Comets and Bill Haley's Comets , was the earliest group of white musicians to bring rock and roll to the attention of...
in 1957, The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
in 1963, The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
in 1966, Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
in 1972, Queen
Queen (band)
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...
in 1974, 1975 and 1977 and The Police
The Police
The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...
in 1979 and 1982.
The building was still, however, mainly used as a cinema, which was in decline, due to the rise of television. This led to Rank investigating a change of use to, either dance hall
Dance hall
Dance hall in its general meaning is a hall for dancing. From the earliest years of the twentieth century until the early 1960s, the dance hall was the popular forerunner of the discothèque or nightclub...
or ten-pin bowling
Ten-pin bowling
Ten-pin bowling is a competitive sport in which a player rolls a bowling ball down a wooden or synthetic lane with the objective of scoring points by knocking down as many pins as possible.-Summary:The lane is bordered along its length by semicylindrical channels Ten-pin bowling (commonly just...
alley. This did not happen and many other acts appeared, until the end of the 1980s, when acts preferred larger concert halls and arenas.
The theatre was threatened, with a change of use, again, in 1970, when an application was made to convert it into a bingo hall. This also did not happen, but the owners were still not making money. In 1982, the Rank, again, applied to Southampton City Council, for a change of licence, to turn the building into a bingo hall. This was refused in 1983, the year the building also achieved grade II listed status. The council instead offered to buy the building, for £650,000 and a refurbishment of £3 million. This led to the 1989 setting up of a charitable trust, with the lease for a peppercorn rent, to stop the theatre from becoming a political tool.
The theatre closed for major redevelopment in January 1986, with the entire stage area being improved and additional facilities, such as computerised box office, being added. The theatre opened, as The Mayflower, on 24 February 1987, with a production of Peter Pan
Peter Pan
Peter Pan is a character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie . A mischievous boy who can fly and magically refuses to grow up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood adventuring on the small island of Neverland as the leader of his gang the Lost Boys, interacting with...
starring Bonnie Langford
Bonnie Langford
Bonita Melody Lysette "Bonnie" Langford is an English actress, dancer and entertainer. She came to prominence as a child star in the early 1970s then she subsequently became a companion of Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy's Doctor Who and has appeared on stage in various musicals such as Peter Pan:...
, with the official opening gala, televised in May. Initial audiences proved disappointing and there was talk of the project being a white elephant
White elephant
A white elephant is an idiom for a valuable but burdensome possession of which its owner cannot dispose and whose cost is out of proportion to its usefulness or worth...
. This changed, with the introduction of major pantomime
Pantomime
Pantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...
s. These attracted huge audiences, peaking with 1994's Dick Whittington, starring Lesley Joseph
Lesley Joseph
Lesley D Joseph is an English actress and broadcaster.-Life and career:Joseph was born in Northampton. She is best known for starring in the BBC sitcom Birds of a Feather from 1989–1998, in which she played Dorien Green, the Jewish next-door neighbour of the main characters Sharon and Tracy...
and John Nettles
John Nettles
John Vivian Drummond Nettles, OBE is an English actor, historian and writer who is best known for playing the lead roles in Bergerac and Midsomer Murders.-Early life:...
, which attracted 126,256 theatregoers.
Musicals also made up a big part of the turnaround of the theatre. 1990 brought a full scale version of the West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
's 42nd Street
42nd Street (musical)
42nd Street is a musical with a book by Michael Stewart and Mark Bramble, lyrics by Al Dubin, and music by Harry Warren. The 1980 Broadway production, directed by an ailing Gower Champion and orchestrated by Philip J. Lang, won the Tony Award for Best Musical and became a long-running hit...
, followed by Evita. These proved huge successes and, along with the pantomimes, ensured the continued success of the theatre. Cats
Cats (musical)
Cats is a musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot...
arrived in 1994, bringing an audience of 125,000. This was followed by many other shows, including The Phantom of the Opera
The Phantom of the Opera (1986 musical)
The Phantom of the Opera is a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the French novel Le Fantôme de l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux.The music was composed by Lloyd Webber, and most lyrics were written by Charles Hart, with additional lyrics by Richard Stilgoe. Alan Jay Lerner was an early collaborator,...
, which achieved the record attendance of 185,000 in 2000.
In 2003, the theatre closed, again, for refurbishment. The main aspect, being the change of stage from a raked stage to a flat stage. Improvement for disabled access were also made, including the construction of a new lift. The theatre reopened, with the large scale production of Miss Saigon
Miss Saigon
Miss Saigon is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby, Jr.. It is based on Giacomo Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly, and similarly tells the tragic tale of a doomed romance involving an Asian woman abandoned by her American lover...
, which would not have previously been possible. The run of major musicals has continued with a five-week run of Starlight Express
Starlight Express
Starlight Express is a rock musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber , Richard Stilgoe and Arlene Phillips , with later revisions by Don Black and David Yazbek . The story follows a child's dream in which his toy train set comes to life; famously the actors perform wearing roller skates...
, in 2005 and shows, such as Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever (musical)
This is an article about the stage musical. For the article on the 1977 film, see Saturday Night FeverSaturday Night Fever is a musical with a book by Nan Knighton and music and lyrics by the Bee Gees.Based on Nik Cohn's 1975 New York Magazine article "Tribal Rites of the New Saturday Night" and...
, Miss Saigon, The Rocky Horror Show
The Rocky Horror Show
The Rocky Horror Show is a long-running British horror comedy stage musical, which opened in London on 19 June 1973. It was written by Richard O'Brien, produced and directed by Jim Sharman. It came eighth in a BBC Radio 2 listener poll of the "Nation's Number One Essential Musicals"...
and Disney's
Walt Disney Theatrical
Disney Theatrical Group, also known as Disney Theatrical Productions, is the stageplay and musical production arm of The Walt Disney Company...
Beauty and the Beast
Beauty and the Beast (musical)
Beauty and the Beast is a musical with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice and a book by Linda Woolverton, based on the 1991 Disney film of the same name. Seven new songs were written for the stage musical...
, in 2006. The tour of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (musical)
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, also known as Chitty the Musical, is a stage musical based on the 1968 film produced by Cubby Broccoli. The music and lyrics were written by Richard and Robert Sherman with book by Jeremy Sams.-Productions:...
visited The Mayflower, for almost 3 months, in 2007. The 2007 Christmas show was Michael Rose and Chris Moreno's production of The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (adaptations)
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a 1900 novel by L. Frank Baum, which has been adapted into several different works, the most famous being the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, starring Judy Garland...
, starring Russ Abbot
Russ Abbot
Russ Abbot is an English musician, comedian and actor who first came to public notice during the 1970s as the singer and drummer with British comedy showband the Black Abbots, later forging a prominent solo career as a television comedian with his own weekly show on British television.Continuing...
, Gregor Fisher
Gregor Fisher
Gregor Fisher is a Scottish comedian and actor.-Early life:Fisher was born in Glasgow and following the death of his parents was brought up in Edinburgh, Langholm and Neilston and attended Barrhead High School...
, Gary Wilmot
Gary Wilmot
Gary Wilmot is an English actor, writer, comedian, impressionist and singer. He rose to fame in the 80s through a number of television appearances, and subsequently moved into theatre.- Career :...
and Matthew Kelly
Matthew Kelly
Matthew Kelly is an English television presenter and Olivier-award winning actor. Having been trained as a theatre actor, he first came to public prominence as a television presenter of ITV light entertainment shows such as You Bet! and Stars in Their Eyes...
, as The Wicked Witch of the West
Wicked Witch of the West
The Wicked Witch of the West is a fictional character and the most significant antagonist in L. Frank Baum's children's book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz...
. The 2008 season included Andrew Lloyd Webber's
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
Aspects of Love
Aspects of Love
Aspects of Love is a musical/chamber opera with a book and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Don Black and Charles Hart. It is famous for the song "Love Changes Everything."...
and Cats
Cats (musical)
Cats is a musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot...
and the new productions of Zorro
Zorro (musical)
Zorro is a musical with music by the Gipsy Kings and John Cameron, a book by Stephen Clark and Helen Edmundson, and lyrics by Stephen Clark. It is based on the 2005 mock biography Zorro, the first origin story of the pulp hero Zorro, written by Chilean author Isabel Allende...
and The Wedding Singer
The Wedding Singer (musical)
The Wedding Singer is a musical with music by Matthew Sklar, lyrics by Chad Beguelin, and a book by Chad Beguelin and Tim Herlihy. It is based on the 1998 film The Wedding Singer.-Synopsis:Act 1...
. In 2009, the traditional Christmas show was Cinderella
Cinderella
"Cinderella; or, The Little Glass Slipper" is a folk tale embodying a myth-element of unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the world. The title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances that are suddenly changed to remarkable fortune...
, starring Christopher Biggins
Christopher Biggins
Christopher Kenneth Biggins is an English actor and media personality.-Career:Biggins was born in Oldham, Lancashire, England and brought up in Salisbury, Wiltshire, where he took elocution lessons and participated in local drama groups...
, Matthew Kelly
Matthew Kelly
Matthew Kelly is an English television presenter and Olivier-award winning actor. Having been trained as a theatre actor, he first came to public prominence as a television presenter of ITV light entertainment shows such as You Bet! and Stars in Their Eyes...
and Stefanie Powers
Stefanie Powers
Stefanie Powers is an American actress best known for her role as Jennifer Hart in the 1980s television series Hart to Hart.-Early life:...
.
Also in 2009, The Mayflower welcomed West Side Story
West Side Story
West Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...
, Calendar Girls
Calendar Girls (play)
Calendar Girls is a stage play based on the film of the same nameAfter a successful tryout at the Chichester Festival Theatre and a lengthy national tour, a stage adaptation of the film started previewing in April 2009 at the Noel Coward Theatre in the West End. The cast included Lynda Bellingham,...
and Evita, among other shows, before closing for three months, for massive development of the backstage areas, including a new scene dock and also refurbishment of the stalls and circle bar. The Season then continued, with LazyTown Live! The Pirate Adventure
LazyTown
LazyTown is a children's television program that was produced in Iceland with a cast and crew from Iceland, the United Kingdom and the United States. It was created by Magnús Scheving, a gymnastics champion and CEO of LazyTown Entertainment, who also stars in the show...
, followed by shows, including The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music is a musical by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers...
and High School Musical 2. Shows already announced for 2010 included a return of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and the first national tour of Hairspray
Hairspray (musical)
Hairspray is a musical with music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Scott Wittman and Shaiman and a book by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, based on the 1988 John Waters film Hairspray. The songs include 1960s-style dance music and "downtown" rhythm and blues...
. The Theatre has also been chosen for the 25th anniversary tour of Les Misérables
Les Misérables (musical)
Les Misérables , colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz , is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo....
booking from 24 August to 11 September.