German Reed Entertainments
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The German Reed Entertainments were founded in 1855 and operated by Thomas German Reed (1817–1888) together with his wife, Priscilla German Reed (née Horton) (1818–1895). At a time when the theatre in London was seen as a disreputable place, the German Reed family provided family-friendly entertainments for forty years, showing that respectable theatre could be popular. The entertainments were held at the intimate Royal Gallery of Illustration, Lower Regent Street, and later at St. George's Hall, Langham Place, in London. Thomas and Priscilla German Reed usually appeared in them, together with a small group of players. They engaged talented newcomers, such as Frederic Clay,
W. S. Gilbert Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (18 November 1836 – 29 May 1911) was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his collaboration with composer Arthur Sullivan, which produced fourteen comic operas. The most fam ...
and Arthur Law, as well as established writers such as F. C. Burnand, to create many of the entertainments. Thomas German Reed composed the music for many of the entertainments himself.


The German Reed theatrical revolution

This form of entertainment consisted of musical plays "of a refined nature". During the early
Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed the ...
, visiting the theatre was considered distasteful to the respectable public.
Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...
and classic British plays were presented, but the London stage became dominated by risque farces,
burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.
s and bad adaptations of French
operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs and including dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, and length of the work. Apart from its shorter length, the oper ...
s. Jessie Bond wrote, The German Reed Entertainments became the first respectable venue for dramatic amusement to which the public could safely bring their children, presenting gentle, intelligent, comic musical entertainment. Their example showed that respectable theatre could be popular and encouraged successors such as
Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900) and to the works they jointly created. The two men collaborated on fourteen com ...
.


Forty years of entertainments


Early years

In 1855, the first performance of "Miss P. Horton's Illustrative Gatherings," took place at St. Martin's Hall, with Thomas playing the piano. Mrs. Reed had been a popular performer of operetta, Shakespeare and other theatre pieces since the 1830s. The Reeds' entertainments consisted, at first, of character sketches and songs by the Reeds.Adams, p. 573 In 1856, the entertainments moved to the more intimate Gallery of Illustration. These eventually became "Mr. and Mrs. German Reeds Entertainments". They called the establishment, euphemistically, the "Gallery of Illustration," rather than a theatre, the actors were "entertainers", and the pieces were called "entertainments" or "illustrations", eschewing the words "play", "extravaganza", "
melodrama A melodrama is a Drama, dramatic work in which plot, typically sensationalized for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodrama is "an exaggerated version of drama". Melodramas typically concentrate on ...
" or "
burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.
". Reed himself composed the music for many of these pieces and often appeared in them, along with Mrs. German Reed. There was nothing else like this establishment in London, and the Gallery rapidly achieved popularity. The Gallery was an intimate 500-seat theatre. The accompaniment consisted of piano at first, and later also a
harmonium The pump organ or reed organ is a type of organ that uses free reeds to generate sound, with air passing over vibrating thin metal strips mounted in a frame. Types include the pressure-based harmonium, the suction reed organ (which employs a va ...
and sometimes a harp. At first, the entertainments utilized a cast of three; but by the mid-1860s, they had expanded to pieces with a cast of four. Often the pieces' plots involved mistaken identities and disguises. From 1860 to 1868, the German Reeds were assisted by John Orlando Parry, a pianist, mimic, parodist and humorous singer (one of
George Grossmith George Grossmith (9 December 1847 – 1 March 1912) was an English comedian, writer, composer, actor, and singer. His performing career spanned more than four decades. As a writer and composer, he created 18 comic operas, nearly 100 musical ...
's inspirations). He created a new type of musical and dramatic monologue that became popular. The earliest entertainments included ''Holly Lodge'' and ''The Enraged Musicians'' (1855); William Brough's ''A Month from Home'' and ''My Unfinished Opera'' (1857); ''The Pyramid'' by Shirley Brooks (1864); ''The Peculiar Family'' by Brough (1865); ''The Yachting Cruise'' by F. C. Burnand (1866); ''Our Quiet Chateau'' by Robert Reece (1867); and ''Inquire Within'' by Burnand (1868). As time went on, the Reeds added a dramatic pieces and brief
comic opera Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue. Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a ne ...
s designed for a small number of characters. Reed experimented with what he called ''opera di camera'' - small chamber operas by young composers. The German Reeds were able to attract fine young composers such as Molloy, Frederic Clay,
Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 comic opera, operatic Gilbert and Sullivan, collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinaf ...
, Charles King Hall. and
Alfred Cellier Alfred Cellier (1 December 184428 December 1891) was an English composer, orchestrator and conductor. In addition to conducting and music directing the original productions of several of the most famous Gilbert and Sullivan works and writing th ...
, the best scenic designers for their tiny stage, and the best young writers from '' Punch'' and '' Fun'' magazines.


Later years

The dramatist
W. S. Gilbert Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (18 November 1836 – 29 May 1911) was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his collaboration with composer Arthur Sullivan, which produced fourteen comic operas. The most fam ...
wrote the
libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...
s for six entertainments presented by the German Reeds from 1869 to 1875, some of them with music by Reed himself, including '' No Cards'', '' Ages Ago'', '' Our Island Home'', ''
A Sensation Novel ''A Sensation Novel'' is a comic musical play in three acts (or volumes) written by the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, with music composed by Thomas German Reed. It was first performed on 31 January 1871 at the Royal Gallery of Illustration. Only fo ...
'', '' Happy Arcadia'', and '' Eyes and No Eyes''. Several of these pieces had ideas in embryonic form that would later re-appear in the Savoy Operas. ''Ages Ago'', for instance, had a gallery of portraits that come to life, an idea re-used in '' Ruddigore''. Mrs. German Reed's performances inspired Gilbert to create some of his famous contralto roles. German Reed also mounted the first professional production of
Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 comic opera, operatic Gilbert and Sullivan, collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinaf ...
and F. C. Burnand's '' Cox and Box'' and commissioned a second opera from the pair, '' The Contrabandista''. Given the German Reeds' role in both Gilbert's and Sullivan's first operatic successes, one wag commented that the
Gilbert and Sullivan Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900) and to the works they jointly created. The two men collaborated on fourteen com ...
operas were "cradled among the Reeds." Arthur Cecil joined the German Reeds in ''No Cards'' in 1869, remaining for five years. Fanny Holland first performed at the Gallery in 1869 in ''Ages Ago'' and appeared in scores of the entertainments continuously until 1895, except for two years at other theatres. In 1870, Richard Corney Grain, a clever, refined, and humorous society entertainer (a great friend and rival of Grossmith's), appeared in his first Gallery entertainment, ''Our Island Home'', soon performing his own sketches, taking over where Parry had left off. He also remained with the German Reeds until 1895 Other German Reed entertainments included ''Our Quiet Chateau'' (1868) by Reece with music by Virginia Gabriel; ''Inquire Within'' (1868, Parry's last entertainment); ''Beggar My Neighbour'' (1870) and ''Number 204'', by Burnand; ''Near Relations'' (1871) by Arthur Sketchley; ''King Christmas'' (1871, the first appearance by the German Reeds' son, Alfred); ''Charity Begins at Home'' (1872), with music by
Alfred Cellier Alfred Cellier (1 December 184428 December 1891) was an English composer, orchestrator and conductor. In addition to conducting and music directing the original productions of several of the most famous Gilbert and Sullivan works and writing th ...
and words by B. C. Stephenson; ''My Aunt's Secret'' (1872); ''Very Catching'' (1872); ''Milord's Well'' (1873); '' Dora's Dream'', with music by Alfred Cellier and words by Arthur Cecil (1873); ''Once in a Century'' by Gilbert à Beckett; ''In Possession''; ''Babel and Bijouand''; ''Back from India'' by Henry Pottinger Stephens; ''Our New Doll’s House'' by W. Wye. After the retirement of Thomas, in 1871 his son Alfred German Reed (1846-1895), also an actor, carried on the business in partnership with his mother and then with Grain. In 1874 they moved the entertainments to the St. George's Hall,
Regent Street Regent Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London. It is named after George IV of the United Kingdom, George, the Prince Regent (later George IV) and was laid out under the direction of the architect John Nash (architect), J ...
, and the German Reeds also took the entertainments on provincial tours. In 1874, Leonora Braham (who created several of the
soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...
heroine roles in the Savoy Operas in the 1880s) joined the German Reeds. Fanny Holland's husband Arthur Law also joined the company and wrote, as well as acted in, many of the entertainments. Some of Law's pieces for the Gallery included ''Enchantment'', ''A Night Surprise'', ''A Happy Bungalow'' (1877), ''Cherry Tree Farm'' (1881) and ''Nobody’s Fault'' (1882), both with music by Hamilton Clarke, ''All at Sea'' (1881)St George's Hall, Langham Place, Regent Street, London"
at the ArthurLloyd theatres website
and ''The Head of the Poll'' (1882), composed by Eaton Faning, which received good reviews. Mrs. German Reed retired in 1879. The deaths of Alfred German Reed and Grain, both in 1895, effectively ended the entertainments, although the name continued to be used by others for some years thereafter.Souvenir programme for Mr. and Mrs. German Reed's Entertainments, summer and autumn tour, 1900, Joseph Williams, proprietor, under the direction of Avalon Collard. Joseph Williams, Jr. (1847–1923) had composed music for some German Reed pieces under the nam
Florian Pascal


Notes


References

*Adams, William Davenport
''A Dictionary of the Drama''"> ''A Dictionary of the Drama''
Chatto & Windus, 1904 * *


External links


Description of an "Illustrative Gathering"
by
Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet, mathematician, photographer and reluctant Anglicanism, Anglican deacon. His most notable works are ''Alice ...

Description of Horton and John Parry
{{authority control Gilbert and Sullivan Theatre of the United Kingdom Theatre companies in England