Canterbury Theatre Guild

Canterbury Theatre Guild was formed in 1977 following a request from Canterbury Municipal Council as part of its 150 year celebrations. Members of the dormant Lakemba Musical Society were contacted and the group, led by Nancy Chapman and Reg and Lillian Seymour, reformed as The Canterbury Theatre Guild (incorporating Lakemba Musical Society) with Tony Stevens as President.

From its first concert, Christmas Night, in December 1978, Canterbury Theatre Guild has put on a lot of wonderful shows and introduced many people to the delights of musical theatre. Of particular note are the Australian Amateur Premieres of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (July 1985), Chess (November 1994) and the Sydney Amateur Premieres of The Buddy Holly Story (2006) and Hairspray (2012).

CTG's first home was at Kingsgrove North High School. In 1981 the Guild acquired the use of the disused Orion Centre in Campsie as a home, with rehearsals held in the old foyer and sets built and stored in the old stalls.

In 1984, the Orion Centre was renovated and reopened with CTG's production of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. By then the company had grown in stature and was developing a reputation for excellence. The move back into the refurbished Orion Centre lifted CTG again, as did the acquiring of The Shed as a scenery workshop and storage space.
In 1999, CTG moved to a new home at the Princess Street Theatre and continued to produce high quality shows there until the end of 2003. Since then, CTG has performed at various venues including the Tom Mann Theatre, Canterbury Hurlstone Park RSL, Trinity Grammar, Revesby Workers Club, Casula Powerhouse, and Bexley RSL.

After many years as CTGs rehearsal and storage space, Canterbury Bowling Club provided the setting for CTGs acclaimed staging of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee in 2013.

CTG is currently assisting Canterbury City Council with the running of the former Bowling Club, to help support the performing arts in the community. CTG appreciates the ongoing support of Canterbury City Council, and their support for the arts in the community.