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Phoenix Theatre

The Phoenix Theatre opened in 1930 with the premiere of Noel Coward''s Private Lives featuring Coward himself in the cast, along with Gertrude Lawrence, Adrienne Allen and a young Laurence Olivier.

History of the Phoenix Theatre

While the elevation of this theatre which fronts onto Charing Cross Road looks rather drab, the art deco interior with extensive use of mirrors which was designed by the Russian director and designer Theodore Komisarjevsky, is wonderful. In the 1970's the entrance to the theatre was moved from Charing Cross Road to around the corner in Phoenix Street, while the Advance Box Office is actually half way between the two in Charing Cross Road - very confusing! In 1986 part of the adjacent car park, which had been a former bomb site, was used to build a cinema, but this has now been demolished to make way for a residential development.