The Garrick Club was the name which could apply to several South Australian amateur theatrical groups, perhaps tenuously related, the most successful being the incarnation which operated from 1892 to 1899.

History

On 13 March 1850 a company of theatre enthusiasts (Nicholson, Dibold, Goodrich and Bonney) calling themselves the "Dramatic Amateurs" or "Amateur Dramatic Society", put on several plays at the New Queen's Theatre, then changed their name to Adelaide Garrick Club. The New Queen's Theatre closed its doors shortly afterwards and following productions were put on in the Victoria Theatre. Was this the same as the Royal Victoria Theatre (the remodelled Queen's Theatre)? W. M. Akhurst was secretary in 1850. The Garrick Cricket Club was formed in 1875, which staged several successful annual entertainments at

White's Rooms White's Rooms, later known as Adelaide Assembly Room, was a privately owned function centre which opened in 1856 on King William Street, Adelaide, South Australia. It became Garner's Theatre in 1880, then passed through several hands, being know ...

, that of 1876 including ''Breaking the Spell'' (an operetta by Offenbach) with W. R. Pybus on piano. In 1889 the Garrick Club was re-formed or its name revived, with Misses Beddome, Schrader, Dora Moulden, and Nelson, and Messrs. Angel,

Guy Boothby Guy Newell Boothby (13 October 1867 – 26 February 1905) was a prolific Australian novelist and writer, noted for sensational fiction in variety magazines around the end of the nineteenth century. He lived mainly in England. He is best known fo ...

, Cook, G. V. S. Dunn, C. M. Gribble, R. Herbert, H. R. Holder, M. Marcus, A. L. Parker, and Lewes Wicksteed as prominent members. Their productions included an operetta written in South Australia. In 1892 the Garrick Dramatic Club was founded by Edward Reeves and John Henry Lyons. Membership was invited from the city's elocutionists: E. Reeves, C. Morgan, Benjamin H. Gillman, E. H. Shaw, H. T. Sparrow, R. A. C. Herbert, A. Norton, C. C. Paltridge, J. H. Lyons, Miss Wadham, Aileen Bancroft and Miss Pizey and soon reached a high standard of performance, with critics enthusiastic rather than generous. Later members included Walter Bentley, E. H. Shaw, Mary Bancroft, Beatrice Gordon, Marion Woodcock, Charles Morgan, Richard Herbert, J. D. Furlonge, Frank Seaton, Fairfax Kendal, Tom Potts, Kate Shirley, Marian Daniels and Alexander Cochrane. The club appears to have folded after a triumphant 1899 season which ended anticlimactically with a poorly-attended finale at the Theatre Royal.

Selected performances

*13 March 1850 ''

Speed the Plough ''Speed the Plough'' is a five-act comedy by Thomas Morton (playwright), Thomas Morton, written in 1798 and first performed in 1800 at the Royal Opera House, Theatre Royal, Covent Garden to great acclaim. It is mostly remembered today for the sa ...

'' by Morton for the German Hospital *5 June 1850 '' A Cure for the Heart Ache'' by Morton (Opie/Miss Lazar/Mrs Evans) for the German Hospital *25 September 1850 ''

The School of Reform ''The School of Reform'' is an 1805 comedy play by the British writer Thomas Morton. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden on 15 January 1805. The original cast included George Frederick Cooke as Lord Avondale, Joseph Shepherd Munden ...

'' by Morton as a benefit for the widow and children of Captain/Inspector Litchfield. (Moore/Opie) to mixed reviews *18 September 1862 ''

The Lady of Lyons ''The Lady of Lyons; or, Love and Pride'', commonly known as ''The Lady of Lyons'', is a five-act romantic melodrama written in 1838 by Edward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton. It was first produced in London at Covent Garden Theatre on 15 Febru ...

'' by

Edward Bulwer-Lytton Edward George Earle Lytton Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton (; 25 May 1803 – 18 January 1873) was an English writer and politician. He served as a Whig member of Parliament from 1831 to 1841 and a Conservative from 1851 to 1866. He was Secr ...

as a benefit for Miss Rose Edouin, and repeated on 30 September at the Port Adelaide Theatre. *6 December 1865 ''

Othello ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'', often shortened to ''Othello'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare around 1603. Set in Venice and Cyprus, the play depicts the Moorish military commander Othello as he is manipulat ...

'' by Shakespeare in aid of the Albert Bells fund *25 September 1889 ''Memories'' and ''The Nabob'' by

, an Adelaide writer and actor, at the

Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genre ...

*9 September 1890 ''Dimple's Lovers'', an operetta by

Cecil J. Sharp Cecil James Sharp (22 November 1859 – 23 June 1924) was an English collector of folk songs, folk dances and instrumental music, as well as a lecturer, teacher, composer and musician. He was a key figure in the folk-song revival in England dur ...

and Guy Boothby at the Albert Hall. *31 May 1892 ''

London Assurance ''London Assurance'' (originally entitled ''Out of Town'') is a five-act comedy co-authored by Dion Boucicault and John Brougham. While the play was collaboratively written by both playwrights, after the play's initial premiere Broughman, who o ...

'' by

Dion Boucicault Dionysius Lardner "Dion" Boucicault (né Boursiquot; 26 December 1820 – 18 September 1890) was an Irish actor and playwright famed for his melodramas. By the later part of the 19th century, Boucicault had become known on both sides of the ...

at the North Adelaide Institute. Furnishing and decoration were by P. LeCornu and C. Cawthorne led the orchestra. The club took this production to Hudson's "Bijou" (White's Rooms remodelled) and several other halls and proceeds were directed to the Children's Hospital. *16 November 1892 ''

Caste A caste is a Essentialism, fixed social group into which an individual is born within a particular system of social stratification: a caste system. Within such a system, individuals are expected to marry exclusively within the same caste (en ...

'' by Tom Robertson *2 February 1893 ''Long Odds'' by Conway Edwardes at the North Adelaide Institute, Clarence P. Caterer at the piano *22 March 1893 ''Ruth's Romance'' by Frederick W. Broughton in aid of the Brisbane floods *16 June 1893 ''Written in Sand'' performed at the opening of the Walkerville Town Hall *9 August 1893 ''Fennel'' by

Jerome K. Jerome Jerome Klapka Jerome (2 May 1859 – 14 June 1927) was an English writer and humorist, best known for the comic travelogue ''Three Men in a Boat'' (1889). Other works include the essay collections '' Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow'' (1886) an ...

at St. Peters Town Hall in aid of the Blind Institute *19 February 1894 ''The Squatter's Pardon'' by J. H. Lyons at the Bijou Theatre *24 May 1895 ''Blow for Blow'' by

H. J. Byron Henry James Byron (8 January 1835 – 11 April 1884) was a prolific English dramatist, as well as an editor, journalist, director, theatre manager, novelist and actor. After an abortive start at a medical career, Byron struggled as a provincia ...

at the North Adelaide Institute in aid of the North Adelaide Lacrosse Club *25 August 1896 ''Our Regiment'' by Henry Hamilton, at the North Adelaide Institute, later to an almost deserted Theatre Royal. *

Notes and references

{{Reflist Amateur theatre companies in Australia 1850 establishments in Australia 1899 disestablishments in Australia Performing arts in Adelaide