West End to Get First New Theater in 30 Years April 20, 2012, 1:28 pm LONDON - The West End area is getting a new theater, its first in 30 years. London's local government granted permission late Thursday for the construction of a 34,000-square-foot theater, which is to feature a glass facade and seat about 350 people. The building is being designed by the architectural firm Allford Hall Monaghan Morris, which also worked on the design of the Saatchi Gallery and the Barbican in London. The new theater will be on Charing Cross Road and sit atop the expanded Tottenham Court Road underground and rail station, which is under construction. It is the former location of the London Astoria, a landmark music site that hosted concerts by David Bowie, U2 and others but was demolished - despite some opposition from the public - in 2009 to make way for the new train station. Construction of the theater is expected to start in 2017, once the train station is completed, and is being overseen by the property developer Derwent London and by Crossrail, the government-controlled developer of the train station. The theater is to be run by the production company Nimax, which manages a handful of other London theaters, including the Apollo and the Vaudeville. Apart from the theater, Derwent said the building complex would also house shops, restaurants and offices.