Vignette 115: The second oldest theatre guild in South Australia

In 1938 Dr Thomas Draper Campbell, the Dean of the Faculty of Dentistry, suggested the founding of the University’s Theatre Guild as an organisation for drama and performance.

It was a time when the film industry was booming, and Adelaide, with a population of just 325,000, was struggling to attract commercial theatre productions from interstate and overseas. 

During this period, the government subsidised theatre with a program of innovative and intelligent drama—which played an important role in the growth of the Australian performance art industry. The University Guild continues to produce a combination of international and Australian classic plays, as well as experimental contemporary theatre and new Australian works.

For its first two decades, Guild performances largely took place in a converted chemistry laboratory called The Hut. In 1958 it moved to the larger Union Hall, and its current home is the Little Theatre, which opened in 1974. The Guild performances have become an integral part of University life for thousands of students and staff, as well as a vital link to the broader community.

Some stories can only be told with live actors and audience, offering both new perspectives and encouraging society to question what is and what could be. As the second oldest theatre company in South Australia, the Theatre Guild boasts a legacy of meaningful dramatic theatre, while moving forward with contemporary relevance.

The University of Adelaide: 150 Years of Making History.  Providing a place. p.157