Responding to a newspaper advert was the first step for a group of would-be actors in 1924 – and their next steps would take them on to the stage as Dundee Dramatic Society.
The very first mention of Dundee Dramatic Society happened in April 1924.
The Evening Telegraph said Dundee was “crying out for good plays and good acting” and appealed to the city’s amateur actors to form a comprehensive society.
They did.
A letter in the Evening Telegraph on May 2 1924 invited “everyone who has any desire that such a club be formed” to a meeting in Kidd’s Restaurant.
Dundee Dramatic Society was formed on May 27 1924 after 86 people came along.
The first productions were three, one act plays, that were rehearsed simultaneously on three separate floors of Kidd’s and produced at Dundee Training College.
The Pie in the Oven, Campbell of Kilmhor and The Grand Cham’s Diamond were performed to a paying public in November 1924.
The Courier drama critic said the whole evening was “very enjoyable”.
The die was cast.
Full length plays became the norm in 1925
Gillian Hunter is the current chair of Dundee Dramatic Society.
She said rehearsing in premises owned by someone else had its issues.
“The need for our own space became apparent one evening when members turned up to a rehearsal to find the Kidd’s rooms already in use,” she said.
“As members scrambled to find an alternative while people waited outside, it showed how important it was to find our own premises.”
The society established themselves at 32 Bank Street.
“Our first full length plays Milestones and Full Fathom Five were performed at the Palace Theatre, which at that time operated as a cinema,” she said.
“Renting out theatres for performances was expensive and quite risky, especially if they operated as a cinema, we not only had to pay for the rent of the building, but for the films we had displaced.
“The society would use these shows to raise money, with all profits from the shows going towards a chosen local charity.”
In the society’s first decade they put on productions by playwrights like A.A. Milne, J.M. Barrie, Noel Coward, George Bernard Shaw and P.G. Wodehouse.
Shaw’s Pygmalion in 1928 was considered the society’s great masterpiece.
The society performed its plays in theatres and halls throughout Dundee and other towns like Forfar, Kirriemuir, St Andrews, Leven, Cupar, and Arbroath.
The amateur players moved to a jute store
By the 1930s many theatres had closed or become cinemas.
The amateur players leased an old jute store at the foot of the Hilltown after finding themselves no longer able to secure theatres in which to perform.
Members raised the funds to convert the building.
The 196-seat Little Theatre opened to the public in 1937.
Within a year nearly 10,000 people had come through its doors.
“In 1939 we gave a home to the Dundee Repertory Company during the first months of its existence, allowing them to lease the theatre,” said Gillian.
“They performed several plays before they secured their own premises.
“It was in our green room that founding Rep member and future Hollywood star Richard Todd said he met his first friends in Dundee.”
Activities changed but didn’t stop during the Second World War.
“We continued to perform at the Little Theatre, and had public service instructions to follow if bombs were dropped during a performance,” she said.
“A lot of our male membership were called up for active duty, this put a lot of responsibility for the continued activities of the society on the female members.”
One play Nine till Six had a full female cast.
Little Theatre became permanent home
In 1950 Richard Todd wrote a letter of congratulations to the society when they finally raised enough money to buy the Little Theatre.
The full houses continued.
Highlights included The Little Revue in 1954.
The members of the acting company at the height of the Swinging Sixties and Beatlemania included Denis Lawson and Ian McDiarmid.
Lawson said: “Dundee has responsibility for kickstarting my acting career.
“I got involved in the Dundee Dramatic Society and at the same time had a job selling carpets in the Cowgate – not that I did a very good job of it!
“I met Ian when I was 17.
“We did five or six productions together.”
Lawson and McDiarmid appeared on stage together in Family Album which won the Scottish Community Drama Association One Act Festival in 1966.
They moved on to bigger things on stage and screen after leaving Dundee and appeared together in the Star Wars movie franchise in 1983.
Triumph and tragedy for the society
In 1968 the upper floor of the theatre was badly damaged by fire.
Plays continued to be performed in the YMCA hall while repairs were taking place.
The Little Theatre reopened in 1969.
The 1970s was a busy decade.
Highlights included Taxpayers Waltz in 1972.
Plaza Suite and Cambusdonald Royal were performed in 1974.
It was a milestone year.
A dinner was held at the Invercarse Hotel to celebrate the 50th anniversary.
Maybe you watched See How They Run in 1976?
Dead on Nine starred George Benedetti as Tom Hammond.
Alma Donald was Esmeralda Leigh.
Cabaret brought the Kit Cat Club to the stage in 1978.
Shows of the Century was performed in 1979.
Plans were drawn for an extension in 1980s
For a number of years the society performed annual pantomimes with local entertainment personality Dougie Cunningham playing the dame.
They not only got bums on seats but also involved large casts.
When We Are Married was performed in 1981.
The Patrick Pearse Motel was a highlight in 1983.
In July 1984 The Little Theatre Trust was established to receive money from benefactors for the development and preservation of the building.
Funds were raised and the land in front of the building was purchased.
In 1985 Jill Gascoigne opened the Little Theatre’s new coffee bar extension.
The C.A.T.S Eyes actress was a former member of Downfield Musical Society.
The productions continued.
The Gentle Hook and Witness for the Prosecution in 1986.
A Friend Indeed and Salad Days in 1987.
Agatha Christie’s The Unexpected Guest was another stand-out.
The 1990s saw a dramatic transformation on Victoria Road.
Buildings were demolished to make way for Dundee’s £14m inner ring road.
Big changes to the landscape in the 1990s
The Victoria Theatre was torn down.
The Little Theatre was left standing in the rubble.
The show went on.
Maybe you remember watching Small Hours in 1995?
House Guest?
The Odd Couple brought the return of an all-female cast in 1998.
The millennium and new technologies didn’t impact on the theatre.
Audiences kept coming.
The coffee bar and theatre auditorium was updated and reopened by Denis Lawson on a return visit in December 2001.
Still going strong after going dark in 2020
The curtain came down when the global pandemic and lockdown shut the theatre on March 17 2020 just days after a final performance of Abigail’s Party.
Gillian said: “Covid nearly destroyed theatre, but fortunately Dundee Dramatic Society has experienced a resurgence since the pandemic.
“Today, we continue to perform four shows a year.
“All of our successes past and present are thanks to our dedicated members and we look forward to making more memories for future generations.”
- Anyone with a passion for live theatre can find out more here.
Conversation