Future of the English Theatre

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVI, Issue 23381, 24 June 1939, Page 18 (Supplement)

Future of the English Theatre

MANY SIGNS OF REVIVAL During the last year or so many signs have convinced me that we are in the middle of a great swing back to the theatre on the part of the public, writes W. A. Darlington in the Daily Telegraph. This statement will, no doubt, be received with hollow laughter by various London managers who find present conditions difficult; and it is. of course, true that the recurring periods of political tension do obscure or retard tho movement. Nevertheless, the movement is there, and the farther one gets from London the more obvious it becomes. The best index is to be found in the state of the repertory theatres. Three or fonr years ago nearly all these organisations (except such famous institutions as those at Birmingham and Liverpool) lived constantly on the edgo of ruin. Audiences, though often enthusiastic, were small, and the profits on successful productions were small likewise. The loss on an unsuccessful production, on the other hand, could bo big enough to cripple the company. Noteworthy Change There is a different story nowu I have not needed • to go out of my way to collect evidence which proves this. The evidence is plain, taking in some cases the highly satisfactory form of bricks and mortar. Several repertory companies, notably the one at Hull, have been able recently to build themselves theatres out of their profits. At Oxford, where for years the company had to rely on a generous backer to pay its bills, the new Playhouse (guaranteed by the same backer) has attracted such good audiences that tho company declared a dividend the other day. From Windsor, from Coventry and from several other places I hear stories of success. At Colchester, in its second season, the company was able to report that every production from old English comedy to the modern thriller had paid comfortably for itself and that the citizens had subscribed a large sum toward the building of a theatre.