<\/p>\n
London Theatre Company, founders of the Bridge Theatre and the London venue housing immersive space Lightroom, has been acquired by Trafalgar Entertainment.<\/p>\n
The move brings both London venues under the ownership of the live entertainment company co-founded by Howard Panter and Rosemary Squire.<\/p>\n
The Bridge Theatre, which opened in 2017 on the South Bank near Tower Bridge, is currently operated by London Theatre Company and has been run since its founding by artistic director Nicholas Hytner and executive director Nick Starr. It has now been acquired by Trafalgar for an undisclosed amount, with Hytner and Starr \u201cworking collaboratively\u201d with Trafalgar during the acquisition.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The 900-seat venue has operated as an independent producing house since opening, staging work that has transferred to the West End and Broadway. Its next production, a new version of\u00a0The Oresteia,\u00a0<\/em>begins previews this week. The venue\u2019s Olivier Award-winning production of Into the Woods\u00a0<\/em>will also transfer to the West End this autumn.<\/p>\n The venue housing Lightroom, the immersive visual arts venue in King\u2019s Cross, was founded in 2023 as a joint venture between London Theatre Company and 59 Productions. The space, located on Lewis Cubitt Square near Coal Drops Yard, launched its programme with a David Hockney exhibition and has since hosted large-scale immersive works using projection technology across its main hall. Its CEO is Richard Slaney and its executive chair is Starr.<\/p>\n Lightroom was developed in part as a temporary use of a building originally intended to become a second theatre for London Theatre Company, with future plans to be confirmed.<\/p>\n Hytner stated he would be \u201cmoving on\u201d as part of the acquisition, saying today: \u201cBuilding the Bridge Theatre and working on its repertoire with a host of extraordinarily talented people has been a thrilling experience. I couldn\u2019t be more admiring of the artists and colleagues who have been responsible for making so many memorable productions and creating a theatre that has quickly become a favourite destination for audiences. And I\u2019m extremely grateful to those audiences for their enthusiasm and loyalty. After nine years, it feels like the right time to be moving on, and I\u2019m very happy that its new owners, Trafalgar Entertainment, will be taking it into the future.\u201d<\/p>\n