New-York tribune., 1908-07-19
FAMOUS OLD DRuRY LANE THEATRE.
Storv of What Has Been Called 'the Cradle
of British Dramatic Art"

Drury Lane Theatre may be said to have Graded
British dramatic art. When in 1863 Charles III
granted patents for two theatres in London one
was assigned to the Kings Company under Thorn
as Killigrew. who were sworn faithfully to serve
the King. says The Dundee Advertiser Master
ing t SPOT in Drury Lane close to where the Cock
pit had stood highly arstocra5tc quarter at Ie the
prury 's Lane Theatre opened win Rsrf9Tmanss
of na par in earlier daSs
by boys. but DriIry Lane inaugurated new era;
for for the he tin time to come ali womens parts be acted
tas s
who had been cSaS5sd by aI and on her
a1PananbSs Hondon by storm M Hart was member OF Xiii
which also pelnded 1 Kg1assDnI s1sI
ness delighted the managerial heart in those days
s. Ys Of he tat
that his party crowded out The I lfe e Of a the
ary 1s72 burned to the g19una md ,b Two
saee Of Sose days as
front rows Of the pit In sem,oyal FASHION must
to VatH sd forms fs a PAM Isnilisr tsrin; ,,t,
the strong attraction Of Betterton at the Hayas
ht Of sact hs wea es coming
the Lord Chamberlain ordered the companies 10 70
at S Drury a Lane. Matters went from bad TO worse.
for Hart. Mohun and Nell Gwynne retired , at once;
that that spelled temporary ruin Five years later the
patent rights Of the theatre were sold for mere
fba 1nnfortnate actors to such an extent when
King William granted to such as wished I 70 Seesds
in Lincoln's Inn Fields all the leading Thespians'
sirdIe launched out independenty
as their dramatst- Another revolt resuiteo IN tIe
suit largely due the sharp practices of the he
Iawyer-manager. Fortune smiled once az asa1n ha,,n on
the famous triple management Of Colley Cibbsr :
Dogsett and Wks which, with Vice. Wiss as aefor sor
and Ann oldfield and Mrs. Porter in the female le
roles resulted IN crowded houses s manaseent aS was
exemplary and 1t only dissolved oy lne Seae,a an
of two Of its members and the retirement Oh inc
Then in I7H came Macklin whose freshness ana
ton The prosperity of the theatre was only N
terrupted by serious quarrels between fdeetwoon
the manager and actors, which led 70 rlots III
the theatre and in 17S Fleetwood retired IN favor
of James Lazy and David awe Of tbs reforms Gaick
effected the exclusion OF spectators from sn,
s5ss sbs hope and 1hat an Won. S
no money will be taken there for the 1utuIe .ne
formances- Garrick drew round him the dramatic
giants of the day-Mackln, spranser BarTy. slr Mrs
stranseiy enough. Mrs siddons who made her
debut Pora in Decen,6er 1 ss was e9psse
CSarrick laid down the reins in 177e. wnen Sheri-
YEA Years dictatorship was momentous period. Then
it was that the School for Scandal was pro
second debut Kemble made his bow to a London
audience. and the charming Dora Jordan began her her
always had peculiar spite against old
Drurv and though II spared the second houS
that decaying structure was pulled down IN l.sl[
II completely gutted Sherdan's Theatre in Feb
ruary iSOe 1t not till after considerable delay
that the new theatre began to rise from the ashes
OF the old. thanks to belated subscription and
first nighters on October 10, 1872. waited at the
doors as early o'clock In a fierce rainstorm-
But luck that tickle jade. deserted the house
the Kembles Isiston and Sally Booth at Covent
Garden being Go S sSuRT % Ksan pe %nd
nomenal debut Shylock on January 26. 1914 He
was draw to Londopers at Drury Lane for six
wears Only Of temporary duration was fortunes
stay. and for fifty years manager succeeded man
ager. At period there We're three lessees IN
as many weeks Even Macready went bankrupt at
the end of two years. Under Bunn's management
there was opera alternating with tight rope walk
ing circuses. in strange contrast TO the famous
revival of ..As You Like It. by Macready- Sims
Reeves began his great career here in revival of
Drydens king Arthur" Chatterton. who be-
came manager in 1886. found that shakespeare
spelled ruin and Byron bankruptcy He began
with fine company: inclusiye OF Phelps. Barry
Sullivan. Helen Faucit, and Miss Nelson, ana "
was Chatterton who In 1sSs produced the hrss OF OF
the Drury Lane modern melodramas With whlch so
much OF the popular fame and prestige OF the
house has been connected IL was In TINS pllecc'
"The Great City that Madge Robertson-aiter-
ward Mrs Kendal-made her first appearance on
&Ixa {fnvx x-tn