Sunderland Empire Theatre Reviews Summary

Performance Quality

Pros:

• "Saw Madam Butterfly opera which was sensational."
• "Show was fantastic. The best show I've seen live and would review that as five star."
• "Charlie and the chocolate factory was very good."
• "Went to see the Sunderland story. Fantastic. Well acted, songs good, with excellent local banter."
• "Went to see Dirty Dancing, the performance was excellent."
• "The show Blood Brothers a must see absolutely brilliant."
• "Absolutely brilliant, all of the characters were great, the beast's voice was exceptional."

Cons:

• "Sound is not great with individual words hard to make out."
• "Show was decent but the gallery is very uncomfortable. Seats get uncomfortable after a while, very hot indoors no air to breathe."
• "Mrs Browns Boys was not one of the best. The sound quality was really bad and we struggled to hear the dialogue and the content wasn't great."
• "Acting was good but sound quality of the songs wasn't the best."
• "Didn't enjoy this show (Charlie and the chocolate factory)."
• "Performance was great but they made me tip my daughters drink out before we went in."
• "It was a shame that the performance was interrupted by a technical problem midway through Act one."

Facilities and Comfort

Pros:

• "Excellent theatre retaining many period features."
• "This a grand and beautiful theatre."
• "Lovely theatre. Obviously loved and well looked after."
• "The interior of the building is magnificent & authentic. Seating comfortable & not too compact."
• "The theatre was the right temperature and seats were very comfortable."
• "Beautiful old theatre that was lovingly restored and improved to bring the best of the West End to the people of the North East."
• "The Sunderland Empire Theatre is a stunning building with a rich history."

Cons:

• "Wheel chair space are located on the outside of rows meaning there can be a lot of disturbance when people are moving in and out of seats."
• "The loos on the inside of the auditorium really disrupt the experience when the door slams and you can hear the hand dryer."
• "If you have any mobility issues don't go for the upper circle."
• "Seats in Upper Circle ridiculously narrow and very little leg room."
• "Our seats were in the gallery and unfortunately during the performance my wife was unwell so we moved to the back of the auditorium."
• "The only negative was the lack of lifts to the upper circle. People with mobility issues would severely struggle."
• "Seats are often broken, view is almost always restricted somehow and the cleanliness... the theatre itself is gross. dusty, cobwebs, toilets always dirty, carpets stained and torn, seats threadbare."

Staff and Service

Pros:

• "Lovely staff. Great idea to pre-order drinks on their app for the interval."
• "The staff were helpful too."
• "Staff are lovely, nothing too much trouble."
• "Staff are always pleasant and helpful."
• "The staff were fantastic, really friendly, helpful and engaging."
• "Staff all friendly and helpful."
• "My wife is disabled and uses a walker. The staff were helpful and friendly."