Royal Standard Theatre (1886-1901)

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Royal Standard Theatre (1886-1901)

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Venue	Royal Standard Theatre (1886-1901)
Other Names	Opened as the Royal Forester's Hall (29 April 1886) Clay's Standard Theatre (24/11/1906 - 22/3/1913)
Address	Castlereagh Street Sydney NSW 2000 Australia
First Date	8 May 1886
Last Date	4 February 1901
Notes	Built for the Royal Order of Foresters, the Royal Standard was a 1000-seat theatre. Its first lessee, Frank Smith, opened with a season of drama by Alfred Dampier’s company, and over the next four decades it hosted numerous amateur and “legitimate” theatricals.
Related Venues	Also known as Empire Theatre (1901-1902) 16/03/1901-24/11/1906 Also known as Little Theatre 22/3/1913-1917 Also known as Standard Theatre Also known as The Playhouse 1917-c.1923
Map
Latitude \| Longitude	-33.875135 \| 151.208851
Events	Date Contributor Organisation
	An Enemy of the People, 18 October 1900 Drifted Apart / Naval Engagements, 16 November 1899 The Eureka Stockade, 9 April 1898 The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Randall's Thumb, 17 June 1897 Benefit for Charles Burford, 12 October 1896 Dick, 12 March 1896 Dramatic and musical recital., 20 December 1895 The Rivals, 21 August 1895 Cousin Zachary / The Critic, 28 May 1895 The Critic, 28 May 1895 Harmony / The Wedding March, 15 August 1894 The Wig / In Spite of Himself, 24 July 1894 Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 The Way of the World, 15 November 1893 Love for Love, 22 November 1892 Love for Love, 27 October 1892 The Two Angry Women of Abingdon, 11 August 1892 Written in Sand / The Palace of Truth, 25 May 1892 The Democrat or, Under the Southern Cross, 18 September 1891 The Old Law, 31 July 1891 Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay / Twenty Minutes with a Tiger, 1 November 1890 Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 Ruth's Romance / Richelieu, 31 March 1890 Othello, 29 March 1890 The Factory Girl, 26 October 1889 The Merchant of Venice, 9 September 1887 The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 26 August 1887 The Green Lanes of England, 13 August 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 12 August 1887 The King of Diamonds, 9 April 1887 A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 Macbeth, 18 March 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Dick Whittington and His Cat; a Pantomime with a Purr-Puss, 27 December 1886 Monte Cristo or The Prisoner of the Chateau d'If, 27 November 1886 Hamlet, 19 November 1886 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 It's Never Too Late to Mend, 11 September 1886 Othello, 10 September 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Othello, 28 May 1886 Our Em'ly, 28 May 1886 Othello, 21 May 1886 The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886
	Alfred Dampier Company The Merchant of Venice, 9 September 1887 The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 26 August 1887 The Green Lanes of England, 13 August 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 12 August 1887 The King of Diamonds, 9 April 1887 Macbeth, 18 March 1887 Dick Whittington and His Cat; a Pantomime with a Purr-Puss, 27 December 1886 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 It's Never Too Late to Mend, 11 September 1886 Othello, 10 September 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 Our Em'ly, 28 May 1886 Othello, 28 May 1886 Othello, 21 May 1886 The University of Sydney, Dramatic Society (SUDS) An Enemy of the People, 18 October 1900 Drifted Apart / Naval Engagements, 16 November 1899 Randall's Thumb, 17 June 1897 The Rivals, 21 August 1895 Cousin Zachary / The Critic, 28 May 1895 Harmony / The Wedding March, 15 August 1894 The Wig / In Spite of Himself, 24 July 1894 Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 The Way of the World, 15 November 1893 Love for Love, 22 November 1892 Love for Love, 27 October 1892 The Two Angry Women of Abingdon, 11 August 1892 Written in Sand / The Palace of Truth, 25 May 1892 The Old Law, 31 July 1891 Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay / Twenty Minutes with a Tiger, 1 November 1890 The Royal Standard Dramatic Company The King of Diamonds, 9 April 1887 A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 The University of Sydney, Union Dramatic and musical recital., 20 December 1895 The Critic, 28 May 1895 Cleveland Street Public School Dick, 12 March 1896 Henry's Dramatic Co. The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Southern Amateur Theatrical Society Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890
	Alfred Dampier - Actor, Adaptor, Entrepreneur, Playwright, Producer The Merchant of Venice, 9 September 1887 The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 26 August 1887 The Green Lanes of England, 13 August 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 12 August 1887 The King of Diamonds, 9 April 1887 A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 Macbeth, 18 March 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Dick Whittington and His Cat; a Pantomime with a Purr-Puss, 27 December 1886 Monte Cristo or The Prisoner of the Chateau d'If, 27 November 1886 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 It's Never Too Late to Mend, 11 September 1886 Othello, 10 September 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Our Em'ly, 28 May 1886 Othello, 28 May 1886 Othello, 21 May 1886 The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886 Harry Leston - Actor, Director, Performer Dick, 12 March 1896 Ruth's Romance / Richelieu, 31 March 1890 The Factory Girl, 26 October 1889 The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 26 August 1887 The Green Lanes of England, 13 August 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 12 August 1887 The King of Diamonds, 9 April 1887 A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 Macbeth, 18 March 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 Othello, 10 September 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Our Em'ly, 28 May 1886 The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886 Lily Dampier - Actor The Merchant of Venice, 9 September 1887 The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 26 August 1887 The Green Lanes of England, 13 August 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 12 August 1887 The King of Diamonds, 9 April 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 Macbeth, 18 March 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Othello, 10 September 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Our Em'ly, 28 May 1886 Othello, 21 May 1886 The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886 Alfred Boothman - Actor The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 26 August 1887 The Green Lanes of England, 13 August 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 12 August 1887 The King of Diamonds, 9 April 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Our Em'ly, 28 May 1886 The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886 Edmund Holloway - Actor The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 26 August 1887 The Green Lanes of England, 13 August 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 12 August 1887 The King of Diamonds, 9 April 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 Macbeth, 18 March 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886 Julia Merton - Actor The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 26 August 1887 The Green Lanes of England, 13 August 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 12 August 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 Macbeth, 18 March 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Our Em'ly, 28 May 1886 The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886 William Shakespeare - Playwright Othello, 29 March 1890 The Merchant of Venice, 9 September 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 26 August 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 12 August 1887 Macbeth, 18 March 1887 Hamlet, 19 November 1886 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 Othello, 10 September 1886 Othello, 28 May 1886 Othello, 21 May 1886 Joe Stark - Actor The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 The Green Lanes of England, 13 August 1887 The King of Diamonds, 9 April 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 Our Em'ly, 28 May 1886 J Caesar - Actor The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 Macbeth, 18 March 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Katherine Russell - Actor, Playwright The Green Lanes of England, 13 August 1887 The King of Diamonds, 9 April 1887 Macbeth, 18 March 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886 Harry Stoneham - Actor The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 The Green Lanes of England, 13 August 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 Macbeth, 18 March 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 Our Em'ly, 28 May 1886 W E Baker - Actor The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 Our Em'ly, 28 May 1886 The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886 Walter Hill - Actor Othello, 10 September 1886 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Our Em'ly, 28 May 1886 The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886 Rosier - Actor The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 Frank Smith - Lessee The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 26 August 1887 Romeo and Juliet, 12 August 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 Tasman - Actor The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 Macbeth, 18 March 1887 Hamlet, 1 October 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Charles Burford - Director Dramatic and musical recital., 20 December 1895 The Critic, 28 May 1895 The Wig / In Spite of Himself, 24 July 1894 Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 George Conquest - Playwright The Green Lanes of England, 13 August 1887 The King of Diamonds, 9 April 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 William Schwenck Gilbert - Playwright Randall's Thumb, 17 June 1897 Harmony / The Wedding March, 15 August 1894 Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 Written in Sand / The Palace of Truth, 25 May 1892 A W Tasman - Actor The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Walter E Baker - Actor The King of Diamonds, 9 April 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 William Congreve - Playwright The Way of the World, 15 November 1893 Love for Love, 22 November 1892 Love for Love, 27 October 1892 Jamieson - Actor An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Paul Merritt - Playwright The King of Diamonds, 9 April 1887 The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Richard Brinsley Sheridan - Author, Playwright The Rivals, 21 August 1895 Cousin Zachary / The Critic, 28 May 1895 The Critic, 28 May 1895 Fred Broughton - Playwright Written in Sand / The Palace of Truth, 25 May 1892 Ruth's Romance / Richelieu, 31 March 1890 Daly - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 Henry Arthur Jones - Playwright Randall's Thumb, 17 June 1897 Harmony / The Wedding March, 15 August 1894 W Kinchela - Scenic Artist Dick Whittington and His Cat; a Pantomime with a Purr-Puss, 27 December 1886 Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 William Kinchella - Scenic Artist Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886 W D McIntyre - Actor, Playwright The Wig / In Spite of Himself, 24 July 1894 Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 Edward McLean - Choreographer The Wig / In Spite of Himself, 24 July 1894 The Way of the World, 15 November 1893 George Miln - Actor Ruth's Romance / Richelieu, 31 March 1890 Othello, 29 March 1890 T H Rainford - Actor, Singer A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 Macbeth, 18 March 1887 John Renno - Mechanist The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886 William Renno - Mechanist The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 Dick Whittington and His Cat; a Pantomime with a Purr-Puss, 27 December 1886 Kate Russell - Actor Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Thomas Somers - Playwright Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Stephenson - Actor The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 H Stoneham - Actor For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886 Maude Walton - Actor The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Alta - Scenic Artist The Seven Sins, 19 March 1887 Andrews - Actor Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 Baker - Actor Macbeth, 18 March 1887 Nellie Banks - Actor Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 Barbur - Actor For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Inez Bensusan - Actor The Way of the World, 15 November 1893 J H Brearley - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 Edward Bulwer-Lytton - Playwright Ruth's Romance / Richelieu, 31 March 1890 A Burne - Actor Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 Butler - Actor Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 W B Cadzow - Actor Ruth's Romance / Richelieu, 31 March 1890 W M Carey - Actor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Caro - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 Carter - Actor Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 J Castling - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 Victor Cohen - Actor Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 W J Coulter - Actor, Stage Director The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Paul Creyton - Actor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 George Dance - Playwright Drifted Apart / Naval Engagements, 16 November 1899 Taylor Darbyshire - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 A B Davies - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 H S Dettmann - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 Charles Dickens - Author Our Em'ly, 28 May 1886 H N Douglas - Actor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Kenny Douglas - Scenic Artist The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Kate Douglass - Actor Ruth's Romance / Richelieu, 31 March 1890 Edmund Duggan - Playwright The Democrat or, Under the Southern Cross, 18 September 1891 Alexandre Dumas pere - Author Monte Cristo or The Prisoner of the Chateau d'If, 27 November 1886 Marie Elton - Actor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Fabris - Performer A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 H Gardner - Playwright Cousin Zachary / The Critic, 28 May 1895 Herbert Gardner - Playwright Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 A H Garnsey - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 Thomas Gilpin - Actor Ruth's Romance / Richelieu, 31 March 1890 J R Goodall - Actor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 E Grant - Actor Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 William Gray - Conductor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Robert Greene - Playwright Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay / Twenty Minutes with a Tiger, 1 November 1890 C J Griffith - Actor Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 Fred Gunther - General Manager Sins of the City, 28 August 1886 Robert Henry - Actor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 J J Hinchy - Performer A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 William Hollinworth - Actor Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 E Humphries - Actor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Hunt - Actor For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Hunter - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 Henrik Ibsen - Playwright An Enemy of the People, 18 October 1900 Jack - Actor For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Edward Jakobowski - Composer Dick, 12 March 1896 Laura Keene - Actor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Rudyard Kipling - Playwright The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Louis Laurence - Actor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Lance Lenton - Adaptor Dick Whittington and His Cat; a Pantomime with a Purr-Puss, 27 December 1886 J Leonard - Actor Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 Fred Leston - Performer A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 Phoebe Levy - Actor The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 Hi Lung - Actor Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 L M Mack - Playwright The Wig / In Spite of Himself, 24 July 1894 Macnamara - Actor Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 Annie Marsh - Actor The Wreck of the Dunbar, 3 September 1887 Philip Massinger - Playwright The Old Law, 31 July 1891 Gregan McMahon - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 Rosalie Merz - Performer A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 Thomas Middleton - Playwright The Old Law, 31 July 1891 Monteith - Actor Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 William Morgan - Actor Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 Lily Mowbray - Actor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Murray - Actor Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 Alfred Murray - Librettist Dick, 12 March 1896 Alice Norton - Actor The Factory Girl, 26 October 1889 E W O'Sullivan - Playwright The Eureka Stockade, 9 April 1898 Ethel Page - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 Lee Pang - Actor Voices of the Night, 24 July 1886 Herbert Percy - Musical Arranger Dick Whittington and His Cat; a Pantomime with a Purr-Puss, 27 December 1886 Henry Pettitt - Playwright The Green Lanes of England, 13 August 1887 Watts Phillips - Playwright Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 J W Pickburn - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 Sam Poole - Actor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Porter - Performer A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 H Porter - Playwright The Two Angry Women of Abingdon, 11 August 1892 James H Rainford - Stage Director Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 Kathleen Raleigh - Actor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Beaumont Read - Performer A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 Charles Reade - Playwright It's Never Too Late to Mend, 11 September 1886 Ada Rochefort - Actor Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 B Roper Elliott - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 Rosier - Actor Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 R Rosier - Actor For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 William Rowley - Playwright The Old Law, 31 July 1891 George Norton Russell - Actor Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 Charles Scheidel - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 J R Setright - Scenic Artist The Phantom Ship, 8 May 1886 Chas South - Actor The Queen's Colours, 23 March 1898 Percy Spence - Actor Lady Camilla's Husband, 21 August 1890 J Stark - Actor For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Starkey - Actor Macbeth, 18 March 1887 Summerhayes - Performer A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 R K Swanwick - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 J Thynne - Actor An English Lass, 19 February 1887 Josephine Thynne - Actor Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Ethel Sybil Turner - Playwright The Wig / In Spite of Himself, 24 July 1894 Watkin - Actor For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 H W Weigall - Actor Time Will Tell / Creatures of Impulse, 21 May 1894 J West - Actor For the Term of His Natural Life, 5 June 1886 Whitworth - Performer A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 Williams - Actor Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Williams - Actor Rel, The Romany, 5 February 1887 Alice Wooldridge - Performer A Sacred and Classical Concert, 8 April 1887 Wynne - Actor Macbeth, 18 March 1887 Charles Young - Playwright Drifted Apart / Naval Engagements, 16 November 1899
Resources	Article: "The Playhouse" To Go, Everyones, 3, 149, 10 January 1923, 36 Article: Memories of Old Sydney Theatres Musical and Dramatic Notes, Sydney Morning Herald, 26 December 1896, 5 With the newly-opened Palace Theatre there are now nine playhouses in Sydney, of which number only two will remain closed this evening. The curious feature in the local record is that all the chief theatres have been erected during the past 10 years. The exceptions are the Gaiety Theatre, which is also known as the Guild Hall, and the Opera House, which, unfortunately for its prospenty, stands in the quarter now entirely devoted to the wholesale warehouses. The Opera House was vastly improved under Messrs Majeroni and Wilson's management in the middle of 1884, when the flat ceiling was replaced by a cupola, and the theatre was then reopened with considerable Ã©clat (30th June) with a revival of "Marie Antoinette," by Signor and Signora Majeroni. The present Theatre Royal occupies the oldest theatrical site in the city. The Prince of Wales Theatre stood there in 1854, was utterly destroyed by fire in 1860, was again demolished in 1872, and being rebuilt as the Theatre Royal was burnt a third time on 17th June, 1892. Mrs Bernard Beere had been playing " London Assurance" only a few hours previously. Only a portion of the outer walls were left standing, and the present building has only been in existence since Miss Clara Merivale's appearance in "Falka" at Christmas, 1892. The Criterion Theatre was opened with Miss Emilie Melville in " Falka," which was not played again for six years, at Christmas, I886. However, in anticipation of the Brough-Boucicault revival of "Much Ado About Nothing" (Christmas, 1892), a new face was put upon the interior, and at a cost of Â£8000 the present lofty dome was raised, the size of the stage was nearly doubled, and other structural improvements were made. The next new theatre was Her Majesty's, opened by Mr George Rignold with "Henry V" in September, 1887. This splendid theatre has suffered less damage than any other in the city. Early in 1890 the little Academy of Music was pulled down, and at Christmas of that year the Garrick Theatre was completed on the same site, and was opened by Miss Olga Nethersole and Mr Charles Cartwright with "Moths". Mr Harry Rickards acquired this property, and re-named it the Tivoli on 18th February, 1893. The opening of the Lyceum Theatre, With Miss Alice Leamar and Mr Robert Courtneidge in "Little Red Riding Hood," took place at Christmas, 1892 â a somewhat memorable date in local theatrical records. The Royal Standard Theatre was almost new when Mr Alfred Dampier was lessee in 1886 ; but no other actor-manager has flourished there, and of late years the house, like its neighbour the Gaiety, has become popular chiefly for amateur entertainments. If we glance at the history of musical enterprise in the city, we find that during much the same period the old concert halls have been displaced in favour of more central buildings. The last important occasion on which the once popular Old Masonic Hall (York-street) was used, was at the Victor Hugo Celebration Concert in 1885. The New Masonic Hall, opened in Castlereagh-street the following year, was placed a little too far away from the city, and, after the Metropolitan Liedertafel ceased to give concerts there, now some years ago, the hall fell into comparative disuse. But the eclipse of these halls and of the Protestant Hall, a once fashionable salon, where Mme Melba gave her farewell concert, was due to the erection of the elegant and central building of the Y.M.C.A. â now recognised as the favourite hall for all but the great musical functions. The inconvenient Exhibition Building almost faded out of existence when the completed Town Hall was opened on the 27th November, 1889. Mr Charles Santley was the first solo singer to appear there â the occasion being his farewell concert on the 30th November of that year. Just a year earlier, the completion of the York-street Centenary Hall furnished concert-goers with another rendezvous, which has continued to be frequently used up to the present time. In June, 1892, the Oddfellows' Temple was opened, and just two years ago the list of concert rooms was increased by the erection of the Manchester Unity Hall. Thus we see that not only all the present theatres of the city, but also all the concert halls have been erected during the past 10 or 12 years, which fact, all things considered, forms a decidedly curious feature in the theatrical and musical history of Sydney. Article: Musical and Dramatic Notes, Sydney Morning Herald, 26 December 1896, 5 Ross Thorne, Royal Standard Theatre, Companion To Theatre In Australia, 1995, 511 Theatre in Castlereagh Street, Sydney, opened 29 April 1886 as Royal Foresters' Hall, seating 906. Architects: Ellis and Slatyer. Renamed Royal Standard Theatre 8 May 1886. Renamed Empire Theatre 16 March 1901; Standard Theatre 24 November 1906; Little Theatre 22 March 1913; Playhouse 1917. Demolished c.1923. After nearly 30 years of melodrama, vaudeville, boxing, seances and two-up games, this modest hall-cum-theatre became significant in 1913, when Hugh Buckler and his wife Violet Paget made it the home of their Little Theatre. This company was the first in Sydney to specialise in literary drama, following the lead of the Royal Court Theatre in London and the Birmingham Repertory Theatre. The theatre began as a hall in a building on the western side of Castlereagh Street, south of Bathurst Street. It was erected by the Ancient Order of Foresters, a lodge and friendly society. There was a lodge room behind the dress circle and there were more rooms above the auditorium. According to the NSW Government Architect, the hall was 29.2 metres long by 11 metres wide. The stage was the same width but only 7.6 metres feet deep with a 6.1 metre-wide proscenium opening. The original lessee, Frank Smith, had a slight slope built into the floor. He also had 308 iron tip-up chairs, upholstered in crimson velvet, put into the front stalls and 220 into the dress circle. The rear stalls, occupying less than half of the floor, were 442 hard tip-up seats. Nine days after the hall opened it was renamed the Royal Standard Theatre for the first stage performance - Alfred Dampier's production of The Phantom Ship, based on the legend of Vanderdecken, the Flying Dutchman. The premiere of For the Term of His Natural Life by Dampier and Thomas Somers followed on 5 June 1886. In 1901 Fullers' from New Zealand leased the theatre, renovated it and reopened it as the Empire Theatre. Their Empire Minstrel and Variety Company played there for nearly a year. From November 1906 it was called the Standard Theatre and occupied by Harry Clay's Vaudeville Company. In 1913 the theatre, renovated, redecorated and re-seated, reopened as the Little Theatre, 'the Home of High-Class Comedy'. Gone was the 'mouldy, mediocre unloveliness' of the auditorium, said the management, which had installed a tea and coffee lounge beneath the stage so that patrons could exchange ideas after matinee performances. A photograph of the Little Theatre in 1913 corresponds to a description published in 1886 - a three-storey building surmounted by the largest carved stone pediment in Sydney. This displayed rich foliage and the arms of the Foresters' lodge. During the First World War the lease passed from Hugh Buckler to Sid James, who again renovated the theatre and reopened it as the Playhouse on 29 September 1917, with The New Sin, a play by Basil Macdonald Hastings. Later J. and N. Tait Ltd. took over the Playhouse. It seems to have ended its days with the final performance of the Aussie Smart Set Diggers on 15 January 1921. Article: Ross Thorne, Royal Standard Theatre, Companion To Theatre In Australia, 1995, 511 Article: Ross Thorne, Sydney’s Lost Theatres, Theatre Australia, 4, 1 and 2, August 1979, 14-15, 13-14 Law Report: Royal Commission into the Construction of Theatres, Public Halls, and Other Places of Public Amusements or Concourse, NSW Parliamentary Papers, Parliament of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australasian Legal Information Institute, 1887 (v1 - First Session) [1886] NSWRoyalC 5, 2 December 1886, 149-201 Letter: Theatrical Movements, Melbourne Punch, 27 May 1886, 8 Map: Central City of Sydney, 1910 - Map 1, City of Sydney Archives, 1910 Map: City of Sydney, 1903 Map 1, City of Sydney Archives, 1903 Photograph: E G Shaw, 'The Little Theatre', also known as 'The Play House', and Royal Standard Theatre, Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales, 1921 Websites / Online media: Ailsa McPherson, Royal Standard Theatre, Dictionary of Sydney Websites / Online media: Sydney Architecture - Royal Standard aka Empire / Clay’s Standard / Little Theatre and The Playhouse, Sydney Architecture
Data Set	AusStage
Venue Identifier	10804

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