Theatre Royal Bath

The Ustinov Studio is behind the Theatre Royal with a separate entrance. Whilst there was a lift, the stairs are narrow and tight. But as nothing to how cramped the seats were!! We could hear people all around us complaining too. We were in the front row of thecircle, I am only 165cms but could not sit comfortably. My taller husband was even more uncomfortable. Given one goes to the theatre to enjoy oneself the comfort factor should be important.

The play was 1hour, 45 minutes with no interval - a long time to sit in a cramped, uncomfortable place ..

Incidentally we didn't enjoy the play either and heard other uncomplimentary comments from other playgoers

My wife and I attended the Ustinov theatre which is a small room at the rear of the main building. I like small theatres as you get close to the action. The reviews for the theatre raved about the great bookings and the night we were in Bath there was a show that was billed as hilarious. The show should never ever have been booked to play anywhere it was so without merit. The one man act lacked any talent. I think that was meant to be the joke. This was the worse show (if you can call it that) I have ever seen. A painful and annoying experience that cost forty pounds. I have in all honesty seen better shows at infant schools. The seating is very tight and you are pushed up against the next person if anyone in the lane is a little large. However this was much improved when people walked out, an action I wish I had done.

Walking from the Jane Austen Centre towards the Thermae Bath Spa we came upon the Theater Royal Bath. The building is one of the oldest and most beautiful theatres in Britain and is an example of classic Georgian architecture, designed in 1805 by Architects John Palmer and George Dance the Younger, and constructed of Bath stone.
Although it is a small two-level theater with a total of around 900 seats, they all have a great view of the stage, and the sound is very good. As a bonus, the in-house bar serves reasonably priced drinks during the intermissions.
Next to the theater and now its main entrance is the home of Beau Nash, check out the plaque’s on the outside wall.

TIP: As an old building it's reasonably wheelchair friendly but does have lots of stairs and the seats are awkward and hard to get in and out of.
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Our third experience of this famous theatre yesterday & good as ever. We travel 50 miles to get here - there is simply no other theatre in the region with such a polished, varied programme of plays, musicals & other performances & the history, beauty & atmosphere of the place is unparalleled. To add to this all the staff we have interacted with, both in person & by phone, have been pleasant & helpful. Big name stars abound in their productions & we highly recommend attending a performance to anyone visiting Bath who has a sound mastery of English, though many of the musicals would work for all.
The sole drawback is you do need some direction or a good street map to find it! (though it is very central & near train & bus stops, including the Park & Ride one).

We went to see Shawshank Redemption last night and we couldn't recommend it enough. The acting was brilliant and we were totally absorbed in the plot. If you are in Bath over the next few nights we strongly recommend that you make this play part of your itinerary.

Buy tickets at your own risk!
Performance cancelled with less than two hours notice, "because of positive Covid test".
We travelled a considerable distance, booked a hotel room, cost and inconvenience of which will not be refunded.
Everything else in Bath seems able to function despite Covid; bars, restaurants, cinemas, supermarkets, hotels, buses, railway, everywhere heaving with people - but not the theatre.
Utterly pitiful; why still testing when nobody else is and everyone who wants is vaccinated? If insistence on testing, why no back-up plan for the inevitable positive test?
Management appear to be entirely useless, an impression reinforced by the decision to send the minions out to deal with irate customers whilst hiding themselves safely elsewhere.

Saw The Good Life. Absolutely appalling. Many others were laughing at times - my guess is if you love it with Richard Briars and Felicity Kendal you may enjoy it.
The actor playing Jerry’s boss was great. The actress playing Margot was good at playing Penelope Keith, but apart from that the production and acting was not worthy of the theatre.
The theatre itself is fabulous - all seats are close to the stage yet not as cramped as many London theatres

We are keen Theatre patrons and hence our stay in Bath was based around the re-opened theatre and the Pinter production. To be at a live performance after seven months was a treat. The acting and staging were excellent and we have visited this theatre on a number of occasions in the past, so knew how good the front of house facilities were. Now, a week later, the theatre has understandably again needed to close its doors, but hopefully not for long. A memorable evening, we will be back.

Watched the show ‘six’ . Although the show was absolutely brilliant a staff member was not and unfortunately marred the evening for my daughter and I.
Upon arrival at the theatre we had noticed quite a few people were wearing masks ( government guidelines DID NOT advise and make mandatory for theatres), so we asked if we needed to wear one and the ladies at reception said no, it’s completely up to us. As we’re glasses wearers and have been triple vaccinated we declined. Whilst walking to our seats and show our tickets, we were greeted by someone who can only be described as ‘bullish ’ made my daughter feel totally humiliated by insisting we wore a mask. Absolutely awful person!! Why didn’t they take temperatures on arrival and ask to see peoples vaccination records or / and ask to see their negative lateral flow results ( which we had taken before we left the house)!!! Interestingly though, inside the theatre there were quite a few people without masks

I was staying in the City of Bath for 3 nights to experience fond memories of the city where I lived as a little John. My mummy and I used to go to the Theatre Royal every Monday evening during the summer; taking advantage of the 2 seats for the price of 1 for the Monday performance. We always sat in the Royal Circle, front row, centre.
On Wednesday 19th July I returned to the theatre to see the matinee performance of Abigail’s Party. I sat in the Royal Circle, front row, centre! It was a fantastic show and well appreciated by the audience. It’s a stunning theatre which has been very well cared for over the years. It now has air conditioning which on a hot July afternoon was a bonus. I was met on arrival by the Front of House Manager who was most welcoming. In fact all the staff were so kind and helpful which made for a lovely afternoon.
The theatre has great shows throughout the year so it’s always worth a visit. A very straightforward online booking system and should you book that way then a week before the performance you’ll have the opportunity to book drinks for the interval. Thanks to all in the Theatre Royal team for making my visit such a happy one. JohnK