The early residents of the Suburb first began to stage plays in 1908, just one year after the foundation of the Suburb itself. In 1910 they performed a large-scale outdoor pageant: The Masque of Fairthorpe, an allegory about the creation of the Suburb. This and other pageants were organised by a committee, which in 1920 formed itself into The Play and Pageant Union, with Henrietta Barnett as its first President. In 1966 this society merged with another Suburb group, the Speedwell Players, to form the Hampstead Garden Suburb Dramatic Society. In 1992 the group adopted its present name, Garden Suburb Theatre.
The group stages five productions a year of plays of all types and from all eras. Members range in age from six to ninety plus. At least one performance each year incorporates a large number of children in the cast, reflecting the early origins of community involvement. Likewise, the summer production is performed in the much loved amphitheatre in Little Wood tucked between Oakwood Road and Denman Drive, harking back to the pageants performed by the Play & Pageant Union.
For GST’s growing digital archive see The Garden Suburb Theatre digital archive, and for its current activities see The Garden Suburb Theatre
