The Phan Lair

Some of you may recall the strange affair of The Phantom Of The Opera...

Good And Bad Seats Information

On this page you will find information on the good and bad seats at Her Majesty's Theater, London.

Her Majestys Theatre is the original theatre which The Phantom Of The Opera opened in with Michael Crawford in the title role. Now, 22 years on the show still haunts the same London stage with Ramin Karimloo in the title role. 

This page is aimed at aiding you to pick the correct seats while booking for a performance of The Phantom Of The Opera in London. At the moment there is no such page compiled for The Broadway or Las Vegas productions. This page should be used before booking as it will tell you things that ticket agencies will not and avoid you paying top price for a ticket and getting to the theatre only to find you're sitting right behind a post. It also has some general information about the theatre and seating areas. If you have any further questions or suggestions for changes to this page please contact me on thephanlair@yahoo.co.uk. I also would say that it is a bad idea to buy from any ticket vendors who are on the street. If they are not part of an authorised ticket agency (eg ticketmaster, see tickets, S.T.A.R) then do not trust them, they may be bottom price seats flogged at top price ammounts or completly fake tickets. Besides this, it's also completly illegal and hampers the musical theatre industry!

KEY:

Rows highlighted red are the worst rows in the section.

Rows highlighted green are the best rows in the section.

Stalls

BAD SEATS:

 Row

 Seat Number(s)

 Reason

 A & B

 15-20

 Low angle blocks all of stage from view.

 Q

 14-21

 Pillar blocks all of stage from view.

 R

 15 & 21

 Pillar blocks all of stage from view.


GOOD SEATS:

 Row

 Seat Number(s)

 C

3-21 

 D

3-21

 E

3-23

 F

 3-26
 G 3-29
 L 4,5 & 25 
 O 4 & 29 


EXTRA INFORMATION ON THIS AREA:
Almost all of the seats in this area have VERY cramped leg room. Some of the seats in row O also have pillars in-front of them, however they line up with the side of the stage and so only about 10% of the stage is blocked. Overall, I would recommend avoiding the stalls as they are the most expensive, not the most comfortable and don't really have a very good view of the stage most of the time. However the chandelier hangs over these seats greatly adding to the atmosphere of the show.

Royal Circle

BAD SEATS:
 Row  Seat  Reason

 A

 1-4 & 32-36

 Too far off center, restricting view of sides of stage.

 B

 1-4 & 32-35

 Too far off center, restricting view of sides of stage.

 C

 1-4 & 33-36

 Too far off center, restricting view of sides of stage.

 D

 1-4 & 35-39

 Too far off center, restricting view of sides of stage.

 E

 1-2 & 32-33

 Too far off center, restricting view of sides of stage.

 F

1-2

6-7 

13

23

29-30

34-35

Too far off center, restricting view of sides of stage.
Pillar blocks 50% of stage from view.
Pillar blocks all of stage from view.
Pillar blocks all of stage from view.
Pillar blocks 50% of stage from view.
Too far off center restricting view of sides of stage.

 G

 1-2 & 34-35

Too far off center, restricting view of sides of stage.

 H

 1-2 & 32-33

Too far off center, restricting view of sides of stage. 


GOOD SEATS:
 Row  Seat Number(s)

 B

12-24

 C

12-25

 D

13-27

 E

13-21

 H

23



EXTRA INFORMATION ON THIS AREA:
Fairly good leg room, apart from row A. The added height gives the advantage of seeing the show in more scope; the candels are clearly visible during the title song as are other effects throughout. The chandelier is visible from  the forward rows of this area but the further back you go you will more than likely losse it from view due to overhang of Grand Circle. If you sit in row A, you may have to lean forward slightly to see the front of the stage. This is one of the best areas in the theater to sit in for value for money if you take into account leg room, view of stage, temperature etc.

Grand Circle

BAD SEATS:
There are no extremely bad seats in this area.

GOOD SEATS:

 Row

 Seat Number(s)

 C

10-28

 D

8-26

 E

8-26


EXTRA INFORMATION ON THIS AREA:
A small metal bar runs along the barrier at the front of row A, which slightly intrudes upon the view of the stage, more intruding on the musical artists at the bottom of the stage, which in-fact I see as an advantage as the mad waving around of a white stick by a crazy man can sometimes take your eye from the action on the stage, however this will only apply to people of 5" and taller (roughly) any smaller and the bar will intrude upon the performance area. Leg room is generally good in this area and this area is probably the best to sit in, when value for money and comfort is taken into account.

Balcony

BAD SEATS:
All seats in this area are bad.
GOOD SEATS:
There are no extremely good seats in this area.

EXTRA INFORMATION ON THIS AREA:
Very poor legroom and the sound quality is also very poor, the distance from the stage also affects views, so basically all seats in this area are very bad. Steer well clear of this area unless seeing the show, on a very tight budget is important to you.

 

All information correct at time of publication. March 2005