The Aldwych Theatre

The Aldwych Theatre is a theatre built in 1905 by W.G.R. Sprague. It features a Portland stone façade and a concealed roof, showcasing a lively Free classical style with influences from the Beaux Arts. The theatre is part of the Aldwych-Kingsway development and was designed to complement the Strand Theatre, creating a symmetrical composition alongside the Waldorf Hotel.

The building has four storeys plus an attic. Both the Aldwych and Drury Lane elevations are identical, each with three windows, and are connected by a two-window wide corner entrance pavilion that is inset and bowed. The ground and first floors are designed as a rusticated podium, with the entrance located under a canopy that extends to both fronts. The first floor features arcaded windows, while above it, a giant engaged Ionic order rises to embrace the second and third floors, where the second floor windows are styled as steep pedimented Venetian windows. The tall attic storey is fronted by applied pediments and features an attic cornice and blocking course topped with ball finials. The design includes generous high and low-relief statuary groups, swags, pendants, and reverse scrolls, with each pedimented attic carrying a statuary group on a die. The Drury Lane façade continues as a lower red brick wing with stone dressings.

Inside, the theatre has a semi-elliptical vestibule and a two-storeyed foyer styled in the 17th century with stucco work, a gallery, and a staircase that rises in one flight and returns in two. The elegant auditorium is designed in the Beaux Arts Dixhuitieme style, featuring two cantilevered balconies and a coffered dome ceiling. The stucco work in the auditorium displays a classical superimposition of three orders, adorned with finely executed pendants, trophies, and be-ribboned wreaths, along with tiers of boxes flanking the proscenium.