The Orchard Theatre

You beauty - We decided to book in advance for Sleeping Beauty Panto with Sydney Christmas for the 29th Dec. By chance we found out last minute that the Orchard Theatre was actually closed for repair works, so it was held in a separate marquee next to the main building. We decided to park in the main Orchard shopping centre multi story car park. Although the payment system was faulty you could pay by coins up to £3 from 5:30pm to 12 or just press the info button and get let out (you decide!) Facilities are very adequate for effectively a tent. Bar, food and souvenirs are also available and ok. Heating is good but does get cold in the main Auditorium marquee eventually. Seats are ok but could do with a bit more padding. The show was very well put together, Sydney out sung the sound system, which let her down, as her voice is so beautiful. The cast were good and full of energy. As expected for a pantomime, cheesy jokes and silly acts were the order of the day but all the audience and kids seemed to enjoy as we did, so would recommend....4/5

Although only meant to be a temporary venue whilst the original is being updated, the sound quality is excellent. Drinks not ridiculously priced and can buy snacks. Good seating arrangement

Went to see billy Joel show, that was fine but the cost of drinks at the bar are extortionate, more than the cost at the Edinburgh Tattoo! 2 glasses of wine with literally a splash of soda, 2 Corona Tops.. cost over £32 . Never again.

Nice theatre. Easy entry process with QR code. Bars and snacks at reasonable prices. We had Circle C20-23 and had a great view. Seats were very comfortable with plenty of leg room.

We saw a George Michael tribute singer and he was really good. They have moved the theatre into a temporary marquee and have done a very good job Just a few minutes walk behind the actual theatre, this temporary marquee should not put you off attending as it was very well organised and able to reserve your drinks for the interval as before.

The Orchard has a lot to offer for all age's. They have so much variety I wouldn't be able to list them all, however I can say children love the pantomimes and seeing their favourite books or TV shows coming to life. Now for the adults they have a wide variety from 80s dance nights, comedian, musicals and so much more. There is a great restaurant that you can book ahead of the performances or you can order smaller versions in the bar area. The price's are resemble and there is a good variety, you can choose from 6 starters, a beautiful range of bread chunks, then the show stopping mains the desert is served for you during the interval however you would have to go back up to the dining area. Or you can get the ice cream tubs from the ushers and front of house they have a super variety of ice cream and sorbet. There is one huge downfall I wish the ice cream staff in the foyer would clean the scoop more because let's be fair I'm gluten free due to an allergy and I've had sorbet that had the chocolate brownie ice cream on it. I get there is a lot of people to serve but cross contamination isn't right! I have eaten here on many occasions and the food has been great until the new menu came in a few weeks ago and omg the food is spicy! So if you can't handle spicy foods tell the staff so an alternative can be sorted. For me I wished they kept the Jambalaya chicken and I know others have said they hoped the beer battered fish would have stayed. I like other people would love to have a separate menu that was for persons like myself that are Gluten Free or have allergies so we know what foods we are able to have instead of asking the waiter or manager what is available and them have to go back and forth. It would be great to order at the same time as the persons you come with. Sorry I might add if you are unable to get upstairs due to mobility issues you wouldn't be able to sit in the restaurant however the staff are absolutely amazing and welcoming to have your meal in the bar. The staff I can never fault them they are always super helpful and accommodating even to the point a customer that was unable to go to the restaurant for their desert a wounderful young lady that works front of house went a got the food and bought it to the person during the interval where they sat. So the staff are great! Some of a few photos I've taken!

Great overall experience from start to finish. There was queuing outside before entering but it was very quick to get to the entrance. Fast and efficient processing by staff. Very easy to follow direction once inside and staff were very helpful and efficient. The show was amazing and had an great time. The space inside was just right. Not too big or too small. Just right. The seating was okay but long legs at the front near the side would struggle to be comfortable with the lack of room to sit. Apart from that a superb overall experience.

Visited the Orchard Theatre West (aka The Tent) for the first time this week to see comedy gig and was pleasantly surprised 👍 I imagine it is better now it is October than it was in midsummer though!