‘The only place of amusement where a happy evening may be spent’: The Lydia Howarde Troupe

Abstract

I aim today to bring you face to face with a name, a person, you might never have heard of – Lydia Howarde. Through Lydia Howarde and her theatrical Troupe I hope to challenge some of the perceptions you may have of the nineteenth century theatrical experience in colonial New Zealand and of the role leading females played in this experience.