Palace Theatre

What a fantastic night at the Palace Theatre, sat comfy in the VIP lounge having drinks and nibbles before the show. The Bodyguard was brilliant from start to finish very emotional. Well done Alexandra Burke and the rest of the cast. Truly amazing.

This is a lovely theatre that has kept its old ways and traditional look about it. There are loads of shows to see here with the prices varying so it’s not always expensive. There is plenty of seats inside and most shows sell out helping with the atmosphere when your in there and also stalls to sit in to have your own private space with a little bit more expense

Palace Theatre Manchester city centre
I have been coming to this theatre for over seven years now and every production I have seen here has been wonderful! The theatre has got a lot of character inside. The seats aren’t all that comfortable but what do you expect. This theatre has had lots of West End productions such as Phantom of the Opera, Miss Saigon, Priscilla Queen of the desert, the list just go on

We were here for
as part of the MIF, sitting in the stalls.
It’s got all of the hallmarks of a theatre in the ATG Group — an old theatre well maintained, and which still gives you the excitement and sense of occasion that you felt people had in the olden days (although you do get the feeling that all these buildings being listed means that they can’t go full-​on corporate branding with them — a good thing). While this means that facilities like the toilets aren’t as modern as they could be, they do the job (special mention for the toilets being accessed straight from the auditorium, this seems to heavily reduce the queues for some reason), and on the whole the key parts of this venue work perfectly.
The staff were also lovely; encouraging you to buy a programme because it was a good keepsake rather than extra profit (and at £4 they probably weren’t making that much money on them!), and being generally helpful and chipper. The sound was also great, and in general it’s a pretty comfortable place to enjoy a show.
Why the 4 stars? I think this might be down to where we were sitting more than anything. I don’t know if it’s the rake in the stalls, but it felt like my view was restricted by the person in front more here than at other theatres, even the older theatres that ATG has in my Glasgow hometown. Admittedly, I was struck by my gig-​curse of having the tallest person in the world situated in front of me, but it did feel like the seats were laid out in such a way that, especially closer to the stage (we were row F), your view could be easily impeded. I could have been unlucky, and I could have just avoided sitting that close to the stage before, but if I was coming here again I would maybe revisit where I would sit.
All in all though, I enjoyed my visit here, and would definitely consider going here if a show I really wanted to see was skipping Glasgow or Edinburgh. As for
, I’ll just have to find the theatre equivalent of Unilocal to review that…

I couldn’t even count the times I’ve been to The Palace Theatre! I’ve seen some amazing shows here.
Tickets to see most performances will be expensive, especially if you want the really good seats — I remember paying at least £65 per ticket for front circle for both Wicked and Lion King, but always worth it in my opinion.
The Palace is an old theatre, and because of this has some amazing features! But along with that comes the fact that their is little leg room and actually finding your seats means walking down some very steep stairways. Especially if you’re in the grand tier!
I see as many musicals as I can when they tour to Manchester and I always love the palace.

I Love going here to see a musical as have been here lots of times
I think the last show i saw was wicked!
aaaaaah! walt disneys beauty and the beast was my favourite so far! as i went to see it three times they spent money on the set and lavished costumes and great special affects compared to other musicals but yet to see The phantom of the opera!
Inside there are three levels, ground floor (stalls) circle and grand tier
I always go for the circle and always get my ticket with in the first four rows
as you get the best view of the show.
prices for the circle are usually around £55 but well worth it!
You can get icecream and sweets and soft drinks and there is a bar inside if you fancy a drink as you get around half a hour interval before the second half of the show.
I Dont usually buy or eat anything inside as its all junk and prefer to eat somewhere
before the show.
Its nice to go here for a special treat a couple or so times a year
even if the ticket is a bit pricey.

I absolutely love a musical and have visited the Palace Theatre numerous times over the years. Lucky for us they seem to get the best shows around and my favourites include Wicked, Lion King and Rock of Ages. All on tour and all have included cast members from the West End.
The theatre itself is incredibly special with 2 tiers of seating as well as the main stalls. There is a good view from most of the seats which really helps the cheaper areas be a bargain price. One thing I would say is the tiered seating can be quite cramped in the leg department so, if you are taller than normal, I’d go for the stalls. Being a really old building the toilets are a bit rubbish but I make sure I have visited my own before going to see a show.
The drink selection is a bit poor but, for the theatre, I don’t think they are too badly priced. They aren’t cheap obviously but they could be a lot worse! The seating and ornate decoration inside it what makes this place and I can’t wait to go back.

Im a huge fan of Musicals, and thank you for the Palace Theatre for bringing so many good shows to Manchester.
Manchester Theatres seem to do really well in getting the great shows what they have in the West End and sometimes gets shows prior to them going to the West End.
Ive seen numerous shows at this wonderful theatre including Joseph and his amazing dreamcoat, Mamma Mia, Les Miserables, Wicked, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and loads more.
The Theatre itself is very grand and is set on 3 levels, the stalls, circle and upper tier, we always go for the stalls tickets, but the prices range from low to high depending where you want to sit, the best thing to do if you can is to visit the box office which is open from 12pm-​6pm monday to friday and they will tell you what is available at what cost and make sure to book early to get a great view!
The whole of the theatre is very well run from the ushers to the box office staff, The seating in the theatre isn’t that bad compared to some theatres I’ve been in and seem to be quite comfy.
I will continue to visit this wonderful theatre to see more of the wonderful they bring for years and years to come.

Well considering there are really only 2 places for theatre and operas (the Palace theatre and the Opera house), it’s kind of hard to say anything really bad about it. Everything is at it should be like a London theatre house.
I do like the bar inside, I must say. But it does have a plush feel to it that makes me imagine how it would have been in the past when people actually dressed up to go to the theatre. Now you can even see people in jeans and a t-​shirt (sometimes), which seems slightly out of place in something that used to be so grand.

Ahhh, the theatre — a lot more expensive than the cinema but a hundred times longer lasting in the good vibes stakes. Memories of a great day out come flooding back of childhood concerts, live plays and the excitement and anticipation building up before and after a great performance.
The Palace is probably in the top few playhouses in Manchester, along with the Opera house and Royal exchange and a ticket to a show equates into a really great day/​night out.
Like all theatres, it’s safe to say that they were built in a bygone age when toilet space was limited, fire regulations were non existent (each route to your seat is like a labyrinth) and everyone was some sort of dwarf creature — judging by the leg room. The design of the the theatre is also that with fairly decent seats (at a fairly hefty price), you’re still missing a small part of the stage.
Saying that, all these points are what makes it so quaint and enjoyable. You just wouldn’t get the same atmosphere if you were at a multiplex on a retail park.
Tickets are best bought online for the Palace and a lot of the big shows tour each year — recently in town there’s been Lion King, Green Days American Idiot, Wicked (which was what I went to see), Joseph… etc etc — so everything pretty much from the West End and Broadway.
There’s a bar on site selling crappy beers and mini bottles of crappy wine. You should get enough time before and during the break to use the Cornerhouse across the road which is much more chilled out and has great food and drinks.
If you’re after food beforehand then check out Mr Coopers, Gorilla or Zouk.

Regret top say I am not a fan, having paid top prices for seats with so little leg room, my knees are in the back of the row in front the circle is the worst, and back of the circle is very restricted views. It is a beautiful old theatre of course, but thats no excuse for not ripping out the old seats and either re spacing them, or getting in new ones. I now avoid it when I can, or only sit in the stalls on an end seat.

i recently went to see lion king with my family at palace theatre. What an amazing production. The staff were friendly and the place is so big on the inside which didn’t expect from looking at it on outside. If you have chance to go to the production i would go. The prices for drinks and food was expensive but you expect that when you go to theatre i guess

I went to see Lion King so it has to be five stars!!! Such an amazing show.
This theatre is a lovely setting for such a magnificent show, very elegant carving on the walls, enough leg room even in teh restricted seats and a good amount of bars, toilets and staff.
thumbs up all round

Von außen hat dieses Theater den Charm eines Gemüsehobels — jeder hat sowas schon mal gesehen. Innen versprüht das Palace Theatre echtes Theaterfeeling mit hohen Balkonen, Logen, steilen Tribühnen und einer urig-​funktionalen Bühne.
Die Karten sind meist erschwinglich und das gebotene Programm stets abwechslungsreich und in den meisten Fällen etwas für Jedermann. Wer sich hier zu Schalteröffnungszeiten schon am Vortag oder am Vormittag eine Karte kauft, sollte — um die Angelegenheit streßfrei zu halten — schon frühzeitig da sein. Die Ersten warten schon eine gute ¾ Stunde vorher vor der Tür.
Gleich nebenan ist das Palace Hotel, dessen Bar vielleicht alle Getränke parat hat, aber nicht gerade durch gelungenen Service glänzt. Den «After-​Glow» lieber woanders trinken!

These days, the Palace Theatre usually stages the sort of overblown, overpriced shows that I can’t afford or really be bothered to go and see. However, I still love an excuse to visit the place, mainly because it’s a beautiful old building with such a wonderful history; the stage has hosted everyone from Noël Coward, Laurel and Hardy and Frank Sinatra to Connie Fisher!
There’s three (I think) tiers of seating under the ornate red and gold ceiling. And you get quite a good view from all of them — unless you’re unlucky enough to get stuck behind a pillar, although they usually warn you about that! However, the higher you go, the steepier things get. So if you’re nervous about heights, I’d try and stick to the stalls!
There are a few bars and stalls selling merchandise and sweets. But as you’d probably expect from a theatre of this size and scale, you’ll have to pay a pretty penny if you want to buy something! Still, the staff are lovely — I love the way they still wear traditional waistcoats and bow ties!
Even though it doesn’t really stage the shows I love (with the exception of Rocky Horror!), what I like most about the Palace is that it continues to draw in the crowds and entertain them, just as it did when it was first built in 1891.

The Palace is a really grand old theatre, the type of place you expect a theatre to be like and you wont be disappointed in the architecture once you’re inside. I had a friend who worked here once who used to get us free tickets so I’ve been lucky enough to have seen allsorts on here, from ballets, to the Christmas panto.
I’ve only ever sat up in the Gods, which isn’t for the faint hearted as you’re squashed in like sardines and it’s so steep it’s like sitting on a rock face. I’m sure it’s much steeper than other theatres and when it’s ice cream time, clambering out is always a bit daunting so I wouldn’t recommend going up there if you suffer from vertigo! I love it though as you get a view of everything, from the elaborate ceiling to the elegant boxes, so you have a real feel for the whole experience.
The Palace is of course very popular and even though shows seem to run forever the best seats sell out quickly, so look in advance at what’s touring for the year ahead and then you can not only bag a cheaper seat, but one with the best view.

I have such a love for the Palace Theatre. It is, by far, my favourite receiving theatre in Manchester, most probably because it has absolutely no shame in being big, brash and old fashioned in its presentation of high quality (well, mostly) theatre. As a drama student, I am almost entirely sure that I am meant to frown upon such commercial theatre, although I feel that it still has a definite place within society, and the Palace Theatre is championing it every step of the way.
Receiving high-​end, large-​scale productions such as ‘Mary Poppins’, ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’ and the recent 25^th anniversary tour of ‘Les Miserables’, the Palace has pride of place at the top of the list of UK touring theatres. Sadly, the building is currently being considered for an extensive refurbishment, which will put it out of use for the best part of a year, which, although it will undoubtedly improve the somewhat aged facilities of the venue, will deprive Manchester of its greatest mainstream theatrical venue.
Designed in the traditional style, despite an unattractive façade, the building is a pleasure to visit and sit in before a performance. The auditorium is large, and split over three levels, as you would find in nearly all West End Theatres. The seating is fairly comfortable, and for an average sized person, the legroom should be adequate. The size of the stage is the venue’s real boon, as it allows the venue to accommodate the most technically complex of productions, and fit them well, without a squeeze.
The venue offers several kinds of discount on tickets, which are detailed both on its website, and in the season brochure. Although these ticket prices vary according to production. You are more likely to get a decent discount for a smaller, low-​profile production, than a big, behemoth touring show. The venue has several nice bars and seating areas, where you can relax with a drink before the show (and believe me, I do), or just to sit and chat, or leaf through a programme. This venue is a jewel, and is often underappreciated, so please, go and take a look and catch a show — it is well worth the trip!

Unlike in my home country, I’m not a regular theatre-​goer in Britain, for one reason or another. The productions I saw at the Palace Theatre were Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker (by the Chisinau Ballet) and Rufus Wainwright’s opera flick, Prima Donna. The audience’s acoustic is generally good, and the seats are rather comfortable. What is memorable, of course, is the interior building design and décor. It is a what can be called traditional Victorian theatre, so feel free to imagine ladies and gentlemen in elegant frocks enjoying the latest in entertainment.
To this day Palace Theatre attracts the same kind of ladies and gentlemen, although the frocks have changed dramatically since the 19^th c. So did the entertainment. The theatre is a regular venue for West End shows, ballets, and rock operas.

Last year for my Mum’s birthday I surprised her with tickets to see ‘We Will Rock You’ at the Palace. Until then I’d walked past the Palace so many times, I’d been frustrated with the slow-​moving children with their pompoms coming out of High School Musical and clogging up Oxford Road and I’d bought gig tickets from the theatre box office, but there had never really been anything I’d wanted to see there. I was intrigued.
On buying the tickets I asked about the ‘limited leg room’ warning on them (they were the cheapest seats at around £25 a ticket). I was assured that they would be fine for ‘normal-​sized’ people, but remained a bit worried that we’d be stuck with people’s knees in our backs with a view of the corner of the stage where no action was taking place. How wrong I was. Although we were towards the back and towards the edge we all still had a full view of the stage and could hear every word of every song.
The Palace is exactly how a theatre should be — complete with gold and red décor, long toilet queues, little binoculars, even littler tubs of ice cream on sale at the interval and the high probability that when you partake in the standing ovation, your overpriced programme will plummet to its death below. The Show Must Go On.

In our modern world, everything is changing. Most things are going digital, technology is expanding and buildings are built more modernly and I love it!
So when I went here I was a bit like «O boring! It’s a old building full of old people and smells old too.» But to my amazement and everyone else around me, I have never had so much fun in my life!
We went to watch a show, got a limo, arrived in style, jumped the line and watched a fantastic performance. Yes it’s old looking and old fashioned but I felt like I had jumped to the Victorian era. Ice cream was being served on the sides and I felt really tall for once!
Anyone who is thinking of going here, should. FACT. Now I am finished. I am still a modern girl though. SHHHHH

Now this is a proper theatre!
Feels haunted? Check!
Gives you vertigo? Check!
Red velvet and gold EVERYWHERE? Check
There’s something about going to an old theatre that the new young pretenders could never hope to replicate. The drama, the romance, the scary toilets, it just can’t be beaten.
I’ve only been the once but I did it right and went to see Bill Bailey («Halal, is it meat you’re looking for?»!!! Genius).
I enjoyed the whole experience, the seats where a little small and if you end up high in the cheap seats as I did, it takes a little time to relax and convince yourself that you aren’t going to fall to your death, but as long as the act is engaging enough such small problems will quickly dissipate.