Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre: 1963

This page contains a more detailed guide to significant events concerning Scarborough's Theatre in the Round at the Library in 1963.

1963

  • Early 1963: Stephen Joseph founds Theatre In The Round Ltd, a new company to which Studio Theatre Ltd will later cede control of Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre, Scarborough to (see below). It is run by Stephen Joseph and David Campton.
  • Having transferred to Stoke-on-Trent to run the Victoria Theatre, Studio Theatre Ltd has its annual grant halved by the Arts Council. Faced with the prospect of closing the Victoria and Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre or running the Victoria on a reduced budget, the directors choose the latter and withdraw all funding and support for Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre, Scarborough. This ends Studio Theatre Ltd's association with the venue. Stephen Joseph is given permission to run Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre through Theatre In The Round Ltd, which runs Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre for the 1963 and 1964 summer seasons.
  • Stephen Joseph issues an ultimatum to the Library Committee to improve its facilities or Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre will either move on or close.
  • May: The brochure for the 1963 professional summer season is published and includes a play called Necessary Doubt by Colin Wilson from 25 - 31 July and 22 - 28 August. Colin Wilson had achieved fame in 1956 with his book The Outsider and had been encouraged by Stephen Joseph to try his hand at playwriting. This produced the one act play Viennese Interlude in 1959 and would have presumably led to the full-length play Necessary Doubt; a play described in the brochure as "a thriller, which is more than a 'whodunit', by Colin Wilson, author of The Outsider." Colin Wilson did not write the play, but - intriguingly - in 1964, he published a novel called Necessary Doubt which was a thriller with a sci-fi twist.
  • June: Scarborough Library Director Mervyn Edwards reports that as a result of Studio Theatre Ltd moving to Newcastle-under-Lyme, a smaller company will perform for just the summer season in Scarborough "operating on a shoestring budget and entirely without a grant."
  • June: It is reported that neither Artistic Director Stephen Joseph nor Theatre Manager David Campton will draw pay for the season in a bid to make Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre viable.
  • 11 June: The summer season opens with Noël Coward's Fallen Angels; this marks the first production of a Coward play at Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre and is also the first professional production in the venue not produced by Studio Theatre Ltd.
  • 25 July: In a change to the advertised programme, a triple bill by James Saunders is performed from 25 - 31 July and 22 - 28 August replacing Colin Wilson's Necessary Doubt.
  • 8 August: Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre's theatre manager / writer-in-residence David Campton is featured on BBC Radio with a broadcast of his play A Tinkle Of Tiny Bells.
  • 26 September: The Stage reports this has been the company's most successful season yet with many full houses.
  • December: Lacking funds due to the formation of the new company and with no support from the Arts Council, the winter season at Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre is cancelled.
Article by and copyright of Simon Murgatroyd. Please do not reproduce this article without permission of the copyright holder.