Regent's Park Open Air Theatre is located on the Inner Circle of London's Regent's Park

It was founded in 1932 and has been one of London's unique theatrical attractions ever since.

The theatre itself is surrounded by woodland, which is invariably used to great effect as a stage backdrop.

Originally known for its Shakespearean productions, which remains a key part of its repertoire, the theatre now features a wide spectre of theatrical genres.

The Regent's Park Open Air Theatre is the UK's largest permanent professional outdoor theatre, staging a late spring and summer programme of drama, comedy and musicals along with plays simplified for children.

Despite having one of the largest audience auditoriums of any London theatre, the tiered seating and overall ambience gives the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre a real intimacy and atmosphere.

Come along – come rain or come shine

Disturbances from the auditorium, be it chattering or mobiles sounding off, can be the bane of the actors life. So off-putting.

The late, great, Richard Griffiths found this so frustrating he was known to stop a performance to lambast the culprits.

So what to do when a albeit gently rhythmic disturbance comes from the constant cooing of a pigeon on a branch at stage left.

At this theatre it is par for the course and part of the appeal.

At one performance, an owl flew across the stage (albeit silently).

One also spots the high-flying aircraft soaring into the sunset on their transatlantic crossings and the stars slowly appearing as night time falls.

An illustrious history

The history of the Open Air Theatre is a truly illustrious one.

In 1932 a play by Italian dictator Benito Mussolini at the New Theatre (now the Noel Coward) 'bombed'.

In desperate need of a production, theatre impresarios Robert Atkins and Sydney Caroll staged a short-run production of Twelfth Night.

An institution is born

When the time came to move out of the new theatre the pair took their production to a makeshift theatre in Regent's Park and a theatrical institution was born.

The following year, in its first full season, the Open Air Theatre revived Twelfth Night and staged the first of, many subsequent productions of A Midsummer Night's Dream.

From then on it was no looking back.

In 1934 George Bernard Shaw wrote The Six of Calais for the theatre and, between 1939 and 1945, it was only one of two (with the Windmill) to stay open throughout wartime London.

As Regent's Park Theatre Ltd, the theatre operates as a registered charity.

Over the years it has built and constantly rewarded an audience of part loyal local supporters as well as attracting London tourists and those visiting Regent's Park who manage to take in a performance by chance.

Put each production into the diary

To get the absolute most from a visit to Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, one should take a pre-planned approach to each performance.

Enjoy the park itself

The first thing to do is to arrive at Regent's Park as early as possible so as to be able to enjoy the lakes and gardens themselves.

Those dashing through the park, so as not to miss 'curtain up', will not be able to appreciate one of the world's finest city green spaces.

The 10-minute stroll through the park from Baker Street tube is a pleasure.

Swans, ducks, geese, moorhens, coots and heron all vie for your attention, any bird food you might have to hand.

The nesting season of mid to late spring is particularly pleasant, with young chicks and cygnets in abundance.

Pre-theatre dining alfresco

The Theatre provides a dining experience in its own right.

There is an outside picnic lawn, a summer café and a covered dining area circles the whole of one side of the auditorium.

The theatre gates open 90 minutes before matinee and evening performances.

Regular visitors to the Regents Park Open Air Theatre invariably make the most of the setting by arriving early to dine or picnic before the performance.

If not, the theatre itself offers an excellent selection of dining options with The Grill, a summer café and bar.

Despite it being in the outdoors, and following customer feedback, the theatre and theatre grounds are completely no smoking.

Those wishing to smoke should ask a member of staff who will let them out of the theatre exit gate.

The auditorium

The raked 'arena style' auditorium, with 1,250 comfortable seats, is one of the largest in London.

And yet the unique location of the setting and the casual ambience that prevails makes for an intimate experience with excellent acoustics.

AllWays leading to the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre

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Tickets and more information

www.openairtheatre.com