Delivering a Modern Digital Experience and Ticketing Solution for a West End Theatre.

To support its broader mission and enhance financial sustainability, the Criterion needed a new digital platform that would showcase the venue, streamline ticket sales, and expand audience engagement—all while bringing ticketing infrastructure fully in-house.

We worked closely with the Criterion Theatre Trust to design and deliver a platform that balanced storytelling, performance marketing, and technical functionality. Key stages of our approach included:

• Discovery and scoping workshops with Trust stakeholders to align digital objectives across audience groups—patrons, educators, and emerging artists.
• Content strategy development to structure a wealth of information—ranging from historic venue details to visitor information—in a way that is easily navigable and engaging.
• User experience design that optimises the journey from performance discovery to seamless ticket purchase, supporting both first-time visitors and loyal patrons.

To support the theatre’s operational goals, we delivered a highly integrated, performance-optimised site built on Sitesuma, significantly extending its native functionality:

• Spektrix integration: A fully embedded, seamless connection to the Spektrix ticketing system allows users to:
  
  • View seat availability in real time
  • Select specific seats
  • Book additional items such as pre-ordered refreshments
• Responsive design: Ensuring an optimal experience across all devices, crucial for mobile-first ticket buyers.
• Structured content architecture: Making it easy for users to find relevant information about performances, plan their visit, or explore educational programmes.
• Optimised performance and reliability: Crucial for supporting ticket sales during high-traffic periods without compromising user experience.

Scalable infrastructure: Preparing the platform to accommodate future programme expansions, new audience engagement initiatives, and additional integration needs.