The Actorsâ Company was a co-operative theatre company formed by a group of actors and directors in Sydney, Australia in 1975. It was the first serious attempt at a professional co-operative theatre in that city.
The company's name was inspired by the Actorsâ Company founded by Ian McKellen, Edward Petherbridge and John Moreno in the UK in 1972. (The title was again used for an ensemble of actors created by the Sydney Theatre Company which functioned between 2006 and 2008.)
Between 1975 and 1979, the company staged more than 40 productions at various venues in Sydney, many of which then toured New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia. The company was established in late 1974 by four actors and directors â Rodney Delaney, Matthew O'Sullivan, Betty Cheal and Lynne Porteous. The fledgling company, with Rodney Delaney and Matthew O'Sullivan as co-artistic directors, secured, for their opening productions, the building in King's Cross that had been the Nimrod Street Theatre, the Nimrod company having moved to their new space in Belvoir Street, Surrey Hills. The Nimrod Street Theatre had been renamed the Loft. (Currently home to the Griffin Theatre Company, it is now known as the Stables Theatre.)
On Thursday, March 27, 1975 The Actors Company opened their first season. Dubbed a âÂÂSeason of AngerâÂÂ, it comprised John Osborne's âÂÂLook Back in Angerâ directed by Rodney Delaney, with Matthew O'Sullivan as Jimmy Porter and Lynne Porteous as Helena and (two days later) âÂÂA Taste of Honeyâ by Shelagh Delaney, directed by Matthew O'Sullivan, with Rodney Delaney as Geoffrey and Betty Cheal as Helen. Neither play had been seen in Sydney for many years. They were performed on alternate nights for six weeks. The season returned a small net profit allowing token fees for the cast and crew. . With the success of this first outing, the group decided on a second season keeping to the same formula of two plays in repertoire, with the same cast where ever possible.
The Loft was no longer available. so the next season was staged in the Village Centre Playhouse, a converted church hall in Paddington. The season comprised the Australian premiere of âÂÂThe Golden Pathway Annualâ by John Harding and John Burrows, and Harold Pinter's âÂÂThe CaretakerâÂÂ.
The critics were unanimous in their praise and both productions were picked up by the Arts Council of New South Wales for a seven-week tour of regional centres.
The company was offered the chance to take over the Downstairs Theatre of the newly opened Seymour Centre, a three-theatre complex on the campus of the University of Sydney. For the third season, their first in the new theatre, the company staged two Australian premieres: Woody Allen's âÂÂPlay it Again, Samâ (with Les Asmussen as Allen) and âÂÂThe Foursomeâ by E.A.Whitehead, plus a late night show, âÂÂBrecht on BrechtâÂÂ.
The critics and audiences were divided on the merits of the somewhat confronting (for its time) âÂÂThe FoursomeâÂÂ, but âÂÂPlay It Again, Samâ was a runaway hit playing an additional two weeks. The company could not meet the costs of operating in what was basically a commercially-run theatre. At the end of their first year of operation, with three seasons in three different venues, they were again looking for a home.
A search led them to the Esme Hackett Memorial Hall in the inner-city suburb of Ultimo. It was an all-purpose community hall dating from the 1950s, ill-served by public transport â but it was available and it was cheap. At the beginning of 1976, âÂÂThe Golden Pathway Annualâ toured to Queensland, then played a short return season in Sydney as the opening production of what was now The Actors Company Theatre. An American programme of âÂÂPromenade, Allâ by David Robison (another Australian premiere) and Eugene O'Neill's little-seen âÂÂDesire Under the Elmsâ played through April and May. At the same time, âÂÂThe Golden Pathway Annualâ and âÂÂPlay It Again, Samâ were revived in Adelaide, South Australia at the invitation of the Adelaide Festival Centre. In June âÂÂHamletâÂÂ, with Matthew O'Sullivan in the title role, was staged at the Bondi Pavilion Theatre. Official recognition also came with a one-off grant of $8,000 from the Australia Council and $1,000 from the NSW Government. July saw a return season of âÂÂPlay It Again, SamâÂÂ, followed by the company's first children's show, âÂÂThe Happy ApplesâÂÂ. A double bill of Ionesco's âÂÂThe Lessonâ and Olwyn Wymark's âÂÂLunchtime Concertâ played through SeptemberâÂÂOctober; âÂÂWaiting for Godotâ by Samuel Beckett was staged in OctoberâÂÂNovember. The year ended with a revue, âÂÂAnd Now at Last the Nibble Nobby's Nuts ShowâÂÂ, devised and directed by Rodney Delaney (who was also in the cast) and, by day, Matthew O'Sullivan's adaptation (he also directed) of âÂÂWinnie The PoohâÂÂ.
The company comprised a core group of five people â Rodney Delaney and Matthew O'Sullivan (the two artistic directors), administrator Michael Tobin, Sonia Lester (public relations and marketing) and stage manager Tony Wright (who also directed âÂÂThe Happy ApplesâÂÂ). Guest directors were hired for âÂÂHamletâÂÂ, âÂÂLunchtime Concertâ and âÂÂWaiting for GodotâÂÂ.
The company went into its third year with a major reconfiguration of the acting space. A triangular stage was created in the centre of the hall with raked bench seating on two sides, seating approximately 100 people. The year began with a revival of Harold Pinter's âÂÂThe Caretakerâ in March, directed this time by Alan Faulkner, but the repertoire system of two plays was resumed in June with âÂÂThe âÂÂNakedâ HamletâÂÂ, Joseph Papp's radical reworking of âÂÂHamletâÂÂ, and Tom Stoppard's âÂÂRosencrantz and Guildenstern Are DeadâÂÂ. The latter play hadn't been seen in Sydney since its original production and became one of the company's biggest successes. Both plays were directed by Rodney Delaney with a total of twelve actors - the largest casts employed so far. The cast played the same roles in both productions with Peter de Salis as Hamlet, Les Asmussen and Scott Lambert as Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. September and October saw a children's play, âÂÂThe Tails of Koalarooâ during the day, and Ibsen's âÂÂGhostsâ and âÂÂCity Sugarâ by Stephen Poliakoff with Bevan Wilson(another Australian premiere) alternating at night. NovemberâÂÂDecember brought another Pinter play, the Australian premiere of âÂÂNo Man's Landâ with Rodney Delaney directing veteran British actor Alexander Archdale.
Shakespeare's Othello was the opening production of 1978, and Matthew O'Sullivan's final production as co-artistic director. The eight-week season was almost booked out before it opened but a huge fire in the block behind the Ultimo theatre forced the closure of the building for some weeks. The Mayfair Theatre, an 800-seat Hoyts cinema in the Sydney CBD, was offered as an alternative. âÂÂOthelloâ transferred there for a further week before a short tour to NSW regional centres. Othello was initially played by Fred Steele, the first time in Australia that the role had been played by an African-American actor. The Actorsâ Company Theatre reopened with a production of âÂÂRomeo and Julietâ directed by Steve Agnew. This was followed by the company's most successful production, both critically and financially: Rodney Delaney directed âÂÂThe Glass Menagerieâ with Shirley Cameron and Diana OâÂÂConnor. âÂÂRazzle Dazzle, the Silver Screen Bluesâ with Sally McKenzie occupied the late-night spot. Amanda Field directed another children's show at this time: âÂÂThe Ugly Ducklingâ with Bernadette Ludwig.
In SeptemberâÂÂOctober the Company did three Australian works: David Williamson's âÂÂThe RemovalistsâÂÂ, âÂÂHalloranâÂÂs Little Boatâ by Thomas Keneally and âÂÂAn Evening with Adolf HitlerâÂÂ. This latter was the world premiere of a play co-written by poet and playwright Jennifer Compton and Matthew OâÂÂSullivan, who also directed and played Hitler.
The Actorsâ Company did its first (and as it turned out, only) musical in December 1978. This was Kander and Ebb's âÂÂCabaretâ featuring Anne Phelan as Sally Bowles and Les Asmussen as the Emcee. The children's play during January, again directed by Amanda Field, was âÂÂPhoebe Moonglow and the Singing AstronautâÂÂ. Late night: Tim Gooding's âÂÂThe Amazing Optisimo ShowâÂÂ.
A new production of âÂÂOthelloâ directed by David Goddard and starring Monroe Reimers, opened in late March and played through till May. This became the final production in the Actorsâ Company Theatre.
The last Actorsâ Company production opened on August 8, 1979 at another Hoyts cinema, the Paris. It was a revival of the previous year's The Glass Menagerie, again directed by Rodney Delaney, but with a different cast. It closed August 25.
The Actorsâ Company was dismantled after that production. It had lasted over four years. Matthew OâÂÂSullivan left the company in 1978 to further his career in theatre and film. Rodney Delaney became, for a time, the Regional Theatre Co-ordinator for the NSW government and has continued his successful directing career. Sonia Lester, publicity officer for the company, remarried and, as Sonia Gidley-King, created Wrap With Love in 1992, for which she was awarded an OAM. She died in 2010.