4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[little cluckers]

My OH and I would love to take the kids to see Oliver! at Drury Lane, however neither of us have experience of West End theatres, has anyone been? Would it be ok for 7 yr olds (they love the film ). Any advice would be gratefully received.

[Guest]

Fine for 7 year olds! what a treat for them

[BeckyBoo]

Not taken mine to the West End, but they have been to our local theatre and seen Cats and Dr Doolittle and they loved it - MD was only 5 at the time, the whole experience is just so overwhelming. I'm sure your will absolutely love it, and what a great choice to go and see. When I was young my Nanna lived in Streatham, I used to stay with her one weekend a month and she almost ALWAYS took me to see a musical or production in the West End (how she afforded it I don't know the price of tickets these days )

I kept all my programmes and LOVE the theatre. When our girls came over from Belarus Cats was on in Woking and we took them, and managed to get backstage beforehand to have a look around, it was one of the best things we did with them!

 

Have a great time

 

BeckyBoo

[jackiepoppies]

Wonderful

 

Make sure they take in the whole experience, take time to look at the other theatre goers, look at the outside of the theatre and the streets of London, as well as the inside, make a dash for a drink in the interval, make sure you have a souvenir programme (if you can get it autographed, even better and put it away in a memory box. Go for a meal after. Travel on the tube if you can and have a superb time.

 

I wish I had my time again with my kids....make some lovely memories for all of you.

 

Jackiex

[Lydia]

I absolutely love the West End and try and go as much as I can afford to.

 

I would say consider a matinee performance as they are often less crowded and you can get back at a reasonable time or have a nice meal afterwards.

 

Bear in mind that most West End theatres are quite old and consequently the acoustics can be variable and the leg room questionable depending on where you sit. Theatre Monkey is a terrific website and will give you seating plans, advice on which seats are great and which to avoid, reviews, ticket offers and more. It will also tell you if a famous performer does not do matinees or particular nights in case you don't want to miss that person.

 

Bear in mind that if you are not fussed about who you see performing, shows are often quite a bit cheaper if the star(s) are not performing. For example, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat tickets are half price at the moment because Lee Mead has left and Gareth Gates has not yet started, and the role is being played by the understudy (who is actually very very good).

 

Top price (stalls) for a show like Oliver will be around £55-62 per head depending on where you sit and who you book with (plus booking fees). Circle tends to be the same as the stalls and the Upper Circle will be around £35-40 (plus fees).

 

Ticketmaster and See Tickets (both official agencies not touts) usually sell the better seats as they buy them in blocks, usually under historical agreements with the individual theatres. The box office may be cheaper but your seats will be further back and may have restricted views. See Tickets are cheaper than Ticketmaster (who charge a whopping £4.95 per ticket on top of the base price - and then add more for postage!). And of course always buy through the box office or official ticket agencies - do not buy from touts or tout websites. The offers may look good but they are often not what they seem, cost more and you will not get your money back in the quite likely event that your tickets do not turn up.

 

Hope that helps and enjoy the show!

[Seagazer]

How wonderfull, its so special going to the theatre. We've always taken the kids along from a youngish age. They've seen Beauty and The Beast, Mamma Mia, Joseph, Starlight Express, Mary Poppins, various pantos and my DD came with me to see Les Miserables.

 

Have a fantastic time.

[little cluckers]

Thank you all for your advice, I can always rely on the omleteers!

 

The theatre monkey site is great, the reviews of the seats were very helpful, thank you Lydia.

 

We've booked it!!!!! We've gone for a box just to make it all the more special!

 

I'm so excited now!!

[Tina C]

We have a box booked for Oliver too! Not going until April though.

 

I am sure you will have a lovely time. My daughter will be just 8 then. She has been to Cats - twice - she was 5 the first time and although she had a problem with 'noise' at the time and it started VERY loud, she coped well. She now loves musicals and would go to he theatre every week if she could!

 

She saw the film on TV Christmas 07 and loved it - especially Fagin. She spent some of her Christmas money on a CD - it cost about £5 - of the original music and now also has a DVD so we know the film and the songs inside out!

 

So the tickets for her and grandparents (and me) were a surprise Christmas present and we are all very excited too.

 

We are making a day out of it - in by train, picnic in Trafalgar Square, the show and then a meal somewhere around Covent Garden. She hasn't been to Covent Garden before so I am hoping there are some good performers around when we are there).

[Lydia]

Have fun Tina C and Little Cluckers. There is very little to beat live theatre in my opinion and having the boxes will make a terrific experience!

 

We're seeing Les Mis next month and Hairspray and La Cage aux Folles are also on the list for this year hopefully.

 

Also, if you want a slightly cheaper treat in the West End for the kids, try Trafalgar Studios. Just off Trafalgar Square very near the Strand, it is 2 very small theatres (1 seats about 200, the other about 500). As well as the adult plays, they put on a lot of good plays for kids, especially in the summer.

 

Tickets are only about £10-25 each depending on what you are seeing. We saw Fat Pig there last year and also Life Coach (with Phil Jupitus in and the gorgeous Alan Davies was on the audience ).

 

Well worth checking out.

[kitchens]

We are off to see Oliver at Easter and we are taking our little'un who is 5. I am sooo looking forward to it. We took him to see High School Musical last summer and he loved that - and he is particularly looking forward to seeing Oliver as he is his namesake and he is always asking for more ...... I am so pleased it's on at the Drury Lane - such an old theatre with so much history.

 

I bought our tickens directly from the theatre because the agents do wack up the prices to rediculous prices. So be careful where you get your tickets from - otherwise enjoy!