Theatre Royal Brighton

Theatre Royal Brighton is a Grade II* listed playhouse on New Road in the centre of Brighton, and one of the oldest working theatres in the country. Opened in 1807, it has spent more than two centuries hosting West End and touring productions, and it remains a favourite stop for shows heading to London or arriving fresh from a run there. Behind its historic frontage sits an intimate four level auditorium seating 952, with bars, a cloakroom and the Ambassador Lounge for table service. It is owned and run by ATG Entertainment.

The Prince of Wales, later George IV, gave his assent for a theatre on the site in 1806, and the building opened on 27 June 1807 with a performance of Shakespeare's Hamlet. The early years were a financial struggle until the actor Henry John Nye Chart bought the theatre in 1854 and brought in the theatre architect Charles J. Phipps to lead a programme of expansion and redevelopment.

That investment turned the Royal into a respected house. When Nye Chart died in 1876 his wife, Ellen Elizabeth Nye Chart, took over and became one of the first female theatre managers in the country, continuing the theatre's success; a statue in her honour stands in the Royal Circle bar. Prosperity in 1920 allowed the directors to buy neighbouring properties, the Colonnade Hotel followed in 1923, now the Colonnade bar, and the last major enlargement of the auditorium came in 1927.

Walter Hackett's Other Men's Wives premiered here in 1928 before transferring to the West End, and later premieres included The Ninth Man in 1931, Frieda in 1946, Young Wives' Tale in 1949, Escapade in 1952 and Not in the Book in 1958. Through the middle and later twentieth century the theatre was a regular try out date for plays by Ibsen, Rattigan, Coward and Orton ahead of London runs, with the Redgrave family, Laurence Olivier, John Gielgud, Charlton Heston, Marlene Dietrich, Margot Fonteyn, Rex Harrison, Judi Dench and Paul Scofield all appearing on its stage. It was listed Grade II* on 20 August 1971.

The London impresario David Land bought the theatre in 1984 and subsidised productions from his own pocket, and he and later his son Brook ran it for around fifteen years. The Ambassador Theatre Group purchased the theatre in 1999 and began a full-scale modernisation. In 2007 the Royal marked its bicentenary with a visit from Queen Elizabeth II. In more recent years the theatre has often replaced its traditional Christmas pantomime with festive-season hits, among them Spamalot in 2011, The Rocky Horror Show in 2012 and Priscilla Queen of the Desert in 2013.

Theatre Royal Brighton is a historic building and there is no lift, so the fully step-free areas are on the ground floor. Entry through the Box Office on New Road is step-free, as is the whole of the ground floor, and there are no steps into the Stalls or to the Stalls seats, though there is a slight incline.

• Wheelchair spaces: seven positions in the Stalls at J27, L1, Q1 and N28 (end of row), plus Q7, R4 and R7 (middle of row).
• Transfer seats: seven aisle seats with adjustable armrests at E1, E17, G20, H1, L28, R1 and R10.
• Upper levels: 21 hand-railed steps to the Royal Circle (a further 9 to the Royal Circle Bar), 40 steps to the Second Circle and 71 steps in total to the Gallery, with steps down to seats at each level.
• Toilets: a wheelchair accessible toilet is located just inside the Stalls bar on the ground floor.
• Bars: the ground floor Stalls bar is step-free and wheelchair accessible, and at seat service can be requested on arrival.

Seats in the Stalls, Royal Circle, Second Circle and Gallery are individual fold-down seats around 40 cm wide with static armrests; the Boxes have individual straight-back chairs that are not fixed to the floor. Assistance dogs are welcome and can be looked after by staff during the performance if arranged in advance or on arrival; email brightonaccess@atgentertainment.com if you would like your dog to stay with you.

Assisted performances

The theatre runs audio described performances, touch tours, captioned and BSL interpreted performances, advertised on each show's page. For a closer view of the stage, rows B to E in the Stalls are recommended; central Stalls rows suit captioned performances, and for BSL the recommended seats are E5-16, F5-16, G4-20, H5-23 and J6-14 in the Stalls and A5-25 in the Royal Circle. The Mobile Connect app is used for hearing enhancement and audio description, so you can sit anywhere in the auditorium; bring your own headphones. A Visual Story is available on request from hannahhayes@atgentertainment.com.

Access booking

Accessibility Assistance is on 0333 009 5399 (Typetalk 1800 1 0333 009 5399). ATG's free Access Membership Scheme lets you book accessible seats online and essential companion tickets if eligible.