The First 40 Years: 1963

This is part of a series of articles looking at the first 40 years of the Stephen Joseph Theatre (1955 to 1995) from the perspective of the theatre's Archive. The articles were first published in the SJT Circular newsletter.

1963: An Ultimatum

by Simon Murgatroyd

In 1963, Stephen Joseph began the process which would eventually see him close Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre little more than a decade after he had founded it.

In previous articles for The Circle (see The First 40 Years series), we’ve looked at the story of how Stephen became increasingly frustrated at what he felt was a lack of support for Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre from the likes of the local and county councils and how it led him to bring the curtain down - albeit temporarily - on the company.

But by 1963, Stephen was very visibly expressing his frustrations about the future of Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre in Scarborough.

By this point, Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre had been successfully running for eight years but was at a crossroads. The previous year, its founding company - Studio Theatre Ltd - had moved to Stoke-on-Trent to open the Victoria Theatre and with it, most of Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre’s Arts Council subsidy had gone.

Stephen was torn between his new project - a permanent theatre-in-the-round venue in Stoke - and Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre, where he had launched professional theatre-in-the-round in 1955.

To his mind, he felt that if the Scarborough company were to survive, it needed better and more support. To this end, he and the general manager, David Campton, wrote an ultimatum to Scarborough Borough Council asking for help and improvements to the Library Theatre space.

Scarborough Library had never been intended as a permanent home for the in-the-round company and Stephen had always hoped a theatre might be built for the company. This was not to happen and, each year, the company struggled more and more with the inadequate facilities of the library.

The four-page, strongly worded ultimatum - held in archive by Scarborough Library and reproduced alongside this article - was issued in April 1963 and highlights the issues Stephen felt faced the company if it was it to survive in Scarborough.

The document is important as not only does it chronicle a key moment in the company’s history, but it also offers a snapshot into what conditions the company worked under; there are sadly very few photographs or other contemporary documents relating to the venue at this time.

It also emphasises what Stephen hoped to achieve through his work with Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre and how far he felt the company had progressed since 1955.

What shines through the document is how little money the company had and how it was essentially being run on good-will. Actors were paid less than they should, volunteers running front of house and back-stage, equipment loaned rather than being bought or hired, plus no ability to make improvements in any meaningful way.

Looking through the document, it becomes clear Stephen was unhappy with practically every aspect of the venue. Which is not surprising, given it was a conversion of the Library’s existing Concert Room and never intended to house a theatre company.

This was essentially the nub of the problem, the Concert Room was not designed for this purpose and thus lacked the necessary seating arrangements (leading to the need for the rostra), had no lighting facilities and had no purpose built dressing rooms; of the latter, it has always seemed extraordinary that the venue had a single toilet shared by both company and audiences during performances!

As the document shows, Stephen - in essence - was appealing for more subsidy and help in running the venue; that the Libraries Committee become more involved and be responsible for improvements and funding.

Up to this point, Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre had been made to work through Stephen and Ken Boden’s ingenuity and making the most of a group of dedicated volunteers. They had carried the company so far, but it was obvious money and support were needed if real change and longevity were to be encouraged.

The final line of point 8 of the document emphasises Stephen’s greatest desire for the company and what he felt it really needed for success; a permanent home fit for purpose and available to the Scarborough community.

Here also can be seen Stephen’s strong desire to strengthen the links between professional theatre and amateur theatre, even asking the British Drama League to help run a permanent theatre.

It is also interesting how the ultimatum begins with Stephen declaring summer 1963 was ‘likely to be the last’ without help. No help - certainly none asked for within the document - was given and the company struggled on for another three seasons.

Stephen’s repeated calls for help were ignored over the next two years, possibly because the Council believed he was bluffing and making empty threats.

It’s worth noting that when Stephen did close Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre and walk away in 1965, it re-opened in 1967 with better financial support from both Scarborough Borough Council and the Arts Council and an impetus, sadly not realised for decades, to try and create a permanent home for the company in the town.

Perhaps if Stephen had been good on his threat in 1963, there would have been a very different future for Theatre in the Round at the Library Theatre.

Article by and copyright of Simon Murgatroyd. Please do not reproduce this article without permission of the copyright holder.