How to Find Cheap Theatre Tickets in London

London is one of the best places on the planet for theatre. With over 250 theatres venues, including around 40 major theatres in the West End there is so much to see. Whether you want to see the next up-and-coming play, big musical extravaganzas, or some of the classic, longest-running theatre shows like The Mousetrap or Phantom of the Opera, you could go to a new theatre experience every day as a student in London

It can be expensive though, as London is an expensive city to live in. Do not despair though, we can help you source cheap theatre tickets in London, just as we’ve helped you in the past to find unmissable theatre shows in London. Combining the two will get you seated in your next favourite show in no time!

Tips to find cheap theatre tickets in London

Below are some tips that can help you find cheap theatre tickets in London.

Always check the official sites

As with most event tickets, you are likely to find ticket sales website, but in these cases it’s important that you look out for the booking fees. Booking fees can be truly eye-watering at times, so always check the official theatre website to check the prices there and see if you can get tickets any cheaper or with lower booking fees attached.

Look for discounted tickets

The beauty of there being so many theatres and shows in London is that there are loads of seats to be filled. The theatre website may offer late discounted tickets the closer you get to the performance date, so check there. There are also countless ticket websites that offer resales and cheaper tickets to events through discounts and last-minute offers, such as Stagedoor or the TodayTix app.

Join ticket schemes

If you’re not bothered about what theatre you see, there are some schemes that give you access to myriad theatre shows across the city. Some organisations are used to fill up shows that aren’t selling well or that need a full audience for a specific performance. They aren’t always free, but you can get tickets for as little as £2.50 up to £7.50, and it can sometimes only be a couple of times a year, but it’s worth it. The Audience Club is a good example.

Be flexible with dates and times

Another way to get cheap theatre tickets in London is to be flexible with when you go. There are sometimes discounted tickets for preview shows, matinees, mid-week performances, or half-price reviews, giving a chance for the production to run through before official opening.

Sit in the Gods

If you don’t mind being sat high up, as far away from the stage as possible, you might find some much cheaper tickets than if you were down near the front. What we would say for this route is that you should always try and find out the seat view before you purchase. The last thing you want is to be sat directly behind a pillar with hardly any view at all!

Look for the fringe

If you don’t mind what type of theatre you see, head away from the West End and look for fringe shows. These are usually much cheaper to attend than big West End shows, and they showcase up-and-coming talent alongside veterans in stagecraft. OffWestEnd is a great website showcasing independent London theatre.

Take a day seat

A cheap theatre ticket in London that’s a great option for students with some time on their hands is to get a day seat. From just £5, if you don’t mind queuing a little bit, you can gain access to a small portion of tickets that most theatres keep and sell on the morning of a performance. Usually, the seats are on the front row of the stalls or the best remaining available.

Student discounts

Some theatres in London offer discounted tickets or schemes for students and young people. The South Bank has an offer of £10 or under tickets for those aged between 16 and 25 through the National Theatre scheme. This is a great choice, as there are three separate theatre spaces and always a vibrant run of shows.

Standing theatre

Do you want to feel what it was like to watch a Shakespeare play as it was intended. The Globe theatre is a recreation of the original theatre, and it is one of the most enticing theatres for cheap seats. If you don’t mind standing and being uncovered, you can get one of the 400 ‘Groundling’ tickets that cost as little as £5 for every performance. It leaves you in the middle of the action, part of the entire experience.

Dip in very last minute

Sometimes, you can take a last-minute chance and head to the theatre box office as late as an hour or under before curtains are raised. This is risky, of course, but if you hit the jackpot you can get some decent seats for a really low price. The Royal Court for example offers last minute standing tickets for as little as 10p in its Jerwood Downstairs space.

Curtain Call

Now that you know how to go about finding cheap theatre tickets in London, what will be the next show that you go and see? Are you one for the glitz, glamour, and drama of a big budget musical? Or maybe you prefer the gritty, one-man show or tightly written play in a smaller theatre for up-and-coming playwrights and stage actors?

London is a fantastic city to live in. There are fewer places as exciting as London for students, with so many different things to explore. From the cultural and historical sites around the capital city, to the flavours and sounds from around the world, great London nightclubs and nightlife, sport, art, and great transport links to the rest of the UK and mainland Europe, you’ll love studying in London!

Let us know if there are any other tricks that you know to find cheap theatre tickets in London that we might have missed, we’d love to hear them.