A Grade II listed art deco theatre in the heart of London's West End
The Dominion today
Perfectly positioned above Tottenham Court Road tube station, the Dominion is one of the West End’s largest theatres.
Built in 1929, the Dominion Theatre was acquired by the Nederlander Organization in 1992 before starting to operate independently as Nederlander Dominion Limited in 2009.
A Grade II listed building, the Dominion has a varied and colourful history as a cinema, variety hall and music venue, but in recent decades has returned to its musical theatre roots.
From associations with Charlie Chaplin, a legendary run of The Judy Garland Show, epic cinematic runs of South Pacific and The Sound of Music, blockbusting musicals and Royal visits – the Dominion’s fascinating past is worth checking out below.
A gorgeous traditional big theatre that oozes quality and a history of great shows. Lovely, helpful staff.
Restoration
We are always working hard to ensure that the Dominion remains the best that it can be, enhancing its original art deco features while also ensuring it has all that audiences need in a busy 21st century theatre, taking advantage of modern technology and sustainable materials.
A multi-million-pound restoration project in 2014 enhanced the theatre’s stunning original art deco features, with repairs to the original façade stonework, the reinstatement of the orchestra pit, and full refurbishment of the auditorium, foyers, bars and box office.
Most recently, in 2019, we modernised our stage and backstage area to allow more flexibility for future productions and greater accessibility backstage.
Explore below to find out how various areas of the building have been lovingly restored and updated.
The Stage
In 2019, we transformed our stage into a more versatile modular stage, allowing for more flexibility for future production and helping us to house larger-scale shows.
Backstage
A new flying system added in 2014 helps us make scene changes as smooth as possible, and a new platform lift added inside stage door in 2019 increased accessibility backstage, with level access to each floor as well as the stage itself.
Front of House
Nearly 1.2 acres of bespoke carpet was laid front of house in 2014, with a design inspired by plaster, wood and metalwork details from around the theatre. Knowing how frustrating it can be to spend half the interval queuing for the toilet, we added in extra cubicles where possible to reduce waiting times, and refurbished all 95 of our front-of-house toilets to make them the best they can be for our audiences.
The Auditorium
The full refurbishment of the auditorium in 2014 saw all seats reupholstered, new lighting fixtures and handrails, and over 170 hours of painting and restoration to lovingly repair the beautiful 80+ ft proscenium arch. Previously unused since Beauty and the Beast in 2001, the orchestra pit was also restored and enlarged, allowing us to house a 21 piece orchestra.
The Front Elevation
Stone repairs and thorough cleaning gave the theatre’s facade a much-needed revival after years of pollution and discolouring. One of the most exciting projects was the reinstatement of a huge ornate stone depicting two gryphons above the windows. It is believed to have been removed in 1932 to make way for an aeroplane which was placed on the canopy during the musical ‘Silver Wings’.
The Stage
In 2019, we transformed our stage into a more versatile modular stage, allowing for more flexibility for future production and helping us to house larger-scale shows.
Backstage
A new flying system added in 2014 helps us make scene changes as smooth as possible, and a new platform lift added inside stage door in 2019 increased accessibility backstage, with level access to each floor as well as the stage itself.
Front of House
Nearly 1.2 acres of bespoke carpet was laid front of house in 2014, with a design inspired by plaster, wood and metalwork details from around the theatre. Knowing how frustrating it can be to spend half the interval queuing for the toilet, we added in extra cubicles where possible to reduce waiting times, and refurbished all 95 of our front-of-house toilets to make them the best they can be for our audiences.
The Auditorium
The full refurbishment of the auditorium in 2014 saw all seats reupholstered, new lighting fixtures and handrails, and over 170 hours of painting and restoration to lovingly repair the beautiful 80+ ft proscenium arch. Previously unused since Beauty and the Beast in 2001, the orchestra pit was also restored and enlarged, allowing us to house a 21 piece orchestra.
The Front Elevation
Stone repairs and thorough cleaning gave the theatre’s facade a much-needed revival after years of pollution and discolouring. One of the most exciting projects was the reinstatement of a huge ornate stone depicting two gryphons above the windows. It is believed to have been removed in 1932 to make way for an aeroplane which was placed on the canopy during the musical ‘Silver Wings’.
History of the Dominion
1929
The Dominion opened its doors on 3 October with musical comedy ‘Follow
Through‘. With a third tier of seating that has since been removed, the original
seated capacity was a massive 2,841.
1931
The theatre became a venue for the newest development in motion pictures, the
feature film, hosting the premiere of Charlie Chaplin’s City Lights in February 1931.
1938
John Logie Baird demonstrated colour television broadcast transmissions publicly for the first time at the theatre, with a packed house watching pictures sent by radio link from Crystal Palace.
1957
Hollywood legend Judy Garland performed a month-long residency of The Judy Garland Show.
1958
The film of South Pacific ran for four and a half years from 1958, beginning the Dominion’s career as a 'Roadshow Cinema', when it would have been the only cinema in the area showing a film, and screenings were treated like live shows, complete with an overture and intermission.
1963
The Dominion continued to thrive as a cinema, hosting the European premieres of Cleopatra in 1963 and The Sound of Music in 1965.
1977
Star Wars premiered jointly at the Dominion and Leicester Square Theatre. Sequels The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi premiered at the Dominion in 1980 and 1983.
1983
A popular music venue from the late 1970s, the Dominion hosted many iconic
acts, including David Bowie, Madness and Bon Jovi. In 1983, Dolly Parton filmed her concert at the theatre and released it as the television special Dolly in London.
1986
The Dominion returned to its musical theatre roots with the world premiere of Dave Clark’s Time, starring Cliff Richard. The show’s album featured many other stars, including Freddie Mercury, who filmed the music video for his single Time on the Dominion stage.
1992
The Royal Variety Performance was held at the Dominion for the first of seven times.
1993
Grease ran for three years, featuring many familiar faces, including Shane Richie, Samantha Womack, and Adam Garcia.
1997
Walt Disney Theatrical Productions’ Beauty and the Beast opened, going on to win Best New Musical at the 1998 Olivier Awards
2002
Theatrical rock phenomenon We Will Rock You made its world premiere, starting an epic 12 year run, during which time the Freddie Mercury statue on the theatre canopy became a landmark in its own right.
2015
A 10-week run of Elf the Musical broke all previous box office records.
2017
An American in Paris received a record-setting 28 five-star reviews from UK critics.
2022
The theatre returned from pandemic closures with the most successful year in its recent history, with 65,000 paid audience members enjoying Dirty Dancing, Grease and Elf.
FAQS
Find answers to commonly asked questions about the Dominion.
Hospitality
Upgrade your visit with our bespoke hospitality packages.
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