'' The Scarborough Open Air Theatre was opened on the grounds of Northstead Manor Gardens in 1932 by
Lord Mayor of London Sir Percy Greenaway, 1st Baronet, with the first performance at the theatre being a production of
comic opera Merrie England. Uniquely for an outdoor venue, the stage area was situated on an island formed in a lake, with a five-block seating area on the opposite end of the lake having a capacity of 5,876 seats. Two performances a week were usually held at the theatre during the summer period, with
game show ''
It's a Knockout, held every Wednesday, commonly drawing large crowds to the theatre and setting an unofficial attendance record of 11,000. Musicals at the theatre ceased by 1968 following a performance of West Side Story'', The £3.5 million scheme to transform the Open Air Theatre was completed in May 2010. The theatre was officially opened by
Queen Elizabeth II, accompanied by
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, on 20 May 2010. Initially after reopening, the capacity of the theatre was 6,500; this was increased to 8,000 in 2017 when part of the lake area was covered over. ==Events==