Olivier Theatre Seating Plan

Seating plan

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Two levels, Stalls and Circle, and that is the whole of it. There are no Boxes in this theatre.

The one thing to understand before you choose

Nothing overhangs either level. The Circle does not hang over the back of the Stalls and there is no second tier above the Circle, so the back rows of both levels see the full height of the stage. The choices here are about distance and how far around you sit.

What does affect the view, in order of how often it matters:

  • The side-block walls. The two raised side blocks in the Stalls have solid walls, and from about row J back those walls clip a small part of the stage from the outermost seats of the centre block. Pick a seat a little further in if you have the choice.
  • Distance. The Circle grows wider towards the back and row G is a long way from an open stage.
  • The set. With no proscenium to frame it, what a production builds is what you see, and a set with height at the back can go behind a lighting rig from the top of the Circle.

How the Stalls is laid out

The Stalls run from row A at the front to row R at the back. The first three rows, A to C, are short and almost flat, and the rake starts at row D. There's no row I, N or Q, so the letters jump in places.

From row D back, a centre aisle runs straight down the middle of the centre block to row R. Rows A to C run across it. Either side sit two raised side blocks, slightly elevated wings that curve round to face the middle of the stage, with a wall and a rail along their inner edge and a drop beside the innermost seats.

How the Circle is laid out

Rows A to G, seven of them, in three blocks per row: a centre block with a side block either side, separated by aisles. The rows get longer as they go back, so row A is the shortest and row G the longest. The rake gets noticeably steeper from row D back.

Where to sit

The middle of Stalls rows G and H. The best seats in the theatre: far enough back to take in the whole of an open stage, close enough to read a face. Rows E and F are the next best thing.

A Circle seat next to a centre aisle, if you want the most for your money. Those seats are often priced below the middle of the same row and see almost as well, all the way back.

What we would avoid. Seats 1, 2, 58 and 59 in the Stalls, at the far ends of the rows. And paying near the top price for a side-block seat, which is the mistake this auditorium invites: those seats are worth having cheap and not worth having dear.

The levels at a glance

  • Stalls, rows A to R, level 2. A little over half the audience, the best seats in the theatre, a centre aisle with no handrail, and the five wheelchair spaces at the back.
  • Circle, rows A to G, level 3. Entered level at the back, 18 steps down to the front, a steep rake and the best value on this level along its centre aisles.

The seating plan

The plan shows both levels. Tap a section to see what is left on your date and what it costs.

Seating Plan FAQs

Is it better to sit in the Stalls or the Circle at the Olivier?

For a play, the Stalls, and the middle of rows G and H most of all: you are closer, and on an open stage with no microphones the words carry better forward and central. For something with a lot of production in it, the Circle is the better view, because you see the whole stage picture at once. At the same money, a Circle seat near a centre aisle beats a Stalls side-block seat.

What is the seating plan for the Olivier Stalls?

Row A at the front to row R at the back, with no row I, N or Q. Rows A to C are short and almost flat, and the rake starts at row D. From there back, an aisle splits the centre block down the middle, with a raised side block either side. Rows O and P have no side-block seats.

What are the seat views like at the Olivier Theatre?

Better than the plan makes them look, almost everywhere. The rake in the Stalls is steep enough from row D back that heads in front stop mattering, nothing overhangs either level, and the Circle sees the whole stage picture from every row in it. If you are checking the view from your seat before you book, the three things to look at are how far out along the row you are, whether you are at the very ends of Circle rows F and G, and whether you have picked one of the front rows, A to C, which sit almost flat.

Does anything overhang the seats at the Olivier Theatre?

No. The Circle does not overhang the Stalls and there is nothing above the Circle, so the back rows of both levels keep the full height of the stage. What does cost you a sliver of stage is the wall of a side block, from the outermost centre seats from about row J back.