Garrick Theatre

Garrick Theatre, Victorian-built West End theatre situated on Charing Cross Road, London, and named after the famous British actor of the 18th century, David Garrick. The theatre, with its Neo-Classical façade, was built for W. S. Gilbert. When an underground river flooded the site during construction, Gilbert supposedly commented that he might do better to abandon the theatre project and instead let the fishing rights. The theatre opened in 1889 with a production of The Profligate by Sir Arthur Wing Pinero. In 1895 the production of another Pinero play, The Notorious Mrs Ebbsmith, starring Mrs Patrick Campbell, led to notoriety for the theatre itself when a woman named Ebbsmith was found dead, carrying a ticket for the show. From 1915 to 1939, the theatre housed mostly revues and was then closed for a period until 1941. It fared better in later years, and during the 1960s housed many popular farces, often starring Brian Rix. From 1995 to 2001 the Garrick played host to a long-running and critically acclaimed Royal National Theatre production of An Inspector Calls by J. B. Priestley, directed by Stephen Daldry. The auditorium seats 678 people, and some of the original elaborate plaster decoration, featuring cupids, shields, and laurels, remains in the interior. It is currently managed by Really Useful Theatres.