Smallhythe Place

Last updated

Smallhythe Place
The facade, Smallhythe Place.jpg
Smallhythe Place in 2023
Kent UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location within Kent
General information
Architectural style Tudor
Town or city Small Hythe
Country England
Coordinates 51°2′17″N00°41′57″E / 51.03806°N 0.69917°E / 51.03806; 0.69917
Owner National Trust
Website
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/smallhythe-place
Listed Building – Grade II*
Designated8 May 1950
Reference no.1071163

Smallhythe Place in Small Hythe, near Tenterden in Kent, is a half-timbered house built in the late 15th or early 16th century and since 1947 cared for by the National Trust. It was the home of the Victorian actress Ellen Terry from 1899 to her death in the house on 17 July 1928. [1] The house contains Ellen Terry's theatre collection, while the cottage grounds include her rose garden, orchard, nuttery and the working Barn Theatre. [2]

Contents

Early history

The design of the house appears to be from the early 16th century and may have been built after a fire in the village of Small Hythe in 1514. [3] The house was originally called 'Port House' and before the River Rother and the sea receded it was associated with the nearby thriving shipyard [4] – in Old English hythe means "landing place". Changes to the flow of the Rother led to the silting-up of the channel and, eventually, the decline of the industry. [lower-alpha 1] The estate subsequently converted to agriculture after the late 17th century, at which point the barn was erected. The barn likely served as storage for both animals and crops, and was expanded during the 19th century. [3]

Terry's residence

Terry first saw the house in 1890 [7] in the company of Henry Irving, [4] the manager of the Lyceum Theatre in London's Covent Garden, with whom she shared a famous theatrical partnership for nearly 24 years. [8] She expressed interest in buying the property, but was unable to do so until 1899 when it became available. [7] The property comprised two cottages (one of which, called the Priest's House, she gave to her daughter [9] ) and a barn. [4]

Terry lived in the house for the last 3 decades of her life and it served as a place to relax in between a busy schedule of theatre engagements and international travel. [4] Terry entertained friends there but also relished the time spent caring for her gardens. Her daughter suggested the transformation of the barn into a theatre, but Terry preferred to retain the isolated nature of the estate. [3]

The museum

Ellen Terry's bedroom The bedroom, Smallhythe Place.jpg
Ellen Terry's bedroom

The house was opened to the public by Terry's daughter Edith Craig in 1929, as a memorial to her mother, showcasing both personal mementos as well as letters collected from a national appeal after her mother's death. [10] The National Trust supported Craig in her running of the museum from 1939, [2] and took over the property when she died in 1947. [11] It was designated as a Grade II* listed building by English Heritage on 8 May 1950. [12]

Smallhythe Place contains many personal and theatrical mementos, including two walls devoted to David Garrick and Sarah Siddons. Other exhibits include a message from Sarah Bernhardt displayed in the Dining Room, [13] a chain worn by Fanny Kemble, Sir Arthur Sullivan's monocle and a visiting card from Alexandre Dumas. There are also several paintings by the artist Clare Atwood, one of the romantic companions of Edith Craig. [14] In the Terry Room (previously used as a sitting room) is a letter from Oscar Wilde begging Terry to accept a copy of his first play. [15] The bedroom remains largely as it was during Terry's lifetime, [3] while the library contains over 3000 volumes, largely those collected by Terry and used during her career. [16]

The Ellen Terry Costume Collection

In addition to a wealth of personal ephemera, Smallhythe Place also hosts an archive of Terry's role in the Aesthetic Movement and the role she played in the design of her stage wardrobe. [17] The Costume Room displays a selection of sumptuous costumes dating from Terry's time at the Lyceum Theatre, in particular three costumes from Henry Irving's spectacular production of Much Ado About Nothing at the Lyceum Theatre [2] and the iridescent beetle-wing dress she wore as Lady Macbeth in 1888 [18] designed by Alice Comyns Carr. [19] The dress was returned to public display in 2011 after 1300 hours of conservation. [20]

Barn Theatre

The interior of the Barn Theatre The Barn Theatre, Smallhythe Place.jpg
The interior of the Barn Theatre

In 1929, Craig finally did establish a barn theatre in the house's grounds. [3] The 70-seat theatre hosts around 30 productions a year. [21]

Every year since 1929 on the anniversary of Ellen Terry's death there has been a tradition of performing the plays of William Shakespeare. [3] Among the actors who have performed in the theatre have been Peggy Ashcroft, Edith Evans, John Gielgud, Alec Guinness, Nigel Hawthorne, Rachel Kempson, Michael Redgrave, Paul Scofield and Sybil Thorndike. [22]

The first patron of the Barn Theatre was Ellen Terry's great-nephew Sir John Gielgud, who served in the role for 50 years before being succeeded by Donald Sinden, who was patron for 20 years until his death in 2014. He was succeeded by Joanna Lumley, who took up the role in March 2020. [21] [22]

Notes

  1. A 1998 Time Team archaeological dig uncovered evidence of the historic shipbuilding industry, leading to creation of a new monument classification - Deserted Medieval Shipyard. [5] [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joanna Lumley</span> British actress and former model (born 1946)

Dame Joanna Lamond Lumley is a British actress, presenter, former model, author, television producer, and activist. She has won two BAFTA TV Awards for her role as Patsy Stone in the BBC sitcom Absolutely Fabulous (1992–2012), and was nominated for the 2011 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for the Broadway revival of La Bête. In 2013, she received the Special Recognition Award at the National Television Awards, and in 2017 she was honoured with the BAFTA Fellowship award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ellen Terry</span> English actress (1847–1928)

Dame Alice Ellen Terry was a leading English actress of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frances de la Tour</span> English actress (born 1944)

Frances J. de Lautour, better known as Frances de la Tour, is an English actress. She is known for her role as Miss Ruth Jones in the television sitcom Rising Damp from 1974 until 1978. She is a Tony Award winner and three-time Olivier Award winner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lyceum Theatre, London</span> West End theatre in London

The Lyceum Theatre is a West End theatre located in the City of Westminster, on Wellington Street, just off the Strand in central London. It has a seating capacity of 2,100. The origins of the theatre date to 1765. Managed by Samuel Arnold, from 1794 to 1809 the building hosted a variety of entertainments including a circus produced by Philip Astley, a chapel, and the first London exhibition of waxworks by Madame Tussauds. From 1816 to 1830, it served as The English Opera House. After a fire, the house was rebuilt and reopened on 14 July 1834 to a design by Samuel Beazley. The building is unique in that it has a balcony overhanging the dress circle. It was built by the partnership of Peto & Grissell. The theatre then played opera, adaptations of Charles Dickens novels and James Planché's "fairy extravaganzas", among other works.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fred Terry</span> English actor (1863–1933)

Fred Terry was an English actor and theatrical manager. After establishing his reputation in London and in the provinces for a decade, he joined the company of Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree where he remained for four years, meeting his future wife, Julia Neilson. With Neilson, he played in London and on tour for 27 further years, becoming famous in sword and cape roles, such as the title role in The Scarlet Pimpernel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Small Hythe</span> Human settlement in England

Small Hythe is a hamlet near Tenterden in Kent, England. The population is included in Tenterden.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Lyceum Theatre</span> Theatre in Edinburgh, Scotland

The Royal Lyceum Theatre is a 658-seat theatre in the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, named after the Theatre Royal Lyceum and English Opera House, the residence at the time of legendary Shakespearean actor Henry Irving. It was built in 1883 by architect C. J. Phipps at a cost of £17,000 on behalf of James B. Howard and Fred. W. P. Wyndham, two theatrical managers and performers whose partnership became the renowned Howard & Wyndham Ltd created in 1895 by Michael Simons of Glasgow.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marion Terry</span> English actress (1853–1930)

Marion Bessie Terry was an English actress. In a career spanning half a century, she played leading roles in more than 125 plays. Always in the shadow of her older and more famous sister Ellen, Terry nevertheless achieved considerable success in the plays of W. S. Gilbert, Oscar Wilde, Henry James and others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edith Craig</span> British actress, theatrical producer, theatre director, and suffragette (1869–1947)

Edith Ailsa Geraldine Craig, known as Edy Craig, was a prolific theatre director, producer, costume designer and early pioneer of the women's suffrage movement in England. She was the daughter of actress Ellen Terry and the progressive English architect-designer Edward William Godwin, and the sister of theatre practitioner Edward Gordon Craig.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christabel Marshall</span>

Christabel Gertrude Marshall was a British campaigner for women's suffrage, a playwright and author. Marshall lived in a ménage à trois with the artist Clare Atwood and the actress, theatre director, producer and costume designer Edith Craig from 1916 until Craig's death in 1947.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clare Atwood</span> British painter

Clare "Tony" Atwood was a British painter of portraits, still life, landscapes, interiors and decorative flower subjects. Atwood lived in a ménage à trois with the dramatist Christabel Marshall and the actress, theatre director, producer and costume designer Edith Craig from 1916 until Craig's death in 1947.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Purcell Operatic Society</span>

The Purcell Operatic Society was a short-lived but influential London opera company devoted to the production of stage works by Henry Purcell and his contemporaries. It was founded in 1899 by the composer Martin Shaw and folded in 1902. Its stage director and production designer was Gordon Craig whose productions for the company marked the beginning of his career as a theatre practitioner. Their debut production of Purcell's opera Dido and Aeneas in 1900 was one of the earliest staged performances of the work in modern times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mabel Terry-Lewis</span> English actress (1872–1957)

Mabel Gwynedd Terry-Lewis was an English actress and a member of the Terry-Gielgud dynasty of actors of the 19th and 20th centuries.

<i>Ellen Terry as Lady Macbeth</i> Painting by John Singer Sargent

Ellen Terry as Lady Macbeth is an oil painting by John Singer Sargent now in Tate Britain. Painted in 1889, it depicts actress Ellen Terry in a famous performance as Lady Macbeth in William Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth, wearing a green dress decorated with iridescent beetle wings. The play was produced by Henry Irving at the Lyceum Theatre, London, with Irving also playing Macbeth opposite Terry. Sargent attended the opening night on 29 December 1888 and was inspired to paint Terry's portrait almost immediately.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Terry family</span> British theatrical dynasty

The Terry family was a British theatrical dynasty of the late 19th century and beyond. The family includes not only those members with the surname Terry, but also Neilsons, Craigs and Gielguds, to whom the Terrys were linked by marriage or blood ties.

Ada Nettleship was a British dressmaker and costume designer known for working at the forefront of the Aesthetic dress style and the rational dress movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alice Comyns Carr</span> British costume designer

Alice Vansittart Comyns Carr, was a British costume designer whose work is associated with the Aesthetic dress movement.

Patience Glossop Harris, was a British costume designer for the theatre best known for her work with the actor Ellen Terry early in her career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Margaret Winser</span> English sculptor and artist

Margaret Winser was an English sculptor, medallist, artist, and art teacher.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Haviland (actor)</span> British actor-manager

William Haviland was a British actor-manager specialising in the works of Shakespeare who during his long stage career performed with some of the leading actors of his time including Henry Irving and Herbert Beerbohm Tree.

References

  1. Kazmier 2001, p. 174.
  2. 1 2 3 Patton 2004, p. 60.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Smallhythe Place's history.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Melville 1997, p. 34.
  5. The Port Community of Smallhythe.
  6. Bellamy & Milne 2017.
  7. 1 2 Patton 2004, p. 58.
  8. Kazmier 2001, p. 172.
  9. Oram 2011, p. 201.
  10. Rank 2021, pp. 40–42.
  11. Oram, Alison (2018). "Pride of Place: Valuing, mapping and curating queer heritage". In Sandell, Richard; Lennon, Rachael; Smith, Matt (eds.). Prejudice and Pride: LGBTQ and its contemporary implications. Research Centre for Museums and Galleries, School of Museum Studies, University of Leicester. pp. 57–62. ISBN   978-1-898489-50-4.
  12. "Smallhythe Place", British Listed Buildings, accessed 14 May 2017.
  13. Isaac 2018, p. 27.
  14. Oram 2011, p. 198.
  15. Isaac 2018, p. 24.
  16. Isaac 2018, p. 34-35.
  17. Isaac 2012, p. 94.
  18. Lynch 2022, p. 24.
  19. Isaac 2012, p. 101.
  20. PR Newswire 2011.
  21. 1 2 Brown, Mark (4 March 2020). "Joanna Lumley pays tribute to method acting forerunner Ellen Terry". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
  22. 1 2 "Joanna Lumley: Patron of the Barn Theatre". National Trust. Retrieved 7 July 2021.

Sources