Masque Theatre

This venue in Main Road, Muizenberg in the Cape Peninsula was converted from a nightclub into a small theatre by Bertie Stern and opened in 1959 for the use of professional and amateur actors. The grand opening of the theatre was on 10 January 1959 with Sorry, Wrong Number by Lillian Jamieson" (probably the stage version of the 1941 radio play by Lucille Fletcher (1912-2000)[1], performed by actress Lillian Jamieson) and The Bespoke Overcoat by English playwright Wolf Mankowitz.

The theatre presented performers such as Yvonne Bryceland, Alec Bell, Zoë Randall and Bill Curry long before they became household names. *** In 19** Stern left his theatre in trust to four societies - **, **, ** and **. It is now run by a committee called Mancom and offers approximately twelve productions a year.

From 1982 onwards the Muizenberg Amateur Dramatic Society (MADS) also used the Masque Theatre for its productions.

The theatre burnt down in October 1997 but was rebuilt.

The Masque Theatre celebrated its 50th birthday in January 2009 with the performance of David Hare's The Breath of Life directed by Sue Bolton for the Claremont Dramatic Society.

In 2020 the theatre , like so many venues and companies in the country, was in dire straits because of the enforced lockdown occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic that had overtaken the world. The management was preparing to close its doors permanently, but at the end of April turned to crowd funding effort to try to keep the theatre going.

Sources

(JF) (Source: Celia Kauth(?) tel: 021 788 1898 (w) Mancom member)

Cape Argus, 18 August 1998.

Cape Times, 7 January 2009.

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