Berwick Street Private Theatre

In the first half of the nineteenth century a number of venues known as 'private theatres' emerged in London. These venues were targeting a growing number of amateur theatre enthusiasts. Each private theatre seems to have worked in a slightly different way in terms of their structure, membership and financing. In some venues, individuals could pay a fee to perform a role, with larger roles costing more money.

The Berwick Street Private Theatre was located in Berwick Street, in London's Soho. It appears to have been functioning in the 1820s.

Charles Dickens satirised London's private theatres in Sketches by Boz. However, many actors of the nineteenth century discuss the private theatres in their memoirs and autobiographies, making clear that these were often the starting point of their careers.

Repertoire

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20 June 1823 - Katherine and Petruchio (farce)