Composer buys theatre

Press, 25 August 1983, Page 19

Composer buys theatre

NZPA-Reuter London Andrew Lloyd Webber, composer of the hit musicals, “Jesus Christ Superstar,” “Evita,” and "Cats,’’has become the owner of the London theatre where his shows have become a fixture. He told a news conference after completing the deal that he had paid $3.02 million for the ornate, 92-year-old Palace Theatre in the heart of London’s West End theatreland. The Palace broke London records with an eight-year run of “Jesus Christ Super-

star,” and his latest work, "Song and Dance,” has been running there for more than a year. Lloyd Webber, aged 35, said he would try to restore it to the grandeur of its earliest years. He wanted it to continue staging musicals and he was keen to see it used more during the day, but he did not expect it to produce a profit. “It’s a bit like buying a big country house that you know you’re never really to make money out of, but you buy it because you love it,” he said.