| This study investigates the activities of professional touring and resident companies (exclusive of summer stock and festival organizations) operating in Ontario during a period in which professional theatre underwent a profound transformation. At the time of the First World War, professional theatre in the province was supplied mainly by imported American and British touring companies, except for a small group of Ontario-based independent troupes touring rural Ontario. However, by 1967, when Canada celebrated its centennial, Ontario could boast of its own professional theatre; in fact, it had become a vital, indigenous cultural industry consisting of at least two internationally recognized festivals, strong community theatre organizations in several cities, wide-spread summer stock activities, an energetic alternative theatre movement, university and college theatre programmes and a host of new or refurbished buildings for the performing arts. Over the period, theatre in Ontario also produced a steady flow of performers who achieved stardom, not only at home but also on the stages and screens of the world.; Analyzing a wide range of materials related to professional theatre activities over the period, this study traces the effects of the decline of the continental touring system, first in the concomitant rise in foreign-based resident troupes and amateur organizations and subsequently in the increase of home-grown companies, especially in the post-World War II era. While acknowledging the pitfalls of this narrative approach, this historical study reveals some of the main cultural influences that led to the establishment of an indigenous professional theatre in the province: chief among them was an increased sense of national identity which impelled practitioners to work for a theatre of their own. The study also explores the allied topics of government support of the arts and censorship and their place in maintaining the nationalistic imperatives of the cultural elite. Attention is directed to women and others who struggle to be heard from the margins of mainstream culture. The study concludes with the question whether the indigenous professional community will, in the future, address the theatre's various competing and sometimes conflicting interests. |
