Dramatic Club
Contents
The Dramatic Club, Grahamstown
Amateur dramatic society founded in 1864. (See Du Toit, 1988) [JH]
The Dramatic Club, King William’s Town
Founded in 1862, performed at the Prince Alfred Theatre. They resented the rival military performers (Garrison Players), accusing them of “puffing” (and being called “muffs” in retaliation). (Fletcher, 1994) [TH]
The Dramatic Club, Port Elizabeth?*
According to Jill Fletcher (1994, pp.93-4) some members of a re-constituted Dramatic Club, joined forces and raised enough money to build its own theatre in White’s Road, one she refers to as the White's Road Theatre. However according to Margaret Harradine (1994) this is actually a reference to a venue called the New Theatre, situated in Whites Road, and opened in 1862 - a theatre apparently constructed by the Port Elizabeth Dramatic Company, not the Dramatic Club.
The theatre was initially leased to Sefton Parry for a period of three months and opened with a performance of Grist to the Mill (Planche) on 2 June 1862.
On September 23, 1867, the Dramatic Club, which was very active at this time, performed a play “at considerable expense in dresses and general mounting,” written by the local postmaster and playwright, Alexander Wilmot, called Treasure at the Woody Cape, The or Days of Ryk van Tulbach, The.
Sources
Margaret Harradine. 1994. Port Elizabeth: A Social Chronicle to the End of 1945. Port Elizabeth: E.H. Walton Packaging (Pty) Ltd.
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