Historical information
The “Q” Theatre Guild was formed in 1957. It inherited the productions and casts of the earlier Kew Light Opera Company. The Guild initially performed in the Kew Recreation Hall (Wellington Street) and later at the Kew Civic Hall (Cotham Road). A partial list of its performances include:
1957 The Geisha
1958 Maritana
1959 They All Do It (Cosi Fan Tutti)
1959 Blossom Time
1959 Love’s a Luxury
1960 There And Back & The Bohemian Girl
1960 Die Fledermaus
1961 Gay Rosalinda
1961 The Land of Smiles
1961 Kisses For A Kid & Hansel and Gretel
1962 Die Fledermaus
1964 Monsieur Beaucaire
1964 Macbeath [The Beggars’ Opera]
1964 The Beggars’ Opera
Undated And So To Bed
Significance
The Marion Tilley scrapbook is a significant record of performing arts in Melbourne during the 1950s and 1960s. The scrapbook includes programmes, photographs, newspaper reports and personal annotations which are a rich source of detail about repertoire, performers, and artistic sensibility in the period.
Physical description
Souvenir programme isued by the "Q" Theatre Guild incorporating Kew Light Opera Company for a performance of 'Die Fledermaus)' by Johann Strauss in 1962. The performances were held in the Kew City Hall, in Cotham Road. The programme forms part of a scrapbook that includes programmes, photographs and theatre reviews for the Kew Light Opera Company and later "Q" Theatre Guild.