John Eugene Verdenne often known as J. E. Vedrenne, was a West End theatre producer who co-managed the Savoy Theatre

Savoy Theatre

The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre located in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre opened on 10 October 1881 and was built by Richard D'Oyly Carte on the site of the old Savoy Palace as a showcase for the popular series of comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan,...

 with Harley Granville-Barker

Harley Granville-Barker

Harley Granville-Barker was an English actor-manager, director, producer, critic and playwright....

, and then (from 1904 to 1907, also with Granville-Barker) the Royal Court Theatre

Royal Court Theatre

The Royal Court Theatre is a non-commercial theatre on Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is noted for its contributions to modern theatre...

. During their time at the latter, they premiered several of George Bernard Shaw

George Bernard Shaw

George Bernard Shaw was an Irish playwright and a co-founder of the London School of Economics. Although his first profitable writing was music and literary criticism, in which capacity he wrote many highly articulate pieces of journalism, his main talent was for drama, and he wrote more than 60...

's plays, including John Bull's Other Island

John Bull's Other Island

John Bull's Other Island is a comedy about Ireland, written by G. Bernard Shaw in 1904. Shaw himself was born in Dublin, yet this is the only play of his where he thematically returned to his homeland....

and Major Barbara. His partnership with Granville-Barker ending in 1907, Vedrenne then became associated with Lewis Waller

Lewis Waller

William Lewis Waller was an English actor and theatre manager. His father was a civil engineer.Born in Spain, he first appeared on the London stage in 1883, at Tooles, and for some years added to his reputation as a capable actor...

 at the Lyric Theatre, and in 1911 with Dennis Eadie at the Royalty Theatre

Royalty Theatre

The Royalty Theatre was a small London theatre situated at 73 Dean Street, Soho and opened on 25 May 1840 as Miss Kelly's Theatre and Dramatic School and finally closed to the public in 1938. The architect was Samuel Beazley, a resident in Soho Square, who also designed St James's Theatre, among...

, and later still at the Kingsway Theatre.

Vedrenne's wife was Phyllis Blair.

External links

• http://www.brown.edu/Facilities/University_Library/exhibits/shaw/plays.html
• George Bernard Shaw By T. F. Evans, p144