The Play That Goes Wrong would have been delighted to announce its 1000th performance. However, in true goes wrong fashion, producers of the hit play have realised that due to an incompetent miscount, they have missed their landmark performance which was last night and so are celebrating their 1001st performance tonight. Awarded the 2014 Whatsonstage.com Best New Comedy and the 2015 Olivier Award for Best New Comedy, The Play That Goes Wrong continues to thrive in the West End. It is a … [Read more...]
Duchess Theatre London Tickets for The Play that Goes Wrong
Fawlty Towers meets Noises Off in this new hit comedy direct from the West End. The Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society attempt to put on a 1920s murder mystery, but as the title suggests, everything that can go wrong… does, as the accident-prone thesps battle on against all the odds to get to their final curtain call.
This brilliant new laugh out loud comedy performed by Mischief Theatre Company has enjoyed two successful runs in the West End and was the sell out smash hit of the Edinburgh Festival with its sensational reviews, numerous accolades and awards. The Play That Goes Wrong is guaranteed to leave you aching with laughter!
The Play that Goes Wrong is written by Mischief Theatre company’s Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields and directed by Mark Bell. Design by Nigel Cook and lighting by Ric Mountjoy.
Purchase tickets for The Play That Goes Wrong
Evenings: Wednesday to Sunday 7.30pm
Matinees: Thursday and Saturday 2.30pm, and Sunday 3.00pm
Running Time: 2 Hours 5 Minutes
Age Restrictions: Suitable for ages 8+
Duchess Theatre Seating Plan
The Play That Goes Wrong West End Trailer
The Duchess Theatre London
3-5 Catherine Street, London, WC2B 5LA
Duchess Theatre Venue and Travel Information
Nearest Tube: Covent Garden
Tube Lines: Piccadilly
Directions from nearest tube: Go right on Long Acre; turn right into Bow Street and after 100 metres turn left (Russell Street) then immediately right onto Catherine Street, where the theatre is located 100 metres down.
Railway Station: Charing Cross
Bus Numbers: (Aldwych) RV1, 6, 11, 13, 23, 59, 68, 87, 171, 172, 188, X68
Night Bus Numbers: (Aldwych) 6, 23, 188, N11, N13, N26, N47, N68, N87, N89, N155, N171, N551
Car Park: Drury Lane, Parker Street
Within Congestion Zone: Yes
Venue Facilities: Bar, Disabled toilets, Infrared hearing loop, Toilets, Wheelchair accessible
Duchess Theatre London UK Brief History
Opening on 25th November, 1929 The Duchess Theatre has one of the smallest proscenium arched in the West End theatres. The circle, which is somewhat narrower than the stalls, was also unusual for the time period. Notable productions at the theatre include, Noel Coward’s Blithe Spirit in 1942 (which transferred from the Piccadilly Theatre on to St James’ Theatre before arriving at the Duchess Theatre where it completed 1,997 performances.
The 1970′s brought somewhat raunchy shows in the form of The Dirtiest Show in Town for just under 800 performances. In December 1974 the production of Oh, Calcutta! transferred to the theatre from the Royalty Theatre and remained there until 1980. From 1987 to 1990 The Players Theatre company presented Late Joys Victorian Music Hall programme. The mid-90′s saw a successful run of Marc Camoletti’s Don’t Dress For Dinner which had transferred from the Apollo Theatre in October 1992 and stayed until 1st March, 1997. A further successful production was the Royal Shakespeare Company’s The Herbal Bed by Peter Whelan which run from April to October 1997.
SELECTED RECENT PRODUCTIONS
2000 In January the Duchess became a Really Useful Theatre when Lord Lloyd-Webber’s Really Useful Group and Bridgepoint Capital purchased Stoll Moss Theatres Ltd.
2001 The auditorium was transformed to recreate the Cottesloe in the round layout for Blue/Orange by Joe Penhall, with Bill Nighy and the original National Theatre cast. This was followed by the Irish comedy Alone it Stands.
2002 Life After George with Stephen Dillane. The Glee Club and David Hare returned to the West End with Via Dolorosa prior to the opening of Alan Ayckbourn’s Damsels in Distress.
2003 The year started with Gyles Brandreth’s Zipp! Through the Leaves and Harold Pinter’s Betrayal.
2004 Hershey Felder as George Gershwin Alone. Coyote on a Fence and Novel Theatre Company’s adaptation of Little Women.
2005 David Suchet in Man and Boy by Terence Rattigan, The Birthday Party revived with Eileen Atkins and Henry Goodman, and Maureen Lipman in Glorious by Peter Quilter.
2006 Stones in his Pockets by Marie Jones, starring Conrad Kemp and John Cronin.
2007 The musical Buddy - The Buddy Holly Story.
2009 Plague Over England with Michael Feast and Celia Imrie, Collaboration and Taking Sides, with Michael Pennington and David Horowitz, and Endgame with Mark Rylance, Simon McBurney, Miriam Margolyes and Tom Hickey.
2010 Morecambe starring Bob Golding, Ghosts starring Lesley Sharp, The Fantasticks, and Krapp's Last Tape starring Michael Gambon.
2011 Simon Gray's Butley starring Dominic West and Paul McGann, Ruby Wax: Losing It, and The Pitmen Painters.
2012 The RSC's Written on the Heart, The Hurly Burly Show, Our Boys starring Laurence Fox and Arthur Darvill.
2013 Alan Bennett's Untold Stories starring Alex Jennings, August Wilson's Fences starring Lenny Henry and Bertolt Brecht's The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui starring Henry Goodman.
2014 Bakersfield Mist starring Kathleen Turner, then The Play That Goes Wrong
The Play That Goes Wrong announces Broadway transfer
Producers Kevin McCollum, J. J. Abrams, Kenny Wax, Stage Presence Ltd. and Catherine Schreiber have announced that the Mischief Theatre production of The Play That Goes Wrong, the Olivier Award-winning West End hit comedy, will arrive on Broadway in Spring 2017. The Play That Goes Wrong will begin performances Thursday, March 9 and officially open on Sunday, April 2, 2017 at The Lyceum Theatre (149 West 45 Street). Special $25 pre-sale tickets are now available in all orchestra and front … [Read more...]
Review of The Play That Goes Wrong London West End
The Play That Goes Wrong is a phenomenon, a full-on slapstick comedy performed and written with such a heads down let’s gallop on through this verve that it’s hard not to get swept along. If there’s a joke within a quarter mile radius or a bit of physical comedy that could have been left out then they are having it. Everything from the cast to the set is used to the maximum, and it’s great fun to experience. From the moment you arrive at the Duchess Theatre, you are immersed in the play. My … [Read more...]
The Play That Goes Wrong recoups after 12 weeks in West End
The producers of THE PLAY THAT GOES WRONG have announced that something has gone stunningly right. With their advertising campaign encouraging people to 'SAVE MONEY - DON'T COME' which evidently has not worked, the show that they capitalised in the West End for £250,000 and opened at the Duchess Theatre at the beginning of September, written by and starring unknown out of work actors, has already recouped all of its production costs and is now turning a weekly profit. It is an extraordinary … [Read more...]
Review of The Play That Goes Wrong at the Duchess Theatre
Never before has the title of a play been so apt, The Play That Goes Wrong, certainly lives up to its title and much more besides. Having already enjoyed two successful runs in the West End and sell-out success at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, The Play That Goes Wrong has now set up home at the Duchess Theatre in the West End of London. Having picked up many awards and high accolades along the way, The Play That Goes Wrong seems to be going from strength to strength. The Cornley Polytechnic … [Read more...]
THE PLAY THAT GOES WRONG to transfer to West End Duchess Theatre
Following a successful UK tour, The Play That Goes Wrong will open at The Duchess Theatre on 14th September 2014, with previews from 5th September, 2014. Fawlty Towers meets Noises Off in this new hit comedy Direct from the West End - See more at: The Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society attempt to put on a 1920's murder mystery, but as the title suggests, everything that can go wrong… does, as the accident-prone thesps battle on against all the odds to get to their final curtain call. This … [Read more...]
Review of The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui Duchess Theatre
The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui was written in 1941 by Bertolt Brecht, a German Marxist theatre practitioner, playwright and poet, while in exile in Finland. I was familiar with his style (known as ‘Epic Theatre’) through my university days. Though fascinated with his work during my studies, my initial thoughts were ‘how would a modern day West End audience relate to it?’ Although it’s not essential for the audience to know the details of Nazi Germany or Brecht’s practice methods, it was … [Read more...]