Pieter Toerien

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Pieter Toerien (1942-) [1] is an impressario, producer and theatre owner.

Being edited (November 2023)

Biography

Born in Cape Town in 1942.

Career

1960s

Toerien's career began while he was still at school, when he presented puppet shows to schools in his home city, Cape Town. From there hewent on to become one of South Africa’s most active producers of stage productions, certainly one of the most powerful and successful private theatre impressario's of the period after 1980.

His first venture after school when he, aged 17, introduced the concept of bio-vaudeville – persuading cinema managements to have live entertainment before the feature film. Under the mentorship of Britain's theatre agent Herbert de Leon and in partnership with Basil Rubin, he set about bringing British variety artists such as Alma Cogan and Dickie Valentine brought to South Africa, and eventually also adding Russ Conway (1964), Peter Nero (1966), Shelly Berman, Cyd Charisse, Tony Martin, Françoise Hardy and Maurice Chevalier (1967) to his list of luminaries.

His greatest coup came at the age of 20, when he signed Marlene Dietrich for appearances in the country. He sat on the street outside her apartment until curiosity compelled her to invite him in. He signed her to tour in 1965 and again in 1966. They remained friends until her death in 1992 aged 91.

In 1966 he tentatively shifted his focus to the dramatic stage, often bringing entire productions from the West End to South Africa, cast, sets and costumes. Funding all his own productions he famously claimed that he produced farce and comedy to subsidize less commercial theatre. At the same time he continued with the successful business formula of signing overseas box-office attractions he brought names like Hermione Gingold from New York for Noel Coward’s Fallen Angels, Joan Fontaine for Fredrick Knott’s thriller Dial M for Murder. Other names included Barbara Windsor, June Whitfield and Sir Michael Redgrave.

1970s

With rigid censorship laws in South Africa in the 70s and 80s, plays were continually under scrutiny by the law. For instance, Ronald Millar's Abelard and Heloise called for a nude scene and actress Heather Lloyd-Jones consented to the demands of the script. Audience curiosity filled houses to capacity. The censorship board were given a dim silhouette of Miss Lloyd-Jones and the play was allowed to continue. Toerien did not escape more aggressive raids when productions were closed down, but he went on to challenge the system. Thus, at a time when the word "gay" was still taboo in tyhe country, Toerien and Shirley Firth presented The Other Side of the Swamp.

1980s

Writers Ben Travis, Ray Clooney and Alan Eichbourne became audience favourites for the Toerien theatres; as did Agatha Christie. From the early 80s, British comedy actor and director Rex Garner became associated with many Toerien box office successes, such as Ray Cooney's Out of Order and It Runs in the Family, Michael Pertwee's Birds of Paradise and Robin Hawdon's Don't Dress for Dinner.

The works of such eminent British writers as Noel Coward, Tom Stoppard, Simon Gray, and Peter Shaffer have all been mounted in Toerien’s theatres.

In the 1980s Toerien brought Sir Cameron Macintosh's Tomfoolery to South Africa. This association has resulted in South Africa receiving many of the phenomenal successes of Macintosh's London musical theatre, the South Africn company often deployed in the Southern Hemisphere.

1990s and 2000s

Prominent productions include Les Miserables, a co-production with Sir Cameron Mackintosh and Tsogo Sun; Cats which toured Scandinavia, the Far East and Beirut; The Phantom of the Opera which toured the Far East, ending in Hong Kong. These were followed by Sleeping Beauty on Ice, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat and Jesus Christ Superstar which was originally banned in South Africa as blasphemous after it opened on Broadway in 1971.

He always claimed that he did not need state subsidy, he subsidised himself. This was largely done by doing many popular potboilers (drawing room comedies and murder mysteries), and this enabled him to do more literary West End and Broadway successes, such as Equus and M. Butterfly.

In an interview in 2004 he considered Equus, Amadeus, Nunsense, Defending the Caveman, Cats to be his most successful productions up to then.

In 2006 Tim Plewman ended an eight year run of Rob Becker's Defending the Caveman for Toerien, setting a South African record at the time, having given 1500 performances of this one man show.

Involvement in the Performing Arts industry

Toerien has not limited himself to theatre management. During the period of South Africa’s transition he worked extensively with WESTAG Task Group on the Performing Arts sub-committee. In this area of civic responsibility he also gave of his expertise on the CAPAB board to assist them in their adjustment to become Artscape. He was also on the board of the National Arts Council and the Western Cape Cultural Commission, and is a patron of the STAND Foundation.

Theatres and venues

Since the 1970s, Toerien created, managed and owned a number of theatre and entertainment venues over the years.

The Intimate Theatre, Johannesburg

Opened in partnership with Shirley Firth.

For more information, see The Intimate Theatre.

The Barnato, Johannesburg

Opened by Shirley Firth and Pieter Toerien in 1976.

For more information, see The Barnato.

The Andre Huguenet Theatre, Johannesburg

Opened by Pieter Toerien in 1977.

For more information, see Andre Huguenet Theatre.

The Alhambra Theatre, Johannesburg

In 1980 he saved an old theatre from demolition and opened The Alahambra in Braamfontein, Johannesburg with Peter Shaffer's Amadeus. Refurbishing the old building he added two more theatres to the complex, the Leonard Rayne Theatre, opened 18th July 1983, (renamed The Rex Garner Theatre in 1994) and The Richard Haines Theatre.

For more information, see Andre Huguenet Theatre, The Rex Garner Theatre and The Richard Haines Theatre.

Theatre on the Bay, Cape Town

In 1988 he purchased the derelict Alvin Cinema in Camps Bay, Cape Town and, with designer Jan Corewyn transformed it with a post modern façade draped with a sculptured curtain. He named it Theatre on the Bay. It opened in mid-December 1988 with a production of Nunsense.

For more information, see Theatre on the Bay.

Montecasino Theatre, Johannebsurg

With the decentralization of Johannesburg’s CBD Toerien moved his Alhambra operation to the north of Johannesburg opening Pieter Toerien's Montecasino Theatre complex. Here he runs 2 theatres, one with 320 seats and a studio theatre with 160 seats.

2007 saw the staging of The Lion King in a splendid new 1900 seater lyric theatre being especially built by Tsogo Sun at Montecasino in Johannesburg. It would be the tenth largest in the world.

For more information, see Montecasino Theatre.

Productions

Most of Toerien's productions have been done either in his own name, or that of his company Pieter Toerien Productions, though he has also participated in a number of partnerships over the years, including with the Performing Arts Councils. These collaborations have included:

Among the long list of stage productions presented by him (independently or in collaboration) there have been the following:

(The plays are listed chronologically - for more detail on each, see the entries on the various plays):

1966: The Years of the Locust (Toerien-Rubin)

1967: The Promise (Toerien-Rubin), Maggie and Frank (Toerien-Rubin)

1969: An Ideal Husband (Toerien-Rubin), Dames at Sea (Toerien-Rubin), Big Bad Mouse (Toerien-Rubin), The Secretary Bird (Toerien-Rubin-Firth)

1970: Fallen Angels (Toerien-Rubin), Oh, Clarence (Toerien-Rubin) , Sleuth (Toerien-Rubin-Firth)

1971: Abelard and Helöise, Who Killed Santa Claus? (Toerien-Firth Company)

1972: Darling, I'm Home!, A Touch of Spring, Dial M for Murder; Don't Start Without Me (Toerien-Firth Company), No Sex Please, We're British (Toerien-Firth Company) , Wait Until Dark (Toerien-Firth Company)

1973: My Fat Friend, Cowardy Custard; Just Libby (Toerien-Firth Company), Suddenly at Home (Toerien-Firth Company), Crown Matrimonial (Toerien-Firth Company)

1974: Habeas Corpus, Not in the Book; In Praise of Love (Toerien-Firth Company), Private Lives (Toerien-Firth Company) , A Community of Two (Toerien-Firth Company)

1975: Equus, Carry On Barbara!, Shakespeare’s People, A Bed Full of Foreigners, Not Bloody Likely (Toerien-Firth Company), The Pay-Off (Toerien-Firth Company), A Streetcar Named Desire (Toerien-Firth Company)

1976: The Bed Before Yesterday; Otherwise Engaged, For the Woman I Love (Toerien-Firth Company), On Approval (Toerien-Firth Company), Double Edge (Toerien-Firth Company), Caught in the Act (Toerien-Firth Company), Amadeus (Toerien-Firth Company), The Other Side of the Swamp (Toerien-Firth Company)

1977: Dirty Linen and New-Found-Land, The Deep Blue Sea (Toerien-Firth Company), The Kingfisher (Toerien-Firth Company), The Monkey Walk (Toerien-Firth Company)

1978: Starting Here, Starting Now, P.S. Your Cat is Dead, Deathtrap, Shut Your Eyes and Think of England (Toerien-Firth Company), Cause Célèbre (Toerien-Firth Company), California Suite (Toerien-Firth Company)

1979: The Unvarnished Truth (Toerien-Firth Company), The Passion of Dracula (Toerien-Firth Company), Sextet (Toerien-Firth Company)

1980: Middle Age Spread; Mothers and Fathers (Toerien-Firth Company), A Life (Toerien-Firth Company), Happy Birthday (Toerien-Firth Company), Stage Struck (Toerien-Firth Company), Rose (Toerien-Firth Company)

1981: Amadeus, Quartermaine's Terms, Tomfoolery (Toerien-Firth Company)

1982: It's a Boy! (Toerien-Firth Company)

1983: Agnes of God, Side by Side by Sondheim, It Runs in the Family,

1985: Equus, Isn't It Romantic

1986: Murder at the Vicarage, The Business of Murder, Two into One, Tom and Viv, Jerry's Girls, Stepping Out

1987: Tribute, Outside Edge

1988: Private Lives, Sleuth (with PACT), Peril at End House, It's Getting Harder, Sarcophagus, Dear Love, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune, Charley’s Aunt, Lettice and Lovage, Nunsense

1989: M. Butterfly, Tomfoolery, Murder on the Nile, Who Goes Bare?, M. Butterfly

1990: Jo'Burg Follies, Ain’t Misbehavin’ (with NAPAC), Move Over Mrs. Markham, Sextet (with Plewman Productions), The Maintenance Man, Playboys, Lend Me a Tenor, Jo'burg Follies 2, Outside Edge

1991: Equus

1992: Out of Order, It Runs in the Family, Birds of Paradise, Gordon Bleu, Six Degrees of Separation, I Was King, The Woman in Black

1993: Don't Dress for Dinner, Beau Jest, The Best of Friends, An Evening with Gary Lineker, Jeeves Takes Charge, The Doowah Girls

1994: Travels with my Aunt, The Fan, The Monkey Walk

1996: Les Misérables (with Cameron Mackintosh)

1998: Defending the Caveman (played in various venues across the country till 2007)

2001: The Other Side of the Swamp, Cats (with Artscape).

2002: Private Lives,

2004/5: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat (with The Really Useful Group),

2006: Jesus Christ Superstar, Menopause - The Musical (with Hazel Feldman)

2007: The Lion King (in association with Lebo M), Menopause - The Musical (with Hazel Feldman)

2008: Disney's Beauty and the Beast (with Hazel Feldman); High School Musical (with Hazel Feldman)

2011/12: The Phantom of the Opera (with The Really Useful Group),

2012/2013: Dirty Dancing - the Classic Story on Stage (with Hazel Feldman)

2013: Don't Dress For Dinner,

2014: War Horse,

2015-6: Singin' in the Rain

2015: Little Shop of Horrors

2016: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat (with The Really Useful Group), Annie (with Hazel Feldman)

Gross list

He sponsored a tour of Middle Age Spread with Rex Garner, Helen Jessop and Eric Flynn before it opened at the Andre Huguenet in October 1980. Toerien-Firth staged Andrew Davies’ Rose starring Sandra Duncan at the Intimate in 1980/1981. He staged Agatha Christie’s The Spider’s Web starring Rex Garner, Shelagh Holliday, Paddy Canavan and Kenneth Baker at the Andre Huguenet in 1981. Leslie Phillips starred in Canaries Sometimes Sing for Pieter at the Andre Huguenet in 1981. He purchased the Alhambra Theatre from JODS circa 1981 where he staged Peter Shaffer’s Amadeus starring Richard Haines and Ralph Lawson and directed by Nikolas Simmonds in 1981. Michael Atkinson replaced Richard Haines in a subsequent extended season. He staged Agatha Christie’s The Unexpected Guest starring Yvonne Banning and Eckard Rabe at the Alhambra in January 1982. He then staged John Chapman and Dave Freeman’s Key for Two starring Rex Garner, Gordon Mulholland and Moira Lister at the Alhambra in 1982 before taking it to London. He presented Noël Coward’s Oh Coward, directed by Freddie Carpenter with Richard Loring, Judy Page and Ronnie Stevens at the Andre Huguenet and the Intimate in 1982.

He presented A.R.Gurney Jr’s The Dining Room starring Gordon Mulholland, Amanda Strydom, Ralph Lawson and Patricia Sanders with direction by Bobby Heaney at the Alhambra in 1983. He presented Agatha Christie’s Towards Zero at the Andre Huguenet starring John Watts and directed by Charles Hickman in 1983. He opened a new auditorium at the Alhambra in 1983 called the Leonard Rayne Theatre. The opening production on the 18 July 1983 was Side by Side by Sondheim, a collection of Stephen Sondheim’s pieces starring Dianne Chandler, Andre Hattingh and Eric Flynn, who also directed. He staged Michael Frayn’s Noises Off starring Rex Garner, Joy Stewart Spence, Eckard Rabe, Clare Marshall, Ralph Lawson and Kenneth Baker at the Andre Huguenet in 1983. It returned later that same year for another run.

TOERIEN, Pieter, It's a Boy! Robert Kirby, [[Keith Grenville] (dir). The play was a return visit to the Baxter in 83 which played to packed houses last August during the Baxter 82 season. Then transferred to JHB by Pieter Toerien. Playing at the Academy. Agnes of God, Mass Appeal, the Real Thing, Side by Side By Sondheim, 1983. Clarence Darrow, Grahamstown Festival, 1984.

Producer of Little Shop of Horrors with Cameron Mackintosh in 1984-1985

He presented Agnes of God starring Fiona Ramsay, Pauline Bailey and Lena Ferugia and directed by Nikolas Simmonds at the Baxter in 1983 before moving it to the Alhambra. He got Kim Grant to direct his 1984 Agatha Christie, The Hollow starring Shelagh Holliday at the André Huguenet Theatre in February. He presented Ray Cooney’s Run for Your Wife starring Rex Garner and Michael Richard at the Alhambra in February 1984. He staged Francis Durbridge’s House Guest directed by Hugh Wooldridge in 1984. He presented Mastrosimone’s Extremities starring Lena Ferugia and Michael Richard with direction by Hugh Wooldridge in 1984. In 1985 he presented Agatha Christie’s Black Coffee with Bill Flynn, Michael Frayn’s Benefactors which was directed by Rex Garner, One for the Pot and The Marriage-Go-Round. Michael Richard starred in Kean at the Leonard Rayne in June 1985, and in August of the same year Pieter brought back Equus.




Productions

Awards, etc.

In 1988 he received the Fleur du Cap Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to the industry.

Sources

https://www.pietertoerien.co.za/

https://www.montecasino.co.za/entertainment/theatre/pieter-toerien/

Television documentary: To the Edge by Peter Bode of The Star newspaper.

'n Kwarteeu van energie by Mariana Malan in Die Burger Monday 18 November 2013, p. 8.

Tucker, 1997.

Wikipedia [3].

Theatre programmes and other material held by NELM.

Interview by Lesley Byram published in Cape Times, 1 April 2004.

https://theatrelives.co.za/people/pieter-toerien/

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