KIDDERMINSTER PLAYHOUSE
1946 - 1968 A Souvenir

History

Contents

WINDFALL 1949-1950

The event of the year was the decision of the .Arts Council, early in 1950, to convert its loan of £3,000 into an outright gift. The question now was whether the Town Council would do the same thing and leave a clear run-in to the target date in November, 195 1.

Meanwhile the pace and standard of the artistic work continued.

Repertory first. Myra Barron scored a hit with her Tondeleyo in White Cargo, which also had Jack Wood as the whisky-doctor. The popular successes followed week after week. An Inspector Calls was notable for the performance of Eric Donald in the leading part, The Beaux' Stratagem was produced by Jack Wood direct from a 1778 edition found in a bookshop. Grant Duprez was one of the stalwarts of this company and Terence Coates appeared at about this time. Charles Wood appeared in a schoolboy part in The Guinea Pig and as the student, Morgan Evans, in The Corn is Green. Humphrey Heathcote, a Kidderminster man who was later to spend much of his working life on the West End musical stage and on television, joined the 1950 company for Ibsen's Ghosts, which had the late Peter Wilde as Oswald.

Other repertory work included: Jane Steps Out; Flare Path; My Wife's Family; While the Sun Shines; Uncle .Tom's Cabin; Love in a Mist; Easy Money; Nothing but the Truth; The Sacred Flame; The Happiest Days of Your Life; Love's a Luxury; Little Women; Mary Rose and Present Laughter.

Humphrey Heathcote wisely took out a special insurance policy for Maria Marten, or the Murder in the Red Barn. As Bill Corder he was hanged on stage every night; but the week passed without mishap.

Jack Wood, manager and producer since the Playhouse opened, left at the end of the season. Michael Hulme took over as manager and Robert Gaston returned as producer.

The Nonentities' season began with Tonight at 8.30, the Noel Coward playlets. The First Gentleman, with Kenneth Rose as the Prince Regent, was an unqualified success, I Killed the Count provided a marathon detective part for George Slater and The Chiltern Hundreds kept everyone happy. The same could not be said for The Three Sisters; the audience and the Press found this excursion into Chekhov heavy going. Mary Kenwrick and Gordon Field had a singing success with the season's big scale musical Jubilee, book and lyrics by Kenneth Rose, music by Richard Ross.

The outstanding touring production also involved an un precedented loss. Vere Laurie's Imperial Opera Company, with a full orchestra conducted by a great musical character George Coop, brought Walter Midgley to sing Faust and Victoria Elliott as Madam Butterfly. Support was better than average but not enough to avoid a stinging loss of £700 on the two weeks. Another blow had been struck at the viability of touring opera.

The Young Vic brought A Midsummer Night's Dream and The Servant of Two Masters, which had Pierre Lefevre in the classic comedy role. Touring plays included The Gentle People; Breach of Marriage; Just William; The Late Edwina Black and No Room at the Inn.

The Sherry Brothers, Springtime Revels and The New Look provided for the lighter side. The Ballet Rambert was here again and the pantomime, Aladdin, introduced two charming characters, Joan Collier and Edgar Driver.

Finance

Takings were now down to 385 a week, averaged over the 52 weeks. The Nonentities, too, halved their surplus to 740 and the Playhouse account showed a loss of 1,253. The Arts Council decision on the loan made it possible to reduce the debt by 4,102 to 3,655. The amount of subsidy remained the same at 628 but with falling receipts and increasing costs the need for regular and substantial outside help was becoming obvious - and this applied to every theatre.