TheFestival Theatre, now known asMalvern Theatres, is a theatre complex on Grange Road inMalvern, Worcestershire, England. Malvern Theatres, housed in the Winter Gardens complex in the town centre ofGreat Malvern, has been a provincial centre for the arts since 1885. The theatre became known for itsGeorge Bernard Shaw productions in the 1930s and from 1977 onwards, along with the works ofEdward Elgar. Up until 1965, 19 different plays of Shaw were produced at the Malvern Festival Theatre, and six premiered here,^[1] includingThe Apple Cart at the openingMalvern Festival in 1929,Geneva, a Fancied Page of History in Three Acts in August 1938 andIn Good King Charles's Golden Days in August 1939.

Over its history the theatre and festival has closed several times, including during World War II, in the early 1960s, in the early 1970s, and in the late 1990s when a new complex was built with an 850-seat Festival Theatre, a Forum Theatre, a 400-seat cinema, and a bar and restaurant.

In 1883, a bid was put in for the land in Malvern, then known as the Promenade Gardens, with the idea of building a centre of the arts in the town. Funding was raised by a company dedicated to building the theatre, and 200 shares amounting to £5 each were allotted.^[2] The foundation stone of the assembly rooms of the theatre was laid down by theEarl Beauchamp on 6 July 1884, attended byJenny Lind,Lady Emily Foley and Dr. W. T. Fernie.^[2] The theatre was inaugurated on 1 July 1885.

Left:Bernard Shaw. Right:Barry Jackson

The Festival Theatre of Malvern became known for itsGeorge Bernard Shaw productions in the 1930s.^[3] Michael W. Pharand considers the friendship and artistic relationship between Bernard Shaw andBarry Jackson to have "probably had its greatest flowering with the Malvern Festival".^[4] Shaw, a resident of Malvern. also regularly enjoyed watching theatrical productions by other playwrights for pleasure.^[1] The first Malvern Drama Festival took place for a fortnight from 19 August 1929, and was organised by Jackson and dedicated to Bernard Shaw.^[2] The English première ofThe Apple Cart took place at this festival and was performed four times, and Shaw'sBack to Methuselah,^[5]Heartbreak House andCaesar and Cleopatra were also shown.^[2] Shaw'sGeneva, a Fancied Page of History in Three Acts, a satire on European political ideologies,^[6] was first performed at Malvern on 1 August 1938 byRoy Limbert (Jackson's successor as director of the festival), and after four runs, productions were put on at theSaville andSt James's Theatres in London.^[7][8] A year later, Shaw'sIn Good King Charles's Golden Days, his last before World War II, premiered at Malvern on 12 August 1939 and was performed six times before moving toStreatham Hill Theatre and theNew Theatre in 1940.^[9]James Bridie'sASleeping Clergyman in two acts was performed at the theatre from 29 July 1933.^[10] A summer Malvern festival production ofVolpone in 1935 received much greater acclaim here than it had at previous theatres such asBirmingham Repertory Theatre.^[11]

The Malvern Festival collapsed during World War II,^[12] and in the late 1940s, the theatre closed for renovation. A letter dated to 1948 remarks that the funding of the renovation caused considerable dispute among the Malvern District Council, and that Bernard Shaw would be delighted to learn that there would be a Malvern Festival in 1949.^[13] In 1956 Malvern held a Shaw centenary week.^[14]However, for a few years up until 1965, the festival theatre lapsed.^[15]

In February 1965 a Malvern Festival Theatre Trust was set up, and extensive refurbishment was undertaken.J. B. Priestley presided over the opening ceremony of the first summer season,^[16] and under director John Ridley, the Festival opened on 8 July and ran until 2 October.^[15] A production of Priestley'sAn Inspector Calls, starringAnne Kristen,Julian Curry,Daphne Heard andWilliam Roderick was produced.^[17][18] In February 1966, a successful production of Shakespeare'sOthello was produced at Malvern Theatre, causing initial controversy whenRudolph Walker, in his first professional role, portrayed Othello, being a black man.^[19] In May of that year, fans ofThe Who, angered that the group's van had broken down before they were due to play a gig at the Winter Gardens in Malvern, smashed the windows of the theatre.^[20]

The theatre closed in the early 1970s but reopened in 1977, seeking to "revive the festival idea by creating an intriguing dual focus on Shaw andElgar".^[21] The theatre was relaunched on 24 May 1977 with aRoyal Shakespeare Company production ofMan and Superman.^[21]

In 1986, Elgar's music still formed a major part of the annual music festival, with venues aside from the then 800-seat festival theatre being Malvern Winter Gardens (900 seats), Great Malvern Priory (600 seats), Martin Rogers Theatre (450 seats), andMalvern College.^[22]

In 1998, a further £7.2 million major redesign and refurbishment took place with the help of contributions from theNational Lottery Distribution Fund (NLDF), administered by the government Department for Culture, Media and Sport. The complex now has an 850-seat Festival Theatre, a Forum Theatre, a 400-seat cinema, and a bar and restaurant.

"Killing Castro", featuring Robin Hood'sMichael Praed andClive Mantle, was performed here in June 2006, and was described by theBirmingham Mail as an "acclaimed comedy" which "chronicles the more bizarre of America's attempts to kill the Cuban leaderFidel Castro – including filling his shoes with poison and inventing an exploding cigar."^[23]

• Crawford (1998).Shaw: The Annual of Bernard Shaw Studies. Penn State Press.ISBN 978-0-271-01779-2.
• Evans, Judith (2003).The Politics and Plays of Bernard Shaw. McFarland. p. 131.ISBN 978-0-7864-1323-2.
• Evans, T. F. (4 July 2013).George Bernard Shaw. Routledge.ISBN 978-1-136-21364-9.
• Garrard, Rose (2010).A Malvern Treasury: An Illustrated History of Its People and Places, Troubles and Treasures, in Fact and Fable. Aspect Design.ISBN 978-1-905795-56-7.
• Gregson-Williams, Richard (1986).Festivals in Great Britain, Northern Ireland & Eire: A List with Forecast Dates and Policies. John Offord Publications.ISBN 978-0-903931-71-7.
• Hochman, Stanley (1984).McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World Drama: An International Reference Work in 5 Volumes. VNR AG.ISBN 978-0-07-079169-5.
• Innes, Christopher (24 September 1998).The Cambridge Companion to George Bernard Shaw. Cambridge University Press.ISBN 978-0-521-56633-9.
• Neill, Andrew; Kent, Matthew (2009).Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere: The Complete Chronicle of the WHO 1958–1978. Sterling Publishing Company, Inc.ISBN 978-1-4027-6691-6.
• Nicholson, Steve (1999).British Theatre and the Red Peril: The Portrayal of Communism 1917–1945. University of Exeter Press. p. 173.ISBN 978-0-85989-637-5.
• Pharand, Michel W. (2004).Dionysian Shaw. Penn State Press.ISBN 978-0-271-02519-3.
• Shaw, Bernard; Jackson, Sir Barry Vincent (2002).Bernard Shaw and Barry Jackson. University of Toronto Press.ISBN 978-0-8020-3572-1.
• Smith, Brian Stanley (1965).A History of Malvern. Leicester University Press.
• Steggle, Matthew (24 March 2011).Volpone: A Critical Guide. Continuum.ISBN 978-0-8264-1153-2.
• Wilkins, Verna Allette (31 October 2011).Rudolph Walker Biography. RHCP.ISBN 978-1-4481-0141-2.
• Witham, Barry B. (13 June 2013).A Sustainable Theatre: Jasper Deeter at Hedgerow. Palgrave Macmillan.ISBN 978-1-137-12185-1.

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