Trafalgar Entertainment to open 1,575-seat ‘landmark’ theatre in west London

Trafalgar Entertainment has been confirmed as the operator of a 1,575-seat theatre in west London, the largest permanent theatre to be created in the capital in almost 100 years.

The project has been described by Trafalgar Entertainment chief Howard Panter as "the chance of a lifetime" to construct a forward-looking, "multi-faceted" entertainment venue for 21st-century audiences.

Trafalgar Entertainment has been granted a 35-year lease to operate the theatre, with the option to extend for a further 35 years, in an agreement with developers Yoo Capital and Deutsche Finance International.

Currently under construction on the Olympia site in west London, the theatre – which The Stage understands will cost about £100 million in total to build – is scheduled to open in 2025 and will be operated by Trafalgar Entertainment. Its planned programme will feature large-scale theatre and entertainment, with the potential to stage both visiting and commissioned work, Panter said.

The theatre will have stacked seating in an auditorium designed by Haworth Tompkins, which the company said would allow every audience member to "feel close to the stage".

Once complete, it is thought it will be the first permanent commercial theatre of its size to be built in London since the West End’s Prince Edward in 1930, which has 1,600 seats.

Other theatres of a similar scale constructed in the capital include the 1,150-seat Olivier, built as part of the National Theatre in 1976, while the New London – now the Gillian Lynne – was built in the West End in 1973 with a capacity of just over 1,100. It has since increased in size.

Panter, Trafalgar Entertainment’s co-founder, told The Stage: "I’ve run or worked in every venue in London, and, hand on heart, I can say this is exceptional.

"What an opportunity and a privilege to be able to work on something from a blank sheet of paper.”

"It’s exciting for our industry, it’s tremendous and it’s a great vote of confidence in the cultural sector and theatre in London," he added.

Once open, Panter hopes programming will be varied.

"It’s going to be work of scale, clearly, but it could be of a Disney-scale, it could be of a Cirque du Soleil-scale, and it could have work we commission especially for it," he said, adding the company is already in discussions with major international artists and directors about creating work for the space.