Charles Arnold
Charles Arnold (fl. 1900) was a Anglo-Dutch actor-manager
Contents
Biography
He was an actor at the Strand Theatre London and the founder-manager of the touring company that would become known as Charles Arnold's English Comedy Company.
Arnold became famous as member of the original London cast of What Happened to Jones? (Broadhurst), playing the leading role of "Jones" when it opened in London, taking it and a number of other plays on international tours with cast members from the theatre, in 1885-6 and again 1900-1902, now under the company name of Charles Arnold's English Comedy Company[1]. They visited the various colonies, and were particularly popular in Australia.
Among the standard plays in the company's repertoire were Captain Fritz (Hamilton), An Empty Stocking (Wright), What Happened to Jones (Broadhurst), The Professor's Love Story (), Hans the Boatman (Greene), Why Smith Left Home () and The Grey Parrot ().
Contribution to SA theatre, film, media and/or performance
1895
In 1895 he first visited South Africa with Hans, the Boatman (Greene), My Sweetheart (Maeder and Gill) and Captain Fritz (Hamilton).
1899/1900
In 1899, Arnold's company presented Little Em'ly at the Standard Theatre, Johannesburg in September. An Empty Stocking was performed in the Theatre Royal, Durban, on 19 December by the company as a double bill with What Happened to Jones. What Happened to Jones played at the Opera House Cape Town in January of 1900. Also played on this tour were Hans, the Boatman (Greene), Captain Fritz (Hamilton) and The Amazons (Pinero).
Sources
"An Empty Stocking / What Happened to Jones", AusStage[2]
"Charles Arnold's English Comedy Company", AusStage[3]
D.C. Boonzaier, 1923. "My playgoing days – 30 years in the history of the Cape Town stage", in SA Review, 9 March and 24 August 1923. (Reprinted in Bosman 1980: pp. 374-439.)
F.C.L. Bosman. 1980. Drama en Toneel in Suid-Afrika, Deel II, 1856-1916. Pretoria: J.L. van Schaik: pp. 402, 407
Greyvenstein, Walter 1988. The history and development of children's theatre in English in South Africa. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Johannesburg: Rand Afrikaans University.
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