London Theatre Recovers From Impact Of Tv

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29227, 10 June 1960, Page 2

London Theatre Recovers From Impact Of Tv

Though many old theatres are still being demolished in England to make way for huge new office blocks, the London theatre is very vigorous and seems to have recovered from the impact of television, said Miss Beryl BiggWither. a well-known Christchurch amateur producer.

on her return from a recent visit to Britain.

Having a “feast of theatre,” Miss Bigg-Wither saw about 20 plays in nine weeks, many of them current London hits. She also attended several ballet performances at COvent Garden, many London concerts, and Verdi’s “Falstaff” at the famous Glyndebourne Festival Qpera, in that time.

Eager to take every opportunity of seeing all she could while in Britain*, she spent eight out of nine nights in one stretch at theatrical performances.

Experience of Theatre “Every play you see widens your view of theatre in general as a producer," she said yesterday. “You may not be conscious of any particular point you may want to put into practice at some future date, but if you keep your mind open you must learn something.” On the more practical side, she attended a week-end school of production and acting at the Mercury Theatre—the home of the Ballet Rambert—held by the British Drama League. Prized souvenirs of her visit to Britain are two programmes from the Glyndebourne Festival Opera, which include a synopsis of every opera and its cast presented during the season. The 1959 programme has a magnificent cover designed by Oliver Messel in rose pink with a silver rose design, ideal for framing. This was the silver jubilee programme. Glyndebourne Opera A visit to Glyndebourne on her last night in England was a highlight of her visit. The production was Verdi’s “Falstaff,” with the eminent singer, Geraint Evans, in the title role, and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Vittorio Gui. In the cast were English, Spanish, Mexican, Swiss and Welsh singers, drawn from leading opera companies in the world. The theatre, which has been enlarged twice since its establishment 25 years ago, now seats between 600 and 700. Of particular interest to Miss Bigg-Wither was the huge tower above the stage where scenery is “flown” (hoisted up) out of the way or

dropped into place when required. In the 25 years since her last visit to London, she saw many changes. London’s Bull lings

“London is a very vital place now,” she said. “Many new buildings of about 20 storeys are being erected. They seem to shoot up in about a fortnight.” At the time of Princess Margaret’s wedding, Miss BiggWither was spending a week in springtime Paris. “The weather was so glorious I actually got slightly sunburnt on my arms," she said. From Paris she went to Amsterdam, where she was in time to see the bulbs and tulips at their peak. “Coloured slides only show a tenth of the real beauty of these flowers,” she remarked.

Amsterdam, with its 16 miles of canals and 900 bridges, is the most beautiful city she has seen. She also visited the South of England and Scotland. As an optician Miss BiggWither studied new trends in optics while in Britain.