The Royal Court Theater is a striking redbrick Italianate theater house right at Sloane Square, serving as a reminder that there is good theater outside of the West End of London. Opening in 1888 as the New Court Theater, many of the plays of George Bernard Shaw were produced there in its heyday. In the 1930’s the theater became a movie house and damage during WWII closed it all together.

Reopening in the 1950’s under ownership of its own resident company, the English Stage Company, the Royal Court Theater struggled. The building had dangerously deteriorated and there was frequent flooding in the under stage of the building. In 1996 with over £16.2 million in grant money from the National Lottery and the Arts Council, the Royal Court Theater was completely rebuilt. Today it is “Britain’s leading national company, dedicated to new work by innovative writers from the UK and around the world”. The New York Times described it as ‘the most important theatre in Europe’. See what’s playing.

www.royalcourttheatre.com