Company History
The Arts Club Theatre Company, now in its
44th season of producing professional live theatre in Vancouver, is a non-profit charitable organization which operates two theatres on a year-round basis. Our popular productions range from musicals and contemporary comedies to new works and classics. The company also tours provincially on a regular basis, with a three-show mini-season presented at venues around British Columbia, including Capilano College, North Vancouver; Surrey Arts Centre; Abbey Arts Centre, Abbotsford; Clarke Theatre, Mission; Cleland Community Theatre, Penticton; Capitol Theatre, Nelson; Key City Theatre, Cranbrook; Vanier Hall, Prince George; Prince Rupert Performing Arts Centre; McPherson Playhouse, Victoria; Port Theatre, Nanaimo; Evergreen Cultural Centre, Coquitlam; Shadbolt Centre for the Arts, Burnaby; Sagebrush Theatre, Kamloops; and Kelowna Community Theatre.
The 2007-2008 Arts Club season features six productions at the historic 650-seat Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage at Granville and W. 12th, and seven productions on scenic Granville Island at the vibrant 450-seat Granville Island Stage.
The Arts Club of Vancouver was founded in 1958 as a private club for artists, musicians, and actors, and officially became the Arts Club Theatre in 1964 when the company opened its first stage, a converted gospel hall at Seymour Street and Davie. The company's twenty-seven years at Seymour Street are an important part of Vancouver and Canadian theatre history. The tiny 250-seat stage helped launch the careers of Canadian talents such as Michael J. Fox, Bruce Greenwood, Ruth Nichol, Janet Wright, Winston Rekert, Lally Cadeau, and Brent Carver, while introducing Vancouver to works by Canadian playwrights such as Michel Tremblay, David Freedman, and Carol Bolt. Productions by newcomers Sherman Snukal (Talking Dirty), Nicola Cavendish (It's Snowing on Saltspring), Morris Panych (7 Stories), and John Lazarus (The Late Blumer also premiered there). The original Arts Club Seymour Street Stage was closed for demolition in 1991.
The company added the current Granville Island Stage in 1979, and the smaller Revue Stage next door (which is now home to Vancouver TheatreSports League) in 1983. Since it opened, the Granville Island Stage has featured a popular mix of musicals, classics, dramas, and contemporary comedies - and now includes a large selection of newer works. Innovative versions of classics such as Comedy of Errors and The Imaginary Invalid; colourful Canadian hits such as Reflections on Crooked Walking and It's Snowing on Saltspring; dramas such as Burn This, Lilies, and Frankie & Johnny in the Clair de Lune and comedies including Lend Me a Tenor, Sylvia, and Lettice and Lovage have brought the Granville Island Stage numerous awards and an excellent community following. The Revue Stage was home to some of Vancouver's all-time favourite musicals, revues, and comedies, including Angry Housewives, Ain't Misbehavin', The Wild Guys, All Grown Up, and A Closer Walk with Patsy Cline.
The Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage opened to the public with Dean Regan's record-setting production of Swing in October 1998, and it is now the company's main venue. An intimate version of a Broadway or London classic theatre, this elegant venue has permitted the company to move into the exciting arena of producing larger musicals, 20th-century classics, and acclaimed productions from around the world.
No history of the Arts Club would be complete without a mention of Bill Millerd. A graduate of the University of British Columbia and the National Theatre School, Bill first joined the Arts Club in 1969 as a stage manager and has remained in the role of artistic managing director since 1972. He was awarded the Order of Canada in 1994 for his contribution to Canadian theatre. Having attained the honour of being Canada's longest-serving Artistic Managing Director, Bill continues to lead the Arts Club along a path of artistic and financial growth, while the company's international reputation continues to expand.