Royal Alexandra Theatre facts for kids
The Royal Alexandra Theatre in 2012
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| Location | Toronto, Ontario |
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| Coordinates | 43°38′50″N 79°23′15″W / 43.64722°N 79.38750°W |
| Owner | Mirvish Productions |
| Capacity | 1,244 |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1907 |
| Architect | John M. Lyle |
| Designated | 1986 |
The Royal Alexandra Theatre, often called the Royal Alex, is a very old and famous theatre in Toronto, Ontario. You can find it at 260 King Street West, right in the middle of Toronto's Entertainment District. Mirvish Productions owns and runs this theatre. It has about 1,244 seats on three different levels. The Royal Alex was built in 1907. It is the oldest theatre in North America that has been open and showing plays continuously since it first opened!
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A Look Back: The Royal Alex's Story
The Royal Alex is a beautiful theatre with 1,244 seats. It has a special stage design called a "proscenium stage." This means the audience looks at the stage through a big arch, like a picture frame. The theatre also has two balcony levels, just like many British theatres from the 1800s. Building the theatre started in 1905 and finished in 1907.
Since 1963, the theatre has been owned by Ed Mirvish Enterprises. This company was started by Edwin Mirvish, who owned a famous department store in Toronto. Since 1986, Mirvish Productions has managed the theatre. This company is led by Ed's son, David Mirvish.
The theatre is named after Queen Alexandra. She was a Danish princess who married King Edward VII. She was also the great-great-grandmother of the current King of Canada, Charles III. King Edward VII even gave the theatre special permission to use the "royal" name. The current owners believe it's the only theatre in North America that is still legally "royal."
The Theatre's Early Days
When the Royal Alex first opened, it was in a fancy part of town. The home of Ontario's leader, the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, was nearby. The government buildings were also close until 1893. A fancy church and Toronto's best theatre, the Princess Theatre, were also in the area.
The Royal Alex was built on what used to be a sports field for a private boys' school called Upper Canada College. This spot was near King and Simcoe streets. People used to call this intersection "the crossroads of Education, Legislation, Salvation and Damnation."
- "Education" was for Upper Canada College.
- "Legislation" was for the parliament buildings.
- "Salvation" was for the church.
- "Damnation" was for a tavern where actors from the Princess Theatre liked to go.
A group of business leaders paid for the Royal Alex to be built. They wanted to make Toronto famous for its culture. The main person in this group was Cawthra Mulock, a 21-year-old who owned a factory. He came from two very important families in Ontario. Other people in the group included Robert Alexander Smith, Stephen Haas, and Lawrence "Lol" Solman. Solman managed the theatre from 1907 until he passed away in 1931.
Designing a Masterpiece
The group chose a young architect named John M. Lyle. He was born in Belfast, grew up in Hamilton, Ontario, and studied at Yale University and in Paris. Lyle worked with a New York architecture firm. Cawthra Mulock gave Lyle a budget of $750,000. He told him, "Build me the finest theatre on the continent." Mulock also wanted the theatre to have a steel frame. This would show off the products from his factory.
Lyle spent more money than he was given, but he created something amazing. People later called it "an Edwardian jewel-box." Inside, the theatre had:
- A lobby made of Italian marble.
- Floors with beautiful Venetian mosaics.
- Stairs and railings made of carved walnut and cherry wood.
- Walls covered in silk wallpaper.
- Fancy, gold-covered plasterwork.
- A huge painting on the ceiling by Canadian artist Frederick Challener.
Lyle also added some new features to his design. The Royal Alex was:
- North America's first air-conditioned theatre. It had a large ice-pit under the stage to keep it cool.
- One of the first "fireproof" theatres.
- The first theatre in North America to have balconies that stuck out without pillars. This meant no pillars would block the view of the stage!
The theatre opened on August 26, 1907. The first show was a big pantomime called "Top O'Th' World." It starred Anna Laughlin and a cast of 65 performers.
Challenges and Changes
In its early years, the Royal Alex had trouble getting shows. The theatre owners had problems with a powerful group called the Theatrical Syndicate. This group controlled most touring theatre in North America. They also had money in the rival Princess Theatre, which was two blocks away. The manager of the Royal Alex, Lawrence "Lol" Solman, joined forces with the Syndicate's rivals, the Shubert brothers. Because of this, one of the Syndicate leaders, Abe Erlanger, threatened to make the Royal Alex go bankrupt. He even said he would turn it into a stable for horses!
The competition with the Princess Theatre ended on May 7, 1915. A fire completely destroyed the Princess Theatre that night. This left the Royal Alex as Toronto's only top-class theatre for plays. By chance, on the same night, the British ship Lusitania sank after being hit by a torpedo. One of the people who died was Charles Frohman, a leader of the Syndicate.
In the 1940s and 1950s, the Royal Alex faced tough times. Many theatres struggled because people started watching movies, listening to radio, and later, television. The area around the theatre also became less popular. It was filled with train yards and warehouses. In 1962, after losing money for ten years, the people in charge of the theatre decided to sell it. They planned to tear it down and build a parking lot.
But then, Ed Mirvish bought the theatre in 1963 for $250,000. He owned a discount store in Toronto called Honest Ed's. Mirvish said he didn't know anything about theatre and had never even been inside one! But he knew a good deal when he saw it.
A New Beginning
As part of the sale, Ed Mirvish promised to keep the Royal Alex open as a theatre for at least five years. If he didn't want to continue after that, he could tear it down. Mirvish closed the theatre for one year to fix it up and make it beautiful again. This was the longest the theatre had ever been closed. The Royal Alex re-opened in September 1963. The first show was a comedy called "Never Too Late," starring William Bendix.
Ed Mirvish mostly used the theatre to bring in touring shows and plays that were trying out before going to Broadway. He also let local groups use the theatre. These included the Canadian Opera Company and the National Ballet of Canada. The Royal Alex was also home to the popular Toronto show "Spring Thaw" for many years. Mirvish also had success producing musicals like Hair in 1970 and Godspell in 1972. Godspell starred young Canadian actors who later became very famous. These included Victor Garber, Gilda Radner, Martin Short, Eugene Levy, and Andrea Martin.
After fixing up the Royal Alex, Mirvish bought the buildings around it. He opened colorful restaurants there to bring people back to the area. These restaurants closed in 2000. By then, the area around the Royal Alex had changed a lot. It went from empty warehouses to a lively place with restaurants and cafes.
In 1975, Toronto City Council recognized the theatre's importance. They officially protected it under the Ontario Heritage Act. In 1987, on the theatre's 80th birthday, it was named a National Historic Site of Canada. This means it's a very important place in Canadian history.
Ed Mirvish and his son David Mirvish bought another theatre in 1982. They bought and fixed up the historic Old Vic theatre in London, England. In 1986, David Mirvish started Mirvish Productions. This company creates plays and musicals especially for the Royal Alexandra. Ed Mirvish stopped being actively involved in the theatres in 1987. He gave the business to his son. In 1993, David Mirvish added a third theatre. He built the Princess of Wales Theatre a block west of the Royal Alexandra. This new Princess theatre was partly named after the old Princess Theatre, which was the Royal Alex's rival long ago.
The theatre has had several managers over the years:
- Lawrence Solman (1907-1931)
- William Breen (1933-1939)
- Ernest Rawley (1939-1963)
- Edwin De Rocher (1963-1969)
- Yale Simpson (1969-1989)
- Graham Hall (1989-1994)
- Ron Jacobson (1994–present)
Modern Updates: The 2016 Renovation
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On May 15, 2016, after the musical Kinky Boots finished its run, the Royal Alexandra closed for a big renovation. It cost $2.5 million to update the theatre. David Mirvish said the goal was to "restore and give life to that sparkle" and make the theatre more comfortable for the 21st century.
The biggest change was fixing up the seating areas. The old seats were replaced with new, bigger ones that gave more legroom. Because of the new seats, the theatre's capacity went from 1,497 to 1,244 seats. David Mirvish explained that even though it meant fewer seats, the better comfort would make people want to come back again and again.
The theatre re-opened on November 15, 2016, with the musical Come from Away. This show was so popular that it set new sales records for the Royal Alex. It sold out its entire run in just two weeks and sold $1.7 million worth of tickets in one week!
Famous Faces: Performers at the Royal Alex
Many famous actors, singers, and dancers have performed at the Royal Alex over the years. Here are just a few:
- Lucille Ball
- Lady Gaga
- Mary Pickford
- Fred and Adele Astaire
- Tallulah Bankhead
- The Marx Brothers
- Mae West
- Maurice Chevalier
- Al Jolson
- Helen Hayes
- John Barrymore
- Ingrid Bergman
- John Gielgud
- Édith Piaf
- Paul Robeson
- Orson Welles
- Maggie Smith
- Gilda Radner
- Victor Garber
- Eugene Levy
- Martin Short
- Joan Collins
- Lauren Bacall
- Donald Sutherland
Amazing Shows: Notable Productions at the Royal Alex
The Royal Alex has hosted many incredible plays and musicals. Here are some of the most memorable ones:
- 1989: Les Misérables
- 1992: The Secret Garden
- 1993: Blood Brothers, Guys and Dolls
- 1997: Rent
- 2000: Mamma Mia!
- 2007: Dirty Dancing
- 2010: Rock of Ages
- 2013: Once
- 2015: Kinky Boots
- 2016: Come from Away
- 2019: Dear Evan Hansen
- 2023: Hadestown, Six
See also
- Elgin & Winter Garden Theatre
- Princess of Wales Theatre
- Ed Mirvish Theatre
