Entering our iconic theatre this festive season? Keep a look out for our Christmas trees adorning either side of the central Rotunda doors.

You might think that these trees are just part of our decorations, but they tell a story that has existed for many years in Theatre Royal Drury Lane.

On Christmas Eve, a Christmas Tree was placed in the Rotunda, smothered in toys and decorations, which delighted the children. Open eyed and open mouthed, they gazed at the finest Christmas Tree they had ever seen. On Twelfth Night, the toys brought joy into the hearts of little ones in the hospital’

In 2022, Madeleine and Andrew Lloyd Webber have brought this festive tradition back. The Lane’s foyer now features two stunning Christmas Trees with blue and silver Frozen-themed Christmas decorations. In partnership with Disney Responsible Business, over 400 Sven and Olaf toys will be donated to Great Ormond Hospital in late December.

Disney’s support for children’s hospitals and places of care dates back to Walt Disney himself. Walt would bring animators and characters to brighten the days of hospitalised children across the world, and he personally visited Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital in the UK in 1951, with some of his animators, to bring some joy and inspiration. Since then, the two organisations have enjoyed a long history of working together to create moments that matter for seriously ill children.