A close-up magic show with a TV star who killed off his character, performed in a former strip club in Soho. What could possibly go wrong? Read on and see!
BOOKING
General admission tickets for the show were for sale via the Underbelly Boulevard website. There was a presale with O2 Priority, where I originally saw the event advertised. Accessible tickets, however, are not purchased online.
The stalls are accessible by lift, but some of the seating options have steps. The seating is in price brackets, but you do not book a specific seat. The seating for this show is all unreserved, so it’s first come, first served on the day, with friendly staff in the auditorium to get you seated.
The theatre has a revolving floor, and the seating can be reconfigured entirely for different events, so you need to check the details of each show to confirm the seating for that event.
If you require a personal assistant or carer to attend the show with you, you are eligible for a complimentary personal assistant ticket. These tickets can be booked in person, by email, or over the phone.
I phoned the box office and explained that I wanted to book four tickets: two for wheelchair users and two for companions, as we went with friends.
The Box Office staff was friendly and efficient. They asked what requirements we had and booked the relevant tickets for us. As seating is unreserved, they reserved some seating for us in a suitable area of the theatre on the day.
As I’d bought tickets for the company’s events before, I wasn’t required to send any proof of disability, nor was any asked for for my friend.
The same day I called them, I received an email confirming my booking, the show’s details, and a QR code for my tickets.
I received another email the day before the show with the ticket QR code and lots of information about getting there, the bar and restaurant, the venue facilities, etc.
I also emailed the venue the day before the show to make sure it had been noted that there were two wheelchair users in our party and that we all wanted to sit together, if possible.
LOCATION AND GETTING THERE
You might be familiar with the Underbelly company from its festivals and pop-up events, but it opened its first permanent space in the heart of Soho in October 2023.
We found getting there very easy.
The theatre is on a street running between Oxford Street and Shaftesbury Avenue, in Soho, close to ‘Theatre Land’, Chinatown, Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square. You’re also not far from Regent Street and Carnaby Street for shopping, and lots of food and drink outlets.
There are no accessible TFL underground stations nearby, the nearest being Tottenham Court Road and Oxford Circus (Victoria Line only).
After travelling into London by train and arriving at King's Cross, we jumped on a red London bus to Tottenham Court Road and wheeled the short distance to the theatre. I love using the buses; they’re so easy and much more scenic than being underground.
There are some on-street parking bays in the local area to the theatre, if you're brave enough to drive there!
Depending on which direction you approach the theatre, you’ll see some very different sights on the way, some not for the faint-hearted!
If you head North-west from Shaftesbury Avenue and up Rupert Street (between the Gielgud and Apollo Theatres), you’ll pass several brightly coloured, eye-catching Soho ‘adult retail’ stores.
If you head south-east from Oxford Street and down Berwick Street, you’ll find many small independent stores, market stalls, and quirky coffee shops.
The surrounding areas have some cobbled streets, narrow footpaths and street furniture. Depending on the time of day and day of the week, the whole area will be busy with tourists, shoppers and theatre-goers, so be prepared to allow a little extra time and possibly research your best route to avoid the busiest areas if you’ll struggle. Also, be aware of traffic - many of the side streets are one-way but busy with taxis and delivery vehicles.
GETTING IN
There are two large automatic glass doors into the small reception area. The reception has a desk in the middle, a staircase on the right and a lift on the left. The lovely lady at the desk was very helpful and double-checked that seats had been reserved for us. She also told us what facilities were on each floor of the building and where we needed to be.
The lift was only big enough for one wheelchair at a time, plus space for a companion too.
The bar and restaurant are open to the public, so tickets are not checked until you’re ready to enter the theatre.
Due to the layout of the building, it was a little tricky to get from the lift to the theatre. The reception, lifts, and stairs are in a building that is connected to the theatre building by two glass corridors or bridges. These corridors are narrow, and the people queuing to enter the theatre were blocking the way through. Some people in the queue cleared a way through for us, and once the staff near the theatre door saw us, they moved all of the queuing people to one side and escorted us straight through to the theatre and our seats.
Our QR ticket code was scanned at the door, but there were no security checks.
The theatre itself is round and, apparently, a former strip club. It's dimly lit with rows of chairs gradually stepping down towards the front and the stage. Above is a balcony with some seating and a standing row at the back.
Our tickets were for Stalls B, so we were in the rear section of the theatre. Two chairs just inside the theatre doors had ‘reserved’ notices, and the staff happily juggled other seats around to ensure our two wheelchairs were positioned suitably, not causing a trip hazard and not in anyone else’s way. We had our backs against a wall, curving around a corner.
Having rows of seats in front of us on the same level, our view was slightly obstructed when Steven was doing his card tricks on the table on stage, but there was a large screen with a close-up camera, so we didn’t miss anything.
FACILITIES
On the first floor of the building is a very stylish cocktail bar and Artushi restaurant, both open to the public. The bar has an accessible toilet. There is a lot of seating and a good amount of space between the tables, so it should still be easy enough to get around when it’s busy.
On the second floor, there’s an accessible toilet next to the lift and a small bar next to the theatre door. I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a discreet accessible toilet - it would be easy to miss it!
SEATING
There are different types of seating around the theatre. Most of the seats are traditional-looking bucket seats with a drop-down seat. They are movable to change the layout for other shows. Along the back of the stall are high stools with backs. The row we were on was just regular chairs, which were ideal for moving.
If we had booked tickets for Stalls A, some of the other chairs would have been moved for us, and I would consider this in the future.
GETTING BACK OUT
The queues caused the same problem of getting out as getting in. Steven was doing a meet and greet down in the Artusi restaurant on level 2. People were queuing from the theatre, across the glass bridge, and down the stairs. The staff were brilliant - they asked us if we were leaving or going to the meet and greet, When we said we were staying they took the 4 of us down to Level 1 in the service lift which meant we didn't have to struggle through the queue, take two trips in the lift then make our way through the restaurant. Instead, when exiting the service lift on Level 1, we were near the front of the queue. Staff cleared a way through, asking people to make way for the “access patrons” and jump us to the front of the queue.
Steven Frayne was fab! Staff were selling large printed posters for £10 that you could get signed. Steven had a ring light set up to give good lighting for photos, and he took our phones from us to take a set of selfies with us. We weren’t rushed at all, and he took time to chat with us like we were the only people in the room.
Once we were finished, staff members cleared a way through the queue to get us to the lift, back down to the ground floor and out onto the bustling Saturday afternoon London streets.
OVERALL EXPERIENCE
What went wrong? Nothing. Everything was great.
We could only fault the lack of queue management or assistance as we exited the lift.
The venue was great, the staff were very helpful, and the location was good. It’s a brilliant, intimate performance space.
Even though it’s so small, we didn’t feel we were in anyone’s way.
Seeing such a high-profile act in a small, intimate theatre was a great experience.
I’ll be checking the venue’s listing page to see what they have in the future!
