The Royal Alexandra Theatre (affectionately known as the “Royal Alex”) opened in
1907. It was named, with royal permission, for King Edward II’s wife, Queen Alexandra.
The theatre underwent six months of extensive restoration and renovations in 2016. The original design elements of the theatre were cleaned and restored and brand new seats installed. A new seating layout also provides additional legroom to allow for the increased height of the modern population. The theatre reopened in November of 2016 with the hugely popular Canadian musical Come from Away. It has a capacity of 1244 (reduced from the pre-renovation total of 1497) on three levels.
The Royal Alex was named a National Historic Monument in 1987. As such, it must be maintained in the style and appearance of a 19th century theatre and, therefore, elevators cannot be added to the building. Wheelchair seating is available only on the orchestra level and the dress circle and balcony are accessible by stairs only.
Tickets for all performances at the Royal Alexandra Theatre are available online at mirvish.com and by telephone through TicketKing at 1-800-461-3333. (TicketKing is the only official ticketing agent for MIrvish productions). The Royal Alexandra Theatre box office is located at 260 King Street W. Visit mirvish.com for up-to-date box office hours and ticket information.
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Rush: Same day rush seats are subject to availability and may not be available for all performances. Discounts vary. Check the mirvish.com website for up-to-date information once live theatre returns.
CAA Members enjoy savings up to 25% on select shows, as well as other benefits. You can buy tickets online or by telephone with your CAA Membership number. See mirvish.com for details.
American Express offers Front of the Line tickets to some shows. See mirvish.com for details.
Group Sales: As little as 10 tickets may qualify you as a group and make you eligible for valuable ticket discounts. See Mirvish.com for details.
There are two boxes on each side of the front orchestra with four movable chairs in each. They are labelled as having a partially obstructed sightline with an extreme side view.
The dress circle overhangs the orchestra at Row H.
Wheelchair access is available; the theatre entrance at street level leads directly to the orchestra level seating.
READER REVIEWS
“Row A, Seat 15 and Row A, Seat 24. I saw Come From Away twice from Row A: from seat 15, toward the right of the centre section, and from seat 24, toward the left. I am not a tall person but had no problem seeing over those in front of me either time. A great, close-up view of the action.”
“Row G, Seat 18. The seats are offset enough to allow for a wonderful, clear view.”
“We sat in Row J and had good legroom and an excellent view of the stage.”
“The Royal Alex is a great venue. We sat in the centre orchestra section in Row R. The seats are staggered and the theatre rake (slope) is good so we had a great view.”
LAYOUT
The dress circle consists of ten rows of central seating.
There are two boxes on each side of the front dress circle with four movable chairs in each. They are labelled as having a partially obstructed sightline with an extreme side view.
There is no elevator to this level. From the ground floor theatre entrance to the dress circle level is a 30-step climb. There are 14 steps down from Row G to Row A.
SEATING NOTES
Shorter people may find that the safety railing obstructs their view in Row A.
READER REVIEWS
“Row C, Seat 23. I enjoyed an excellent view from here. The dress circle is well raked and the seats are offset, allowing for an unobstructed view over the rows ahead. Unfortunately, the legroom is quite tight and by intermission I could have sworn that the seat back was just an unpadded plank of wood. Still, standing for a good stretch at intermission prepares you for the second act. Given that the third-row seats of the dress circle were $30-$40 less than the first two rows for this show, Row C provided good value.”
“I sat in Row E and it was an excellent seat. I wouldn’t want to sit too much farther back though because I felt that the overhang of the balcony would interfere a little with the view.”
“I sat in row G and had a good view of everything happening onstage. I’m not tall but the rows are well raked and I had no problem seeing over the person ahead of me.”
“We sat in Row J (the last row) of the dress circle and found the view partially obstructed by the overhang from the balcony so that we couldn’t see some of the activity at the rear of the stage.”
“I’ve sat in every level in this theatre and I think the seats in the dress circle offer the best view for the price.”
LAYOUT
The balcony consists of nine rows of central seating.
There is no elevator to this level.
From the ground floor theatre entrance to the balcony level is a 69-step climb. There are 26 steps down from row H to row A. The rake (angle) of the balcony is 60%.
SEATING NOTES
Shorter people may find that the safety railing partially obstructs their view.
People with vertigo/fear of heights may not feel comfortable at this level.
READER REVIEWS
“My friend and I sat in Row A of the balcony. I’m tall so the safety railing didn’t affect my view, but my friend is shorter and her view was obstructed. I don’t recommend Row A for anyone on the short side.”
“It’s very steep getting to your seat. Not recommended for people with vertigo/fear of heights because as you’re walking down the steps to your seat, it’s so steep that you can feel as though you might fall.”
“There is no elevator to this level so it’s a bit of climb – it could be difficult for some people. Once you make it there, the seats have good leg room and the view is good.”
The theatre entrance at street level leads directly to the orchestra (main) level. There are no elevators in the Royal Alex, so wheelchair seating is available in the orchestra section only. Access to the dress circle and balcony requires the climbing of stairs.
The coat check is located on the lower level.
There is a bar/refreshment counter on each level: orchestra lobby, dress circle lobby, balcony lobby and the Yale Simpson Lounge on the lower level.
American Express Cardmembers have exclusive access to the priority bar located in the Yale Simpson Lounge.
The Royal Alex is equipped with infra-red listening systems for the deaf and hard of hearing. This system requires the use of headsets, which are available free of charge at the lobby concession desk.
