Early Years
The theatre was originally built for American producer Augustin Daly by the English theatre manager George Edwardes. The architect was Spencer Chadwick, who was assisted by C. J. Phipps. The theatre was one of the first in London to be built using the cantilever system, and the Italian Renaissance and neo-classical facade was more elaborate than that of most London theatres. Likewise, the entrance hall and foyer were elaborately executed and decorated. The Victorian style to minimize colouring and design in the auditorium was abandoned, and instead bold designs and colours were used. It had a seating capacity of over 1,200 in three tiers.
The theatre opened with The Taming of the Shrew, with Daly's star from his American company, Ada Rehan, playing Katharina. This was followed by Sheridan Knowles's The Hunchback, with Violet Vanbrugh, and in 1894 by Twelfth Night and As You Like It and the younger Dumas's La Dame aux camélias, with Eleonora Duse.
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