Difference between revisions of "Wheeler Theatre Company"

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In 1886 [[Luscombe Searelle]] was with the company for a year.  Among other venues, they used the [[Good Hope Theatre]] and the [[Theatre Royal]] in Burg Street for their shows. The [[Hawtrey Comedy Company]] performed ''[[Charley's Aunt]]'' under the [[Wheeler Theatre Company]] management at the [[Good Hope Theatre]] in 18**  
 
In 1886 [[Luscombe Searelle]] was with the company for a year.  Among other venues, they used the [[Good Hope Theatre]] and the [[Theatre Royal]] in Burg Street for their shows. The [[Hawtrey Comedy Company]] performed ''[[Charley's Aunt]]'' under the [[Wheeler Theatre Company]] management at the [[Good Hope Theatre]] in 18**  
  
In 1895 they brought out [[W.J. Holloway]] of the Lyceum, with a theatrical company, to do a series of Shakespeare plays at the [[Standard Theatre]] , Johannesburg. The plays included  ''[[Othello]]'', ''[[Twelfth Night]]'',  ''[[King Lear]]'', ''[[Much Ado About Nothing]]'', ''[[The Merchant of Venice]]'' and ''[[School for Scandal]]''
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In 1887 they brought a new company to Cape Town to play in the [[Theatre Royal]], Cape Town in April and May. Consisting of a cast chosen by their manager, [[Frank Weston]], and for the most part directed by [[Sutton Vane]], a new appointee with the company, their repertoire included ''[[Dandy Dick]]'' (), ''[[The Harbour Lights]]'' (Sims and Petitt), ''[[The Schoolmistress]]'' (Pinero), ''[[The Workman]]'' (Towers), ''[[My Sweetheart]]'' (Maeder and Gill), ''[[Two Orphans]]'' (), ''[[Lady of Lyons]]'' (), ''[[Confusion]]'' (Moore) and ''[[Peril]]'' (Saville and Bolton).
 
 
 
 
 
 
In 1910-11 their company seemed to be fading, according to the critic and diarist [[D.C. Boonzaier]] (1923, cited in Bosman, 1980: p.434). In 1910 they did ''[[Dorothy]]'', ''[[The Dollar Princess]]'', ''[[The Arcadians]]'', and they  hosted the [[Walter Melville Dramatic Company]] and the [[De Jong-Black Company]] at the [[Opera House]]. In 1911 they began with ''[[Veronique]]'', ''[[The Balkan Princess]]'', and finally ended their long run of musical comedies with ''[[The Girl in the Train]]''.
 
 
 
 
 
 
== Sources ==
 
 
 
Bosman,  1980,
 
 
 
Bryant, 1979
 
 
 
Fletcher, 1994,
 
 
 
== For more information ==
 
 
 
 
 
== Return to ==
 
 
 
 
 
Return to [[South_African_Theatre/Venues|South African Theatre Venues, Companies, Societies, etc ]]
 
 
 
Return to [[The ESAT Entries]]
 
 
 
Return to [[Main Page]]
 

Revision as of 05:55, 26 April 2019

The Wheeler Theatre Company was founded in Cape Town in May 1886 by impressario Ben Wheeler (Benjamin Wheeler, "the Gov'nor") and his son Frank Wheeler, two actor managers who focussed on musical comedy or comic opera which included farce, and minstrel programmes (on occasion referred to in playbills as "negro absurdities").

The company and the father-and-son business are both also referred to as Ben and Frank Wheeler, the Wheeler Brothers and The Wheelers on occasion

They came from Australia??**/England??** , to become among the foremost theatrical managers in South Africa in the period before the Anglo-Boer war.

In 1886 Luscombe Searelle was with the company for a year. Among other venues, they used the Good Hope Theatre and the Theatre Royal in Burg Street for their shows. The Hawtrey Comedy Company performed Charley's Aunt under the Wheeler Theatre Company management at the Good Hope Theatre in 18**

In 1887 they brought a new company to Cape Town to play in the Theatre Royal, Cape Town in April and May. Consisting of a cast chosen by their manager, Frank Weston, and for the most part directed by Sutton Vane, a new appointee with the company, their repertoire included Dandy Dick (), The Harbour Lights (Sims and Petitt), The Schoolmistress (Pinero), The Workman (Towers), My Sweetheart (Maeder and Gill), Two Orphans (), Lady of Lyons (), Confusion (Moore) and Peril (Saville and Bolton).