PIONEERS OF REPERTORY THEATRES

The staging of Shakespeare?s plays was revolutionized by Granville-Barker?s productions at the Savoy Theatre, which were admired for their simplicity, fluidity, and speed. Equally significant for the British theatre was the founding of the first provincial repertory theatre in 1908 by Horniman at the Gaiety, Manchester. It not only provided opportunities for promising British playwrights but also presented works by important Continental dramatists. Mainstream British theatre paid very little attention to the antirealistic movements that characterized experimental theatre in the rest of Europe. The domination of the actor-manager was effectively challenged by Harley Granville-Barker and John E. Vedrenne at London?s Royal Court Theatre; between 1904 and 1907 they staged numerous new plays by British and Continental writers. The major dramatist at the Royal Court, indeed the most important British dramatist of the century, was the Irish-born George Bernard Shaw. The Irish theatre movement and the repertory theatres in England brought about that decentralization of the drama which became the most important development in English theatrical history since the sixteenth century.In Great Britain the name repertory theatre came to designate an important movement, begun in the early 1900s, to make quality theatre available throughout the country.Repertory in its true form has existed in state-supported theatres in France, Germany, and elsewhere; but, as it is rather expensive and difficult to maintain, most modern repertory companies used a modification of the system, usually presenting fewer and longer-running plays, alternately or successively, in one season. Repertory theatre has proved effective in supporting both commercially successful and experimental drama. It has served as a showcase for the early work of playwrights such as Eugene O?Neill and John Millington Synge and as a training ground for young actors. It is a popular format for summer festivals as well as national theatres. The present paper discusses the evolution of repertory theatre, causes of the repertory movement and evolution of repertory theatre. It also discusses the role and the contribution made by the pioneers of the repertory theatre.