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The history of theatrical performances in Jersey can be traced back to the 18th century. The Opera House, opened by Lillie Langtry in 1900, and the Jersey Arts Centre are the main performance spaces, although performances also take place in parish halls and other venues. ==History== On 14 November 1778 the States of Jersey adopted an Act forbidding the staging of stage plays or farces without the prior permission of the Bailiff and Royal Court. This legislation remains the basis of the current licensing of public entertainment in Jersey: public entertainment, including stage works, is licensed by the Bailiff (advised by the Bailiff's Panel for the Control of Public Entertainment). The fact that the States deemed it necessary to pass such an Act suggests that theatrical performances were at that time frequent enough and of sufficient concern to the authorities to require the setting up of a regulatory system. However, there is little direct evidence of which plays were being performed as there were at that time no established theatre and no newspapers.〔 During the 16th and 17th centuries as drama developed in France and England, culture in Jersey was controlled by a strict Calvinist régime, and even the imposition of Anglicanism after 1660 did not alter the basic attitudes to entertainment in Jersey. Sitting between the cultural poles of France and England, Jersey was further isolated by the language situation. Visiting theatre troupes from England would not have been understood by the Jèrriais speaking population, and French troupes were deterred by the frequent states of war or suspicion that existed between France and England during this period.〔 The language question continued to impede the development of theatre even once theatres had become established, as commented upon by Henry David Inglis in 1834.〔 The first location known to have been used as a theatre in Jersey is the Long Room above the Corn Market in the Royal Square, Saint Helier. This was described as "La salle de la comédie" in ''La Gazette de l'Île de Jersey'' of 23 March 1788. This assembly room had been used for public presentations before, including meetings addressed to crowds of between 500 and 600 people by John Wesley on 28 and 29 August 1787. Before 1788 it appears that acting was an amateur pastime, and that the States were concerned that young men were spending too much time in idle distractions.〔 The first specific record of a particular troupe of actors is of an amateur club of 12 gentleman in 1786 proposing to present a season of plays by famous playwrights. The first record of a professional theatre company in Jersey is the visit of a French troupe under a man named Desroches which performed in Jersey between March and May 1788 – the last visit by a French theatrical company until after the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Desroches' company performed ''L'Amant bourru'' (by Monvel) and ''Le Médecin malgré lui'' (by Molière) in one programme on 25 March 1788 – the first plays known by name to have been performed in Jersey.〔 English theatre companies visited in the summers of 1792 and 1793. The first English-language play known to have been performed in Jersey was ''The West Indian'' by Richard Cumberland on 5 May 1792, followed, amongst others, by ''The School for Scandal'' by Richard Brinsley Sheridan on 12 May 1792 and ''Douglas'' by John Home on 26 May 1792. The first plays recorded by name to have been performed by amateurs were ''Alzire'' and ''Mérope'' by Voltaire, in French, in 1795 and 1796.〔 Between 1792 and 1796 there were plays advertised as being performed at the "Théâtre Royal". It is not known whether this refers to the Long Room, but the description of a gallery suggests that this might be a different building unless the Long Room had been altered during this period. Plays were also performed in the 1790s outside Saint Helier. The annual midsummer fair in Saint John attracted huge crowds and the English companies of Fisher and Henry Lee are known to have performed in tents there in 1793 and 1795.〔 The Saint John's fair and its entertainments became such an annoyance to the authorities that it was suppressed by Act of the States in 1797. The first identifiable dedicated theatre space in Jersey was opened in 1802 (not counting the unidentified "Théâtre Royal" which appears not to refer to the same building) by James Shatford, proprietor of the Salisbury theatre, to house his visiting English company. It consisted of a converted barn in what now bears the English name of Regent Road and the French name of Ruette de la Comédie in Saint Helier. The French name preserves the memory of the existence of this theatre. Few records survive to give an idea of the layout or appearance of this theatre which was named "The Theatre Royal", but it was described in 1809 as being "neat and sufficiently extensive".〔 Shatford's company were not in permanent residence; in their absence performances were staged by officers of the British regiments garrisoned in Jersey, under the title of "Garrison Theatricals". These performances were open to the public, and raised money for the relief of poor British prisoners of war in France during the Napoleonic Wars. Once the wars were over, the theatre was used intermittently by both English and French visiting troupes but with little financial success. This theatre was superseded in 1828; the fabric survived until demolition in 1947. On 5 May 1828 a new theatre was opened in Royal Crescent, Saint Helier. This theatre was also named the "Theatre Royal" and was Jersey's first purpose-built theatre. The opening production was ''A New Way to Pay Old Debts''. A backdrop painted to depict a panoramic view of the entrance of Saint Helier Harbour and the whole of St Aubin's Bay from the viewpoint of Fort Regent was particularly admired on opening night. In 1834 the newspaper ''Le Constitutionnel'' stated that the owners of the theatre had never broken even.〔 Also in 1834 Henry D. Inglis described the situation as follows: :"There is a theatre indeed; and there are winter assemblies: but the latter are few in number; and not particularly attractive; and as for the former, there is so little encouragement given to the drama in Jersey, that the company is most commonly indifferent. The native inhabitants do not sufficiently understand the English language, to relish English drama; and the residents are not rich enough to afford of themselves, sufficient encouragement to the theatre. It must also be admitted, that naval and military men, are not those amongst whom a taste for the drama is most likely to be found. Companies of French actors, however, are tolerably well supported by the native inhabitants." The Theatre Royal in Royal Crescent burnt down on 31 July 1863. It took two years for a new theatre to be built: Henry Cornwall opened the Royal Amphitheatre in Gloucester Street on 17 April 1865. This theatre was sold to Wybert Rousby in 1869, and became known as the Theatre Royal, and later as the Theatre Royal and Opera House. In April 1891 Lillie Langtry made her first appearance in a Jersey theatre at the Theatre Royal. Fire broke out in the night of 29 March 1899, destroying the building. A new theatre on the ruins of the Theatre Royal and Opera House. The Opera House was opened by Lillie Langtry on 9 July 1900, who performed in the first play produced in the new premises, ''The Degenerates''. A fire on 12 May 1921 partly destroyed the building, requiring reconstruction.〔 The Opera House, which had been showing films in alternation with live entertainment, became a dedicated cinema in 1931, leaving Springfield Hall as the main venue for theatrical entertainment. Edward Clarence "Teddy" Boielle (1872–1941) abandoned a less than successful business career for a career in entertainment. He brought concert parties to Jersey, was a key organiser of the Coronation celebrations for Edward VII and George V, noted especially for his part in the organisation of the inaugural Jersey Battle of Flowers, was stage manager of the Caesarean Operatic and Dramatic Society, also performing as the title rôle in ''The Mikado'', as Sir Joseph Porter in ''HMS Pinafore'', Bunthorne in ''Patience'', Mr Pockett in ''The Magistrate'' and others. He was founding Secretary of the Jersey Eisteddfod. He dramatised Charles Dickens' ''The Haunted Man'' for the Saint Helier's Church Literary Society (another of Dean Samuel Falle's cultural projects besides the Jersey Eisteddfod) in 1908 and staged it at the Oddfellows' Hall in Saint Helier in December 1908, followed by two public performances in January 1909. The success of these performances persuaded cast and author-director to form a regular company for the production of an annual Dickens stage adaptation: 1909–1910 ''The Chimes''; 1910–1911 ''The Battle of Life''; 1911–1912 ''The Cricket on the Hearth''; 1912–1913 ''The Christmas Carol''; 1913–1914 a revival of ''The Haunted Man''; 1914 ''Scenes from Pickwick''; 1915 ''The Chimes''; 1916 ''Edwin Drood''; 1917 ''The Battle of Life''; 1918 ''The Old Curiosity Shop''; 1919 ''The Cricket on the Hearth''; 1921 ''Oliver Twist''. The Oddfellows' Hall was then turned into a cinema, and the Dickens Players moved to the Opera House for their final productions: 1922 a revival of ''The Christmas Carol''; 1924 ''David Copperfield''. E.C. Boielle's commitments as manager of Wests Picture House and competition from new forms of entertainment led to the suspension of the annual Dickens dramatisations, but members of the amateur troupe moved on to other associations. Besides the Oddfellows' Hall, among the smaller halls used for staged performances at this time was the Cercle St Thomas in New Street, Saint Helier. Originally built in 1819 as the Albion Baptist Chapel, it was acquired in 1842 for use by the French-speaking Roman Catholic congregation as a chapel dedicated to Saint Thomas, in which function it continued until the construction of the large Saint Thomas's Church nearby in 1887 left the chapel redundant. It found new use as a Catholic clubroom with billiard tables and a stage for performances. The Cercle St Thomas building was modernised in 1908 and equipped for showing films. The Jersey Entertainment Society commissioned CW Blanshard Bolton, architect, in 1935 to enlarge the building to house a new theatre. The striking new Art Deco frontage of the New Playhouse was revealed in 1938, and from then until the outbreak of the Second World War a repertory theatre was operated, mostly by actors and crew from England, including Laurence Naismith and Donald Pleasence. In 1946 the Denville Players, a repertory company from England led by Len Laurie and Marjorie Denville, took a lease of the Playhouse from the Brotherhood of Saint Thomas. Laurie and Denville had honeymooned in Jersey in 1925, had liked the Island so much that they returned to perform summer season in the 1930s and only escaped from being stranded during the Occupation by the fact they had refused the offer of the 1939 season. They returned to make their home in Jersey in 1946. They operated the Playhouse theatre until 1963 when the Brotherhood sold the building and it was converted to a retail store. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Theatre of Jersey」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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