Independent Theatre
History
History
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The society was named for London's [Independent Theatre Society](/wiki/Independent_Theatre_Society "Independent Theatre Society") founded by [J. T. Grein](/wiki/J._T._Grein "J. T. Grein") and was one of several amateur drama groups of high standard which sprang up in Sydney in the 1930s to fill the gap left by the closure of all but two professional theatres (the last spoken\-word theatre to close was The [Criterion theatre](/wiki/Criterion_Theatre_%28Sydney%29 "Criterion Theatre (Sydney)") in 1936, leaving only the Tivoli, which ran [vaudeville](/wiki/Vaudeville "Vaudeville"), and the [Theatre Royal](/wiki/Theatre_Royal%2C_Sydney "Theatre Royal, Sydney"), which played musicals and ballets). The range of plays essayed was impressive – from classics to avant\-garde pieces, from recent [West End](/wiki/West_End_theatre "West End theatre") and [Broadway](/wiki/Broadway_theatre "Broadway theatre") successes (sometimes the Australian premiere) to offerings from local dramatists. The death of Doris Fitton's co\-producer [Peter Summerton](/wiki/Peter_Summerton "Peter Summerton") in 1969 put extra strain on her deteriorating health, and with no\-one able or willing to fill her shoes, the Independent closed in 1977\.

In the 1990s, in serious disrepair, the theatre, Sydney's oldest, was bought by [Rodney Seaborn](/wiki/Rodney_Seaborn "Rodney Seaborn")'s Seaborn, Broughton \& Walford Foundation, and reopened in 1998\. In 2004 it was acquired by the [Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust](/wiki/Australian_Elizabethan_Theatre_Trust "Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust").

 the Independent Theatre operates in [North Sydney](/wiki/North_Sydney%2C_New_South_Wales "North Sydney, New South Wales"), in the building opened as the Coliseum Theatre in 1939, run by [Wenona School](/wiki/Wenona_School "Wenona School").


Who was J. T. Grein and what role did he play in theatre?