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Odeon West End

122

The Leicester Square Theatre (now the Odeon West End), opened in 1930 and was designed by Andrew Mather. It was initially intended as a live theatre, but there were problems acquiring adjacent properties and as a result the stage space proved insufficient, so it opened as a dual purpose live theatre/cinema with 1,760 seats in stalls, circle and balcony levels. Originally there were three boxes adjacent to each side of the proscenium at dress circle level, but these were only used during live performances. The foyer walls were decorated with polished black marble. The auditorium was in the French Renaissance style and had pilasters, a decorative frieze at high level, a central dome feature and a deep coved square proscenium topped with a huge cartouche. It was equipped with a Wurlitzer 3Manual/10Rank theatre organ and the auditorium was semi-atmospheric. It was re-named Olympic Theatre in 1932 and the owners commissioned architect Alister G. MacDonald to re-design the entrance and the interior was re-designed by Edward Carrick. A revolve was installed in the centre of the stage at this time. In August 1932 films were dropped in favour of non-stop variety shows, however, it became a full time cinema in 1933 and was re-named the Leicester Square Theatre. It was closed for a year during 1940/1941 when it suffered bomb damage. In 1969 the cinema underwent a complete interior re-construction. The detailed French Renaissance style interior was removed, as was the Wurlitzer organ. Architects Arnold Dick Associates designed a single screen cinema within the shell of the building, with a stalls and circle seating areas (removing the balcony) and the interior design was by Cassidy, Farrington and Dennys. Seating was provided for 1,402; 900 in the stalls and 507 in the circle. The Theatre was re-named Odeon West End in 1988. It closed for twinning in 1991, re-opening with screen 1 upstairs seating 500 and screen 2 downstairs with 834 seats. The historic facade remains virtually untouched, although the front is now obscured in part by signage which cuts across the classical detail. The entrance and lobby have been significantly altered. There are some ‘archaeological’ remains of his designs above the false ceiling of the upper screen. The grid is still in situ but there is no stage. The dressing rooms have been converted to offices. The building is essentially a cinema, but with some recognisable theatrical attributes surviving from the original design. The fly tower is externally complete with haystack lantern and an original temporary enclosure on the east side where an extension over the adjoining, still vacant, site was never built. In October 2008, plans were approved by Westminster Council, to demolish the Odeon West End and build a 240-bed hotel on the site.

Built / Converted
1930
Dates of use
  • 1930 - 1937: Cinema and theatre
  • 1937 - 2014: Cinema
Current state
Extant
Current use
Dark
Address
40 Leicester Square, London, Westminster, WC2H 7LP, England
Website-
Further details
Other names
Leicester Square Theatre , RKO Theatre Leicester Square , Olympic , Leicester Square Theatre (again)
Events
  • 1930 Design/Construction:
    Andrew Mather
    - Architect
  • 1930 - 1937 Use: Cinema and theatre
  • 1931 Alteration: interior redesigned; revolving stage installed
    Edward Carrick
    - Architect
  • 1932 Alteration: entrance redesigned
    Alister MacDonald
    - Architect
  • 1937 - 2014 Use: Cinema
  • 1955 Alteration: new canopy erected; entrance remodelled (architect unknown).
  • 1968 Alteration: major refurbishment, new auditorium, gallery closed, façade altered
    Arnold Dick Assocs with Cassidy Farrington & Dennys
    - Architect
  • 1991 Alteration: twinned
    Northern Architects
    - Architect
Capacities
  • Capacity
    Original
    Description
    1760
  • Capacity
    Later
    Description
    1968: 1407
Listings
  • Listing
    Unknown
Stage type
None now
Building dimensions: -
Stage dimensions: -
Proscenium width: -
Height to grid: -
Inside proscenium: -
Orchestra pit: None now