Felix Arts guide to theatre on a student budget!
London is home to one of the best theatre scenes in Europe, spanning from hit West End shows to more obscure independent productions. But seeing shows on a student budget can be hard and a lot of students are put off by the prices. No more! Felix Arts takes you through the ways to get cheap (or even FREE) tickets to some of London’s best venues!
Mousetrap Theatre Projects
This charity is dedicated to making theatre accessible for disadvantaged children, including those with special needs or a sensory disability. However, they also run some amazing schemes for young people, giving access to affordable tickets to major West End plays. Their September shows included the incredibly popular Wicked and Harry Potter and the Cursed Child!
Theatrelive4£5: £5 tickets for 15-18 year olds.
Westend4£10: £10 tickets for 19-23 year olds.
Theatrescene4£15: £15 for 24-29 year olds.
To join, sign up to the relevant scheme for your age on their website.
National Theatre
£7.50 tickets for 16-25s: Entry Pass is a free scheme for young people aged 16-25 that allows you to book £7.50 tickets to every National Theatre production; you can even bring a friend aged 16-25 for £10. Tickets are limited though so you need to act fast and grab them early. The Entry Pass also gives you the added bonus of discounts for the NT’s bookshops cafes, backstage tours and prop hires.
To sign up, register on the National Theatre website.
Donmar Warehouse
FREE tickets for under-25s: The Donmar offer a limited number of these for each performance. They are available by ballot for those registered on their YOUNG + FREE list, with tickets released on the last Friday of every month for next month’s performances.
To sign up, register for the YOUNG+FREE mailing list on the Donmar Warehouse website.
Royal Shakespeare Company
£5 tickets for 16-25s: The RSC provide a limited number of £5 tickets to all of their shows in London and Stratford upon Avon. Current London shows include the RSC’s London Shakespeare season at the Barbican as well as Matilda: the Musical at Cambridge Theatre and Don Quixote at Garrick Theatre.
The tickets aren’t available online, but can be bought in person or over the phone at the respective theatre’s box office.
Young Vic
The Young Vic have got a range of schemes making theatre a possibility on a lower budget. These include:
£10 tickets for 25-and-unders or students.
£10 Lucky Dip: fill in empty seats on the day. You’re guaranteed entry, but might end up standing…or get some of the best seats in the house!
Both are bookable on their website with ID to be shown when collecting tickets on the day.
The Barbican Centre
£5, £10 or £15 tickets for 14-25s: The Barbican’s Young Barbican offers discounted tickets across theatre, dance, art, music and film. They also hold young people’s private viewings for many of their exhibitions.
To join, sign up to the scheme on the Barbican website
Almeida Theatre
The Almeida runs several schemes for young people:
£5 tickets for 16-25s: available for selected performances.
£15 tickets for 30-and-unders: available on Monday-Thursday evenings and all matinee performances.
Almeida For Free Festival: This annual festival features several free performances of one of the Almeida’s productions exclusively for young people aged under 25. Past performances have included the massively successful Hamlet, starring Andrew Scott of Sherlock fame.
Tickets are bookable on the Almeida Theatre website, although the Almeida For Free festival often gets booked up pretty fast. Join their mailing list to be alerted when booking opens.
Royal Opera House
The ROH student scheme gives you access to a whole load of offers:
Student Amphitheatre performances: All seats in the amphitheatre exclusively for students and priced £1-£25!
Whole House student performance: The entirety of the ROH reserved exclusively for students! With ticket deals to be announced. This is a once-a-year event with this year being Billy Budd on 2nd May 2019. Booking opens on 29th October.
£10 Student Standby: Announced by email a minimum of 24 hours before the performance, this allows you to book £10 tickets for an upcoming performance.
Sign up to the scheme on the Royal Opera House’s website, with tickets available to book online.
Write for Felix Arts!
Join Felix Arts to request press tickets to any show or exhibition in London, with the possibility to take a +1 with you! All we ask in return is a written-up review of your thoughts.
Email arts.felix@ic.ac.uk or join our Facebook group Felix Arts 2018/19
