Pieter Toerien

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

Being edited (November 2023)

Biography

Born in Cape Town in 1942,

Career

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.

With rigid censorship laws in South Africa in the 70s and 80s, plays were continually under scrutiny by the law. 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.

When the word ‘gay’ was still taboo Toerien brought The Other Side of the Swamp to the boards. Writer Royce Ryton himself played opposite Echardt Rabe under Graham Armtage’s direction. By running for a year this production broke a South African record.

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

The works of such imminent British writers as Noel Coward, Tom Stoppard, Simon Gray, and Peter Shaffer have all been mounted in Toerien’s theatres. In the 80s 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, 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 The 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.

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

Toerien created, managed and owned a number of theatre and entertainment venues over the years,

Since the 70s he has always owned his own theatres, beginning with The Intimate Theatre (in partnership with Shirley Firth,) , followed over the years by The Barnato, the André Huguenet Theatre (Johannesburg), the Alhambra Theatre (Johannesburg), the Theatre on the Bay (Cape Town), the Montecasino Theatre (Johannesburg).

was 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. 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. 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 [1]]

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.

Pieter Toerien's 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 (see below).

Among the list of stage productions have been (arranged chronologically):

1971: Ronald Millar’s Abelard and Helöise, starring Heather Lloyd-Jones, Paul Massie, Margaretta Scott and Mervyn Johns at the Civic.

1972: Jack Popplewell’s Darling, I’m Home starring Ian Carmichael and Diane Todd, and A Touch of Spring starring Leonard Whiting and directed by Philip Grout, at the Civic Theatre in 1972.

1973: He brought Kenneth Connor to star in My Fat Friend at the Civic Theatre and presented a compilation of Noël Coward’s material, Cowardy Custard, starring Moira Lister, David Kernan and Graham Armitage and directed by Freddie Carpenter at the Civic Theatre that same year.

1975: Equus. With CAPAB's new open racial policy it was at last possible for CAPAB and Toerien’s production company to obtain the rights to Peter Schaffer's play and perform it, first in the Nico Malan Opera House and afterwards in the Nico Malan Theatre.

2015-6: Singin' in the Rain, directed by Jonathan Church with Grant Almirall, Bethany Dickson and Steven van Wyk. Presented at Artscape (2015/6) and the Teatro at Montecasino (2016).

Toerien's theatrical partnerships

Besides his role as an independent producer and impressatio, Toerien has, over the years, collaborated with many other producers and companies, including the Performing Arts Councils and has a number of business partners for shorter or longer periods of time. Among them have been:

Toerien-Rubin 1963-1970

Toerien-Rubin-Firth 1969-1970

Toerien-Firth 1970-1982

See the entries on these partnerships for details on 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 [2].

Theatre programmes and other material held by NELM.

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

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