Mayflower Theatre

Mayflower Theatre

Gaumont, Empire
The Mayflower Theatre, 2006
Mayflower Theatre Shown within Southampton
Former names	The Empire Theatre (1928-50) Gaumont (1950-86)
Address	Commercial Road Southampton United Kingdom
Coordinates	50°54′31″N 1°24′37″W / 50.908550°N 1.410240°W / 50.908550; -1.410240
Owner	Mayflower Theatre Trust Ltd
Designation	Grade II
Capacity	2,300
Construction
Opened	December 1928
Architect	William and T. R. Milburn
Website
www.mayflower.org.uk

Mayflower Theatre (formerly the Gaumont and originally The Empire Theatre) is a Grade II listedtheatre in the city centre of Southampton, England, with a capacity of 2,300. It features West End theatre shows when they tour the UK.

The e opened on 22 December 1928, as The Empire Theatre, part of the Moss Empire theatre group. It was part of the company's expansion of the late 1920s, which also saw theatres constructed in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, Oxford and The Dominion, in London.

At the time of construction, it was the largest theatre in the south of England, a title it still holds. In the early days, many shows were transported by train. The theatre's proximity to Southampton Central railway station made its location ideal, but meant that many shows were not as spectacular as their London counterparts. The theatre suffered in early days, to the arrival of cinema, with sound or 'talkies'. This led to the 1933 installation of a projection box in the balcony and a screen, which could be raised and lowered at the front of the stage. By 1942, the theatre was mainly used as a cinema and was taken over by The Gaumont British Picture Corporation.

As part of the Rank Organisation, the theatre has hosted concerts by many famous artists, including Bill Haley & His Comets in 1957, The Beatles in 1963, The Rolling Stones in 1966, Led Zeppelin in 1972, Queen in 1974, 1975 and 1977 and The Police in 1979 and 1982,Rush in Feb 1978 and Kate Bush in 1979.