Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Foreword by Max Stafford-Clark
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- List of abbreviations
- Biographical notes
- Introduction: abortive schemes, 1951–1954
- 1 Coincidences, 1954–1956
- 2 The struggle for control, 1956–1960
- 3 Conflict and competition, 1961–1965
- 4 A socialist theatre, 1965–1969
- 5 A humanist theatre, 1969–1975
- 6 Changing places, 1975–1979
- 7 Theatre in a cold climate, 1980–1986
- 8 Holding on, 1987–1993
- Afterword
- Notes
- Select bibliography
- Index
Introduction: abortive schemes, 1951–1954
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 22 September 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Foreword by Max Stafford-Clark
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- List of abbreviations
- Biographical notes
- Introduction: abortive schemes, 1951–1954
- 1 Coincidences, 1954–1956
- 2 The struggle for control, 1956–1960
- 3 Conflict and competition, 1961–1965
- 4 A socialist theatre, 1965–1969
- 5 A humanist theatre, 1969–1975
- 6 Changing places, 1975–1979
- 7 Theatre in a cold climate, 1980–1986
- 8 Holding on, 1987–1993
- Afterword
- Notes
- Select bibliography
- Index
Summary
I have lucid moments when the background of the past and the great possibilities of the future stir me, and the old pulse begins to beat with thoughts and ideas … But until I feel the future near at hand, the future that is, I cannot think these ideas will develop … What shall I do, dear Michel? Will I be wrong in my fears, or must I decide to take up some administrative work in the theatre and leave the stage to others? I beg you to write to me, as I have never done before, because I really do need to hear from you.
(Devine, Letters to Saint-Denis, October 1943 and June 1945)When George Devine wrote the letters from which these extracts are taken, he was on active service in India and Burma during the Second World War. The letters are to his mentor and friend, Michel Saint-Denis, who had already formulated draft plans in London for what was to become the Old Vic Theatre Centre. On returning home in November 1945, Devine became effectively responsible for the development of the Centre. Saint-Denis, Devine and Glen Byam Shaw – the ‘three boys’ as they were known – set out to create a post-war version of the London Theatre Studio, which, directed by Saint-Denis and Devine, had closed after four years with the outbreak of the Second World War, despite Devine's efforts to save it.
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- Information
- The Royal Court Theatre and the Modern Stage , pp. 1 - 16Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 1999