Norman Marshall (theatre director)
Encyclopedia
Norman Marshall was an English theatrical director, producer and manager who began his theatrical career while still an undergraduate student at Oxford
. After leaving university he worked with various small touring companies and in 1926 he joined the Cambridge Festival Theatre, first as a press agent, then as a stage manager and in 1932 he became their resident director. In 1934 he bought the lease on the small club theatre, the Gate Theatre Studio
, where in the next six years he produced popular intimate revues and many successful plays, some of which later transferred to the West-end stage
.
In his 1947 book The Other Theatre he documented the histories of a number of small, committed, independent theatre companies including his own, the Oxford Playhouse, the Arts Theatre
Club and the Cambridge Festival Theatre. These theatres were able to avoid the Lord Chamberlain
’s censorship by operating as theatre clubs, where membership was obligatory, and took risks by producing new and experimental plays, or plays by writers thought to be commercially unviable on the West-end stage,
The Gate Theatre Studio was destroyed during the Blitz
and after the war Marshall set up a production company and produced several plays in the West-end. In his book The Producer and the Play he described the history of theatrical production together with his own experiences.
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
. After leaving university he worked with various small touring companies and in 1926 he joined the Cambridge Festival Theatre, first as a press agent, then as a stage manager and in 1932 he became their resident director. In 1934 he bought the lease on the small club theatre, the Gate Theatre Studio
Gate Theatre Studio
The history of London's Gate Theatre Studio, often referred to as simply the Gate Theatre, is typical of many small independent theatres of the period....
, where in the next six years he produced popular intimate revues and many successful plays, some of which later transferred to the West-end stage
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
.
In his 1947 book The Other Theatre he documented the histories of a number of small, committed, independent theatre companies including his own, the Oxford Playhouse, the Arts Theatre
Arts Theatre
The Arts Theatre is a theatre in Great Newport Street, in Westminster, Central London. It now operates as the West End's smallest commercial receiving house.-History:...
Club and the Cambridge Festival Theatre. These theatres were able to avoid the Lord Chamberlain
Lord Chamberlain
The Lord Chamberlain or Lord Chamberlain of the Household is one of the chief officers of the Royal Household in the United Kingdom and is to be distinguished from the Lord Great Chamberlain, one of the Great Officers of State....
’s censorship by operating as theatre clubs, where membership was obligatory, and took risks by producing new and experimental plays, or plays by writers thought to be commercially unviable on the West-end stage,
The Gate Theatre Studio was destroyed during the Blitz
The Blitz
The Blitz was the sustained strategic bombing of Britain by Nazi Germany between 7 September 1940 and 10 May 1941, during the Second World War. The city of London was bombed by the Luftwaffe for 76 consecutive nights and many towns and cities across the country followed...
and after the war Marshall set up a production company and produced several plays in the West-end. In his book The Producer and the Play he described the history of theatrical production together with his own experiences.