The creative hub at the heart of Watford, the Palace engages people through commissioning, creating and presenting high-quality theatre, and developing audiences, artists and communities through exciting opportunities to participate.

Contributing to the identity of Watford and Hertfordshire, the Palace enriches people’s lives, increases pride in the town, and raises the profile of the area through its work.

The quality of work on stage and beyond is central to the Theatre’s ethos. Recently, the Palace has enjoyed critical acclaim for its productions of Laurence Marks & Maurice Gran's Von Ribbentrops Watch (2010), Neil Simon’s Brighton Beach Memoirs (2010) and Charlotte Keatley’s My Mother Said I Never Should (2009). Work created at Watford Palace Theatre regularly tours nationally and recent collaborations include co-productions of The Human Comedy with the Opera Group and the Young Vic, which was nominated for the Evening Standard award for Best Musical, Stickman with Scamp which toured internationally and played at London’s Soho Theatre and Tintin with the Young Vic, which toured nationally before transferring to the West End. 

The Palace has commissioned and is developing plays with a range of exciting writers including Gary Owen’s new play Mrs Reynolds and the Ruffian (2010) and Tanika Gupta’s Great Expectations (2011) set in nineteenth century India and a new commission from Creative Associate Stacey Gregg.

Community partnerships have led to the success of projects such as Milestones (2008) and Hello, Mister Capello (2010) both bringing together the creativity of Watford’s diverse local communities. In 2010 the Palace began a series of Community Celebrations organised with local people to celebrate yearly landmarks. These build on the year-round programme of Palace and Hertfordshire County Youth Theatres, adult workshops, backstage tours, community choir and extensive work with local schools.

The beautiful 600-seat Edwardian Palace Theatre is a Grade II listed building. Refurbished in 2004, the Theatre offers modern and accessible facilities including its own rehearsal room and wardrobe and scenic workshop. Recently the Theatre opened the new Green Room Bar and continues to develop the quality of experience for the tens of thousands of people visiting the Theatre each year.