Friends Rehearsals FAQs

We are grateful to The Royal Ballet and The Royal Opera for allowing us to sell tickets to our supporters for final rehearsals.

Find out which rehearsals are available to watch via our Friends Rehearsals page.

If you have a query about Friends Rehearsals that isn’t answered below please contact the Friends office on +44(0) 20 7212 9268. Please note that ticket sales can only be processed through the Box Office.

What are Friends Rehearsals? 
For almost all main-stage productions, Friends are invited to buy tickets for the final rehearsal – the last rehearsal before opening night. Some aspects of the production may not be finished, and some artists may choose to mark their roles. The rehearsals should not be treated as finished performances.

Where in the auditorium are rehearsal tickets located?
The majority of tickets available for Friends are located in the amphitheatre.

How much do tickets cost?
Ticket prices vary depending on seat location, and range between £6 and £33. 

Is there a limit on how many tickets I can buy?
Friends may buy four tickets in total within each booking period, subject to availability. There are four booking period per Season: autumn, winter, spring and summer.

For all levels of membership you may buy a total of four tickets within each booking period. This can either be one ticket to four separate rehearsals, two tickets to two rehearsals or even four tickets to just one. Due to popularity and limited capacity, to make it as fair as possible for all Friends to get a chance to see a rehearsal, we stagger booking dates and ticket limits depending on your level of membership.

When can I purchase rehearsal tickets?

Booking dates for Friends Rehearsals depend on your level of support:

• Premium 2 Friends may purchase four rehearsal tickets at the same time as buying performance tickets.
• Premium 1 Friends, Supporting Friends and Friends+  may purchase two rehearsal tickets at the same time as buying performance tickets, and then have the option to buy a further two at a later date.
• Friends and Young Friends may buy one ticket at the same time as buying performance tickets, and then have the option to buy a further three at a later date.
• Subject to availability, at a later date all levels of Friend have the option to buy the remaining tickets from their allocation (coming to a total of four per booking period).

How do I purchase the rehearsal tickets?
You can find a list of upcoming Friends Rehearsals on our website. As with performance tickets, sign in to your Royal Ballet and Opera account to purchase tickets.

What happens if I cannot attend a rehearsal for which I have bought tickets?
The value of rehearsal tickets is treated as a donation and therefore we are not able to refund or exchange rehearsal tickets. You can return them as a donation to Royal Ballet and Opera by emailing boxoffice@roh.org.uk.

Can I give a rehearsal ticket to someone else?
If you cannot attend, you can pass your ticket onto someone else within our ticketing Terms and Conditions.

Can I buy rehearsal tickets at a later date if the rehearsal I would like to see is sold out?

All returned tickets are released for sale at 10am two days before the rehearsal. You can purchase them online or via box office phone +44(0)20 7304 4000. These released tickets are for seats available to members in the Amphitheatre and Stalls Circle. A reminder that exchanges or resales are not possible for rehearsal tickets, however if you wish to change your ticket for any reason, you can return your ticket as a donation to the Royal Ballet and Opera and purchase the new seat.

Who else attends final rehearsals?
Tickets are divided between Royal Ballet and Opera staff who are either working on or need to see the production. This can also include friends and family of the performers on stage for the rehearsal, and Royal Ballet and Opera Friends and Patrons.

All Friends' rehearsals are working rehearsals and so there may be stoppages and noise from creative teams within the auditorium.

Why are there empty seats in the auditorium?
As Friends' rehearsals are working rehearsals, there may be staff members who will need to move in, out and around auditorium throughout the performance. It is important to not change or move from the seat you have purchased into presumed empty seats as these could be used at any moment during the rehearsal. We also reserve areas in parts of the auditorium for performance photographers. This is mainly in the Orchestra Stalls, but could be in other parts of the auditorium too.