The Wilbur Theatre Review

Quaint enough, but uncomfortable outdated theater. What really kills the vibe are the drink prices. Two gin and tonics for almost 50 dollars? Are you kidding me?

Will never go again...no excuse for this robbery.

Great, older venue. Not a bad view at all in the entire place - intimate but holds a lot of people. Biggest downside is the seats. Yes, they're old and probably haven't been replaced in awhile, but there is VERY LITTLE leg room in between you and the seat in front of you (*see picture*) Also the seats themselves are on the smaller side. Most likely to maintain some of the historical components, but it was very uncomfortable!

This is such a comfortable space to enjoy a seated show at. I will gladly return in future.

Theo Von was hysterical. The seating, however, was super uncomfortable. I m 5 10 and my knees were smashed into the seat in front of me not even exaggerating, I couldn t keep my legs straight. Also, it was REALLY warm up upstairs besides being cramped. Good sounding room though. Stay to the left going upstairs to avoid waiting in the beer line if you re not wanting beer.

Good venue. The space is tight enough that every seat feels like it has a good view, even the mezzanine and balcony seats. The leg room isn't great. Drink prices are high, but that's going to be the case in any theatre.

Sat way up in the balcony. Sound system a little off.

The Beach Boys were great, but the the balcony of the Wilbur smelled like pee. Disgusting.

We attend a lot of concert venues, and this was my least favorite in terms of parking and band visibility. The seats were uncomfortable and the sound was not so good. It is a very large theatre.

Fantastic atmosphere in this vintage theater. Great.

Loved the table service and drinks! Security was a bit slow to remove a drunk and disruptive patron though @Martin Sexton concert....impacted our enjoyment somewhat.

Been to this venue a few times, upper seats are kinda cramped, floor tables are pretty good and come with drink service. Drinks are pricey, but it s Boston, so that s to be expected. If you re gonna drink, just make peace with it and try not to cry while you re settling up.

Beautiful and historic venue. Plenty of parking near by in local garage. Ushers could have been a bit more helpful than just pointing at the general location of our seats.

Intimate theatre space. Typically has great comedy shows. I'd recommend balcony over the small tables in front of the stage. It's not very comfortable down there.

Great old theater but the sound was terrible. Not the first time that the sound crew just doesn t have it together saw al dimeola

Plenty of room to Dance.Could see good wherever you sat. Plenty of Security & Ushers to help guide.Great Location,Plenty to do,see,eat....

We have seen a number of comedians and this place never disappoints.

Only giving this 4 stars bc of the history. Love the old building, but staff are unhelpful and not very friendly. Seating on lower levels can be packed in and uncomfortable.

I really only should give this 2 stars, honestly. The Wilbur needs renovations really badly. I saw Todd Rundgren and was very disappointed. The audio was so loud you couldn't hear what the songs were. Maybe it was T.R.'s crew who spoiled it, IDK. But was not happy at all.

Seating a bit uncomfortable. Great place with a nice vibe 4.5 stars

Cramped venue, limited beer selection. Love the entertainment.

We saw Jim Gaffigan here last evening. The staff checking us in were friendly and efficient. The balcony seats are up many flights of stairs, so anyone with walking issues may have a problem. The seats are way too small for anyone over 5' 5". The biggest downside was there is no accomodation for someone with hearing aids. The acoustics are good, but sometimes you still need some extra help and there were no options which was so disappointing. Most venues I go to now have an app that helps people with hearing issues. Hopefully they'll consider looking into that option.

I was in front row seat and it was terrible .
Very uncomfortable . Unpadded seats Iron backs!

Best seat in the place would be first balcony center front.
All padded seats!

The acoustics here are marvelous. It is a great venue for this kind of a show. It's a beautiful old-fashioned stage theatre. The only downside is that there is apparently little to no accommodation for persons with any kind of mobility impairment. There are lots of stairs, and the only restrooms are in the basement, so if you're seated in the balcony or mezzanine, that's inconvenient.

Great time watching Jay and Silent Bob! Fun place to see this kind of show.

I've watched several shows here. The staff are helpful. Seats above the lower level are small and tightly packed.

Show was excellent. What they don't tell you is if you sit in balcony seats is that you have a long hike up. For those that are not in A++ shape you feel like you are going to pass out when you get to the top.

AWESOME shows! But the seating arrangement REALLY needs some improvement. The people who purchase the more expensive tickets (bottom level) get the worst seats - four small chairs gathered around very small tables, practically sitting in the laps of strangers. I'd rather pay a little bit more and get a comfortable seat with some elbow room.

Beautiful old hall, generally good sound. Many of the seats have very limited legroom. There is a bar. Restrooms are all the way in the basement, and have attendants.

Nice small intimate theater with very expensive beer. I do enjoy going to shows here though

The pro:it is a theater with some fine shows.

The cons: unkempt, filthy, falling apart. The owners should be ashamed. Whenever a show is complete, a shower in in order due to the low class nature of this once gorgeous place. Stay away if at all possible!

There isn't a lot of information for handicapped people and I don't mean wheelchairs, but people with disease that can't be seen. I have a lung disease and going up those stairs won't be possible in the future. What is the answer to that?

Views are great pretty much anywhere, but the seats are really uncomfortable.

Excellent place to see a show, been to a few comedy shows here, on the first and second balcony and basically every seat is great from front row to back. The seats rise high above the row in front so there are never viewing issues.

Bar can be extremely slow parsing out drinks before a show, and obviously it's very expensive. It's fairly easy to get to if you get off at Park street on the Red Line and walk there which makes a nice walk along or through Boston Common.

Came here to see Two Dope Queens with a friend. Very well lit and efficient (we were at the back of a long line but didn't wait longer than five minutes to enter the theater). They have alcohol, including cocktails, and the cocktail waitresses are very efficient, have some handheld device to send in and track a tables' drink orders. Sound was good, lighting was good, and the sound wasn't too loud given that I was sitting near the front. Bring a cardigan or light sweater if you get cold easily like me.

Seat rows are tight. If you are tall you aren't going to be comfortable.

Floor seating is oddly arranged. Upper levels are better.

I went to the Isley brothers show and it brought tears to my eyes. The up close and personal vibe is absolutely breath taking... BIG THUMBS UP......

I love it but if you have any leg back issues don't do the balcony. Will kill ya. Also didnt like the small beer selection. Not a fan of ipa & ciders. If you like those drinks you'll be good. Otherwise i really do love the place. Been there a few times over the years for different shows. Id deff go again but doing floor seats. :)

For an older venue with minimal modern amenities, this place puts on a decent show. The acoustics were good, and the theater itself is beautiful.
The seating on the other hand is a TOTAL S*#! Show. When my 5' 1" Girlfriend complains about lack of leg room..... you can imagine why "Bigger" people like myself: 6ft 215lbs; might find the seats to be the equivalent of a sardine can. 2hrs in those old rickety balcony seats was absolute torture on my body.

I was sitting near the top of the highest balcony and as you can see, I had a great view of the stage!

They say no one is allowed to their seats after the show started but we were interrupted 4 different times by the same person. Very disappointed we missed some of the show

I love the Wilbur but the tiny, crammed seats are very uncomfortable. I'm only 5'11" but my legs are too long to fit in the seat. So uncomfortable it distracts from the show.

Beautiful venue! Ornate and breathtaking. Seating is more comfortable than conventional theaters.

Rustic view of an old theater. Great events usually scheduled.

Tiny. Awful. Hot. The building is over 100 years old, but that's no excuse not to update a/c. There's ALWAYS a solution to hvac, especially when people are paying $50-$150 per seat at the rate of 1100 people in a single night. People were literally leaving at intermission to avoid heat strokes. Do not recommend for any summertime shows. Also, if there's a screen involved in the act, the back half of the house can't even see it because of the overhang of the balcony. This pissed A LOT of people off.

We had great seats but it was a bit cramped. Prices for drinks were reasonable. We did have a great time!

Fun experiences but depending where you sit your bottom will scream

Great concert venue. Drinks crazy expensive, but showtime were good. Buckethead rules!

Good venue! Great sightlines. Chairs could use an upgrade (more padding).

The wilbur consistently ranks somewhere between "serviable" and "ok". I don't think all hospitality or service industry people need to be constantly manic-happy, but I've rarely seen a wilbur employee who didn't look like a miserable, desperation hire who was gonna no-show at some point in the next week. That said, I've seen quite a few wilbur patrons who looked like douchebags who were going to vape during a performance.

Basically, if your favorite comedian is playing - go, and enjoy your $17 bourbon sippy-cup. But don't expect anything beyond a funny standup.

The show was Awesome. The theater was well kept but still old and tiny nit comfortable.

The upper level is stressful to sit in and you are literally on top of the people around you. Thumbs downnn

This theater needs to be updated I bought front row seats to the show but was sat a tiny table with 8 chairs shared with strangers swishes up against the stage it was very uncomfortable especially for the amount of money i paid for the seats

We recently went to go see Weird Al in concert here. Its a nice medium smallish space for intimate converts. We've also seem Tim Minchin, Henry Rollins and a few other things. It could use a little remodeling however.

Intimate venue. The floor seats are a little awkwardly positioned but you still have a great view of the performer. Any seat is a good seat here

A good place for an intimate theater setting. Tho the drink and snacks are wayyyyy over priced!

Atmospheric and intimate for comedy shows, in my esteemed experience.

Good theater experience but seats are very small. Soft drinks $6 each.

Beautiful theater. I would recommend for the classic feel, and the acoustics carried well. However, I would not recommend sitting in section E. I was certain I got fantastic seats being front row in section E. What they fail to explain is - section E is like a cage filled with bar stools / chairs. Our seat location was great. But, getting in / out involved weaving in and out of 20+ people sucks.

PRO:The entertainers they get are great. 5 stars on that. The venue is small enough that you can see really well from all the seats. Easy to park and get to. Lots of bars/restaurants in the area.
CONS: The drinks are ridiculously expensive. $15 for a crap beer. The seating is so squished together you can kind of forget being comfortable and you'll definitely be way too intimate with everyone around you.

I love The Wilbur! I've seen a half dozen comedy shows here over the years, and while she's a little old, the building is still in great shape, and there isn't a bad seat in the house.

Nice smaller venue next to The Wang. Good for a more intimate show.

Takes about 45 minutes to get a drink, and sometimes that's the only one you get so you might wanna order 2 or 3.

The security is a nightmare here. Show up on time for the real act (skipping the openers) and no one is even at the door for tix and you're locked out. Then once you're lucky enough to get in, it's a maze to get around since they restrict which stairways you can use. Redeeming quality is they have padded seats in the balcony, as old and dirty as they may be.

Stupid expensive drinks. $5 for a small water bottle, are you kidding me

This place is in the theater district... It could use an all around update. It's ok

Had A Blast With My Middle Sister. Went to See Lisa Fischer. An Amazing Show. The Energy In that Room I can't describe. It was Magical... Her Spirit is so Clean And Clear And Uplifting. Nothing From her Days With Luther Vandross... I will see he again and I'm a New Fan all Over again... Wilbur Theatre Is A Nice Venue. Comedy Shows Are Always Off The Hook.

The Wilbur is the goto theater here in Boston for some of the biggest comedy stand up in the U.S. we go there a few times in the year and in signed up for their mailing list so every Wednesday i get an email with who is coming to the Wilbur along with a presale code so i can buy the tickets at soon as they go on sale and get good seats. Very nice environment and a must on your list of places to go to if you live in Boston. We always park at the recommended parking (Washington Street) where you can get a validation ticket for, when you leave, so your parking is reduced in price. Just don't forget to ask for your validation ticket when leaving the Wilbur.

Seating in the balcony was great! Regular seats though were very tight and uncomfortable.

Went to see the Lost Causes of Bleak Creek on Oct 27, 2019. The event was mint. The actual theater it self was not as good. The place felt run down and abused. Eat before you go cause all they had was watered down soda/drinks and m&ms. The staff was friendly enough but not something I would plan on going to again.

This was our first time here, it is a awesome place to see a show!

Waitress didnt come over u till after the show started .... I got there 40 min before the opener wen on and the place was empty