Materials related to the Royal English Opera House and beyond, 1891-1983

This material is held atV&A Theatre and Performance Collections

  • Reference
    • GB 71 THM/73/3
  • Dates of Creation
    • 1891-1983
  • Physical Description
    • 9 folders and 1 volume

Scope and Content

Agreement documents, a public notice, a published monograph and related documents.

Administrative / Biographical History

D'Oyly Carte commissioned the building of the Royal English Opera House as a venue for Sullivan's grand opera. It opened with Sullivan and Julian Sturgis's Ivanhoe in January 1891. This was followed by André Messager and Albert Carré's La Basoche which closed in 1892, after which D'Oyly Carte leased the theatre to Henry Abbey and Maurice Grau for a Sarah Bernhardt season. D'Oyly Carte sold the theatre to Augustus Harris in 1892 and it reopened as the Palace Theatre of Varieties.