Entertainment

From Kinematograph Weekly, 6th March 1919, p. 73. Read more »

 

 

 A few doors down from the Adelphi is the pretty building which houses the Vaudeville Theatre.Built in 1870, Henry Irving acted on this stage for a while, as Ronald Bergan's book The Great Theatres of London tells us.

Vaudeville Theatre today.

Interior of the newly-opened Vaudeville Theatre in 1870. Westminster Archives Centre.

 

Carrying on along the north side of the Strand, heading east towards Fleet Street and away from Trafalgar Square, we reach the Adelphi theatre.

The Adelphi theatre today.

“Adjoining the Lowther Arcade…is the Adelaide Gallery, originally intended as a place of amusement and instruction combined. It was first opened in the year 1830, and named after Queen Adelaide, the consort of William IV [and] thus cleverly sketched by the late Mr. Read more »

Lady Precious Stream is a spoken drama adaptation of a Chinese opera (Wang Baochuan Read more »

I had a lovely day yesterday in the company of the George Edwardes Musical Comedy society. We all gathered at Westminster Reference Library to celebrate the Edwardian theatre star Lily Elsie, who made her name in the first London production of The Merry Widow at Daly's Theatre in 1907. There was a talk by Steve Bartlett on Lily's life, accompanied by numerous illustrations from his large post-card collection. And then one by Ken Reeves (the president of the society) on the theatre of that period.

Old London Street Scene (1899)  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-5Ts_i164c Read more »

In Matthew Arnold's essay on 'The French Theatre' (1879) he urges on the movement to found a national theatre and fancifully imagines French comediens departing London and passing 'along the Strand... I see a fugitive vision of delicate features under a shower of hair and a cloud of lace, and hear the voice of Mlle. Sarah Bernhardt saying in its most caressing tones to the Londoners: 'The theatre is irresistible, organize the theatre!' This phrase was for decades to be the call to arms for the movement to found the National. Read more »

It is such an interesting area. I became familiar with part of it through worshipping at St. Martin's since 1946 when in London, and then regularly from 1952, and from working at 13 King Street from 1958 to the early 70s.   We used to joke that we should print on our letter heading a taxi address - Moss  Bros. Read more »