Gillian Lynne Theatre — Attraction in London

À terrible experience..... Bought 6 tickets for the Totoro musical in London for my French family (2 sons, husband and parents in law) and me, 48 pounds each seat. We arrive at the theater and a lady asks my son how old he is, in English and then in French. He shows his 3 fingers and answers in French his age. She then says he can't come in because he's not 4 yet.... It was on the 25th of April and my son was born on May 8th.......!!!!!! I tried to explain how ridiculous the rule was, given that he was turning 4 only 15 days later.... She heard nothing. My older son cried, understanding what was happening and that his little brother couldn't watch the show, and I cried too from anger witnessing how unfair it was.... The thing is I've always followed the rules because they make sense.... But here?!? They don't. If an under 4yo really cannot enter that theater then they should ask for every child's ID because I'm sure there were plenty of other 3yo kids in the audience who lied and answered "4" correctly... Since the people of the theater believe what they hear from 3 and 4yo children.... Then when my son asked for the loos, I was escorted with him like a criminal. The theatre woman offered nothing to give him a bit of comfort (like the booklet of the show or a stupid keyring or whatever, that would have been nice given that we had paid nearly 100 pounds for 2 seats we didn't use....). The finally thing I want to say..... We swapped with my husband at the interval so I could watch the 2nd part of the show and he stayed with our younger son, and I was shocked to see appear people with signs DON'T TAKE PHOTOS OF TOTORO AND HIS FRIENDS at the end of the show when the comedians come and say goodbye on stage. One person in front of me apparently took a picture so one person holding the sign went and asked the person to delete the picture 😑 how ridiculous it was.....!! Anyway, disappointed and disgusted by what we witnessed and lived. They have no empathy for kids. I will never understand what happened because it...

My friend and I went to see Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber's - Cinderella Musical here at the Gillian Lynne Theatre on Thurs 11th Nov 2021. I was wondering where the theatre was as it was a new one I had never heard of, however it was very easy to find. If you are coming through from Tottenham Court Rd and go past The Shaftesbury Theatre (&Juliet) and keep walking up the road to the traffic lines, you come to Dury Lane which is on your right and the theatre is literally 3 mins away.

The theatre is unlike most ornate/art deco/older architecture style theatres in London but has its own character. The theatre is very rectangular and modern from the outside. Upon arrival bags were checked and we were asked to show Covid-19 status. What was a surprise is the escalator to go up to the first level. Then in the foyer you can buy drinks from the bar and merchandise from the stands before going into the auditorium.

It is very modern and the seating is like a plush purple which is very nice. Seats are comfortable but leg room a little scare. We were on the Balcony, Row A, Seats 19, & 20 so very close to the stage but had a very good view. The staging, props and costumes of this show are phenomenal. You can tell they went to town with the budget. There is also a surprise throughout the show if you attend which I won't give away but is incredible in terms of technology/set/craft design.

This spin on Cinderella is not quite like the classic fairy tale version we all know as the character is cast as "Bad Cinderella" so she has edge but it is a phenomenal musical and you will have a great time. It can get chilly as there is a modern air con system but its good so you don't get stuffy. Would definitely recommend coming to see Cinderella if you...

This review is based on the latecomers’ policy. I fully understand the importance of arriving on time to a performance—it’s disruptive to others otherwise, and I pride myself on being very punctual.

Unfortunately, my husband and I lost track of time while chatting at a nearby bar as we waited for the performance to start. When we realized it was already 7 PM, we rushed over as quickly as we could, arriving about five minutes late.

At the door, the staff checked our bags and scanned our tickets before informing us that, due to the latecomers’ policy, we would be escorted by another staff member to a room where we could watch the performance on TV. While we understood the reasoning and complied, the experience that followed left much to be desired.

The “viewing room” turned out to be a corner of the bar, with a small TV set up and a few chairs. At one point, we overheard another guest ask a staff member to increase the volume, only to be told that the performance was silent. Whether this was because the Lenham Brothers show is inherently a silent production or because they refused to turn up the sound was unclear. To make matters worse, the performance on the screen was in black and white, making it feel like a low-quality broadcast rather than a live experience.

Frustrated, we decided to leave. Honestly, I would have preferred they told us at the door that entry was not permitted after the performance began, rather than subjecting us to such a subpar and frankly humiliating alternative. I’d rather watch a documentary on YouTube for free.

Would I return? I’m not going to lie—I probably would if the performance was compelling enough. However, potential guests should be aware of this poorly handled...