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| Saddler's Wells | |
|---|---|
| Name | Saddler's Wells |
| Address | Rosebery Avenue |
| City | London |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Capacity | ~1,000 |
| Opened | 1683 |
| Reopened | 1998 |
Saddler's Wells is a London performing‑arts theatre with a long history as a music‑hall, variety, and dance venue closely associated with institutions such as Royal Opera House, English National Opera, Royal Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet, and touring companies from Bolshoi Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet, New York City Ballet, Mariinsky Ballet. The theatre has hosted figures and organizations including Christopher Wheeldon, Akram Khan, Matthew Bourne, Carlos Acosta, Sylvie Guillem, Wayne McGregor, Royal Shakespeare Company, National Theatre, BBC Symphony Orchestra. It sits in the Borough of Islington, near Clerkenwell Green, and has influenced festivals like the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and events at Sadler's Wells Theatre venues in other cities.
Saddler's Wells traces origins to a 17th‑century medicinal spring patronized by Samuel Pepys, King Charles II, Dame Ellen Terry, and later developed into an entertainment site used by Thomas Betterton, David Garrick, Josiah Wedgwood‑era audiences. During the 18th and 19th centuries it alternated between residents such as choreographer John Gay, composer George Frideric Handel‑era performers, and variety entertainers including Vesta Tilley, Dan Leno, Marie Lloyd who performed alongside touring troupes from La Scala, Vienna State Opera, and American artists from Broadway. In the 20th century the venue hosted wartime entertainments linked to Entertainments National Service Association, revivals involving Noël Coward, Ivor Novello, and later became a center for postwar dance development connecting with Virgilio Sieni, Mats Ek, Merce Cunningham, and the British avant‑garde supported by Arts Council England.
The building functions as a producing house and receiving house, presenting work by English National Ballet, Rambert, Scottish Ballet, Northern Ballet, New Adventures, and international companies such as Het Nationale Ballet, Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet, and Alonzo King LINES Ballet. Its programming mixes commissions by choreographers like Liam Scarlett, Akram Khan, and Russell Maliphant with experimental pieces from collectives including DV8 Physical Theatre, Jérôme Bel, Pina Bausch Tanztheater Wuppertal, and collaborations with composers such as Thomas Adès, Max Richter, John Adams, Gustav Mahler orchestral residencies and partnerships with broadcasters such as BBC Radio 3 and presenters like Clive Gillinson.
The theatre is home to resident and associate companies including English National Ballet's touring links, Sadler's Wells Theatre Trust partnerships with Akram Khan Company, Shobana Jeyasingh Dance Company, and hosted residencies by Alessandra Ferri, Javier de Frutos, Mark Morris. It has nurtured companies that evolved into national institutions such as Rambert Dance Company and supported international collaborations involving Jiri Kylian, William Forsythe, Merce Cunningham Dance Company, Pina Bausch alumni, and cross‑disciplinary projects with Royal College of Music, Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London.
Successive buildings on the site underwent major reconstructions in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, with a comprehensive redevelopment completed in the late 1990s that aligned with contemporary projects by architects associated with Sir Christopher Wren‑influenced urban conservation and modernists linked to Norman Foster, Zaha Hadid‑era practices. The refurbishment created new rehearsal studios used by Royal Ballet School, upgraded technical facilities for touring sets from Wigmore Hall‑scale productions, improved front‑of‑house spaces comparable to refurbishments at Barbican Centre and Royal Festival Hall, and incorporated accessibility standards advocated by Disability Rights Commission initiatives.
Saddler's Wells has premiered landmark works including choreographies by Matthew Bourne (notably stagings echoing Swan Lake reinterpretations), commissions by Akram Khan blending Kathak forms with contemporary practice and collaborations with Rumi‑inspired composers, and experimental evenings featuring Siobhan Davies, Wayne McGregor and music by Brian Eno, Peter Gabriel. It has hosted seasons by opera companies such as English National Opera and dance seasons tied to festivals like Dance Umbrella, with high‑profile runs attracting press coverage from The Guardian, The Times, The Telegraph and broadcast features on BBC Two.
Governance has involved trustees drawn from institutions including Royal Shakespeare Company, Arts Council England, Birkbeck, University of London, with executive leaders collaborating with funders such as National Lottery, Heritage Lottery Fund, private patrons linked to Paul Hamlyn Foundation and corporate partners from Barclays, HSBC, and cultural funds administered by Mayor of London. Programming decisions balance public grant requirements, commissioning strategies similar to Southbank Centre models, and commercial touring agreements with producers including ATG and independent promoters such as Ambassadors Theatre Group‑affiliated entities.
The venue's influence is evident in critical discourse from critics associated with The Stage, Dance Europe, Financial Times and academic research published through University of Oxford, King's College London, Goldsmiths, University of London examining its role in shaping contemporary dance, multicultural performance, and postindustrial urban regeneration parallel to projects in Southwark, Hackney and comparative studies with Brooklyn Academy of Music and Centre Pompidou. Its programming has been credited with launching careers of artists celebrated by awards such as the Laurence Olivier Award, National Dance Awards, South Bank Sky Arts Awards, and influencing public arts policy debates in forums including House of Commons cultural committees.
Category:Theatres in London Category:Dance venues Category:Performance art venues