U3A Report: ‘The View From The Wings’

MR Brian Freeland entertained us with a very interesting and amusing talk about all aspects of theatre.  

Following a visit to the Old Vic Theatre in Bristol, where the young Peter O’Toole was performing, Mr Freeland decided he wanted to work in the theatre.  He trained in various theatres in the fields of management, lighting design and as theatre manager as well as director.

He has now retired from the theatre itself but is still writing scripts as well as giving talks on his experiences and directing amateur dramatics.

Mr Freeland began his career while the Crazy Gang was still performing and can recall when Tommy Trinder was the  presenter of Sunday Night at the London Palladium before Bruce Forsyth took over.  He also worked in pantomimes and remembers Harry Secombe performing.

He certainly had us all laughing with anecdotes and stories of the actors he has worked with as well as the various ‘digs’ the actors stayed in and the idiosyncracies of the landladies.

He recalled working at Butlin’s theatre where they would not allow any risqué jokes or double entendres where one amateur holidaymaker’s jokes were a bit close to the knuckle and the curtain brought down on him.

Mr Freeland told us that in his opinion the hardest workers in the theatre were the ballet dancers, who rehearsed the next ballet in the morning, rehearsed their current one in the afternoon and performed in the evening.  Then by way of relaxation would go to a disco.

Mr Freeland has also directed opera in Scotland and Ireland.  In Wexford, a slope had been built on the stage but covered in formica which was slippery.  It was discovered that covering it in lemon juice made it safe but on the first night somebody cleaned it and the opening singer slid down the slope, still singing, followed by the second singer both narrowly missing the orchestra pit.  They were then followed by the chorus with the audience convulsed with laughter.

Mr Freeland said that he has worked all over the world, even China during Chairman Mao’s time when the Peking and Shanghai ballet dancers all wore the blue boiler suits, there were no cars anywhere, and one child was terrified by seeing western people.

Mr Freeland spoke of George Bernard Shaw, whom he greatly admired for his prodigious output as well as the two thousand lectures he gave and the quarter of a million postcards and letters he wrote.

He ended by saying he had worked with Edith Evans, Sybil Thorndike, Laurence Olivier, John Gielgud to name but a few.

There followed some questions and answers and refreshments which were needed after so much laughter.

Next month our speaker will be John Clark talking about Underwater Treasure Hunting.  Do please join us at the United Reformed Church Hall at 2.00pm on Tuesday 14th July.

Julie Vince, Secretary