Treading the boards
We are issuing a set of eight Special Stamps to mark the bicentenary of The Old Vic, one of the most important venues in the UK’s performing arts history.
The Old Vic has played an important part in the development of modern British theatre, with many great actors making their names on its influential stage. This stamp issue commemorates eight of these actors at The Old Vic, since the 1950s:
- Richard Burton – Henry V, 1955
- Judi Dench and John Stride – Romeo and Juliet, 1960
- Laurence Olivier – The Dance of Death, 1967
- Maggie Smith – Hedda Gabler, 1970
- Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud – No Man’s Land, 1975
- Albert Finney – Hamlet, 1975
- Sharon Benson – Carmen Jones, 1991
- Glenda Jackson – King Lear, 2016
The Old Vic was originally called the Royal Coburg and first opened in May 1818. It was built on reclaimed marshland, 300 yards south of the newly built Waterloo Bridge. The theatre could hold 3,800 people and offered everything from spectacular melodramas to Shakespeare revivals. The theatre was renamed the Royal Victoria in 1833.
In 1871, the auditorium was replaced with a far finer 2,300-seater and renamed The Old Vic. ‘The Vic’ soon became the world’s premier Shakespearean theatre. Edith Evans, Sybil Thorndike, Peggy Ashcroft, John Gielgud, Ralph Richardson and Alec Guinness all gave their first great classical performances here.
Tyrone Guthrie directed a glamorous young film star named Laurence Olivier as Hamlet, Henry V and Iago. There was a hiatus between 1940 and 1950, after bombing had left The Old Vic unusable as a theatre, but then Richard Burton came to play Hamlet, Coriolanus and an award-winning Henry V during a five-year season in which all Shakespeare’s plays were staged.
Actress, Kate Burton, said of her father, Richard: ‘He’d be absolutely thrilled. It’s an important tribute. It’s a fitting tribute. I’m so happy that dad is being recognised for his brilliant work on stage because, god knows, he had such a wonderful colourful life, never a dull moment, but he was an unbelievably gifted actor.’
The 1950s also saw the professional debut of Judi Dench who went on to star as Juliet in Franco Zeffirelli’s production of Romeo and Juliet. The 1960s saw The Old Vic become the home of the new National Theatre under Laurence Olivier, who gave a renowned performance in The Dance of Death.
In the 1970s Maggie Smith won an Evening Standard Best Actress Award for her portrayal of Hedda Gabler and Albert Finney was a memorable Hamlet. In 1975 John Gielgud and Ralph Richardson gave unforgettable performances in Harold Pinter’s No Man’s Land.
The 80s saw an uncertain future for The Old Vic. In the 1990s, Carmen Jones wowed audiences and ran for a whole season, and featured Sharon Benson in the title role. As we entered the millennium, Sally Greene formed a charitable trust to acquire the theatre.
Matthew Warchus, an acclaimed director, became Artist Director in 2015 and opened his first season with the new play Future Conditional by Tamsin Oglesby.
To date he has also directed Ralph Fiennes in Ibsen’s The Master Builder, Pinter’s The Caretaker, the musical Groundhog Day, a revival of Yasmina Reza’s ‘ART’ and Jack Thorne’s adaptation of Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. In 2016, Glenda Jackson returned to the stage after 25 years in an acclaimed King Lear.
Today, aged 200 years, The Old Vic continues to thrive. The Old Vic Artistic Director, Matthew Warchus said: ‘As we celebrate a long history of inspiring creativity in this iconic building, and look to a bright future of uplifting, adventurous and accessible theatre-making, we are delighted to be collaborating with Royal Mail on this special stamp edition to mark The Old Vic’s 200th birthday.’
Stamp strategy manager, Philip Parker, said: ‘The Old Vic is remarkable. So many of our finest actors have trodden its boards and it has been instrumental in shaping UK theatre. Our striking new stamps celebrate this with great actors in unforgettable roles at The Old Vic.’
The stamps and souvenir products can be pre-ordered now from shop.royalmail.com and available on general sale from 7,000 Post Offices nationwide from 30 August 2018.
