The Firebird
Performing with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the pianist brings his celebrated lightness of touch to the world premiere of a work by Mark Simpson.
Víkingur Ólafsson: the Icelandic phenomenon who has redefined the way we hear the piano.
Mark Simpson: a British composer with a boundless imagination, whose music pulses with the neon-lit energy of 21st-century urban life.
Bring them together with Edward Gardner and the LPO in the world premiere of a new piano concerto, and you don’t need us to tell you that this is going to be quite an occasion.
That’s just the centrepiece of a concert that begins with Dorothy Howell’s sensuous tone-poem, and ends with Stravinsky’s magical The Firebird – a fairytale of love, darkness and dazzling light.
Performers
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Edward Gardner conductor
Víkingur Ólafsson piano
Repertoire
Howell: Lamia, symphonic poem
Mark Simpson: Piano Concerto (World premiere)
Interval
Stravinsky: The Firebird, complete ballet (1910)
Need to know
Box package
You can buy an exclusive box package for this event. More details of our Royal Festival Hall exclusive box package.
Times & tickets
Dates, times and prices
Dates & times
23 Oct 2026, 7.30pm
Run time
2 hours (approx)
All timings are approximate and subject to change
Standard entry
from £16 + £4 booking fee
Ticket prices may be adjusted without notice to reflect demand.
Concessions
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Refunds and exchanges
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Multi-buy Autumn/Winter 26/27 discount
3 – 4 events: 10% discount
5 – 7 events: 15% discount
8 – 10 events: 20% discount
11 – 14 events: 25% discount
15+ events: 30% discount
Discounts apply to selected events, September 2026 – January 2027 inclusive. Offer can’t be combined with the Spring/Summer 2026 multi-buy.
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For your visit
This event is held at the Royal Festival Hall Southbank Centre
The Royal Festival Hall is open six days a week.
Tuesday – Sunday, 10am – 11pm
Monday, closed.
Plan your visit
The Royal Festival Hall is home to our largest auditorium as well as The Clore Ballroom, National Poetry Library, Members’ Lounge, Festival Bar & Kitchen, Ballroom Cafe and Skylon restaurant.
Getting here
Our address is Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX.
The nearest tube stations to us are Waterloo and Embankment; Waterloo is also the nearest train station. And more than 20 different London bus routes pass within 500 metres of our venues. More information on getting here by rail, road or river is available on our Getting here page.
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Access
We’re working hard to remove barriers, so that our facilities and events can be accessible to as many people as possible.
All help points, toilets, performance and exhibition spaces at the Southbank Centre are accessible to all, as are the cafes, bars and restaurants. We also have excellent public transport links with step-free access.
All information about booking wheelchair spaces, step-free access, blue badge parking, access maps and guides and other help available whilst you’re here, including details about our Access Scheme, can be found on our Access page.
Food & drink
On Level 2 of our Royal Festival Hall you can grab a slice of life by the Thames with drinks and freshly made pizza at our Festival Bar & Kitchen which opens out onto our Riverside Terrace. You can grab a coffee and a slice of freshly made cake from our Ballroom Cafe. Or alternatively enjoy destination dining in the restaurant at Skylon.
From coffee to cocktails, filling favourites to fine dining, plus some of London’s best street food – it’s all here at the Southbank Centre.