From the time it was established in the 1960’s, there was no question that the Theatre Guild (TG) Playhouse was going to be instrumental in shaping and promoting the development of the creative arts industry in the years to come.
In fact, it is argued that this very theatre, in the 60s, was responsible for the development and efficient training of all those who longed to play a role in the local world of drama. This was achieved through workshops, productions, competitions, particularly playwriting competitions, and scholarships.
In 1966, it was actually performances from three prize winning playwrights which cemented TG as, not only being a huge success, but an irreplaceable platform in Guyana’s culture. Audiences came in the thousands to witness these plays, even if it was or wasn’t patriotic to Guyana’s Independence.
The plays were “Dhanwattie” by John Campbell, a suspenseful recreation of one of Guyana’s most sensational ritual murders; “Fo’ Bettin’ or Worse” by Sheila King, an amusing tale of matrimonial double crossing; and “The Dead Son,” the first prize-winner by Victor Ramraj, a well-constructed play with some fine characterization. There were two other Guyanese plays during the year – “Guyana Legend” by Ricardo Smith, a full length musical play, and Jan Carew’s “University of Hunger,” a hard-hitting, brittle work about a jail break. The year’s children’s production was “Toad of Toad Hall”, a brilliant fantasy, well-acted and beautifully costumed.
The other two adult productions were Bertolt Brecht’s “Three penny Opera,” and “Send Me No Flowers,” an American comedy. “Three penny Opera” was a fine mixture of international talents.
The opera was written by the satirist, Brecht, and the music by Kurt Weill, both of whom were Germans. The opera was adopted from the English 18th Century “Beggars Opera.” The Theatre Guild production changed the setting from London’s Soho to Georgetown’s own Tiger Bay district by Frank Pilgrim and Peter Anderson, sharpening Brecht’s satirical barbs for Guyanese audiences. Along with the actors, it was noted that the Playhouse’s activities included performances by the Woodside Choir, the Theatre Guild Dance Group, the Pelicans Steel Band, the Symphony Orchestrations and crowds of children.
Although the beginning of theatre in the 19th Century Georgetown was European, in the early 20th Century, a new African and Indian Guyanese middle-class theatre emerged. In the 1950s, there was an explosion of an ethnically diverse and socially committed theatre.
Despite an economic depression, there was a struggle to maintain theatre post-1980, however, pull through it did.
The Theatre Guild has represented and highlighted the many talents of Guyanese throughout the years, through dance, musical rendition and playwrights. Serious repertory theatre was highlighted here as well.
Not surprisingly, it was once described as the most vital theatre in the Caribbean region. The activities that TG created was a product of annual satirical spectacular (now known as the Link Show).
Over the years, TG has impacted persons that possess creative and entertaining ideas and educational and social benefits. The activities of the Theatre Guild were evident in the scope of skills, knowledge and stagecraft which impacted and were acquired by the thousands of volunteers who participated in the making of legendary theatre in Guyana. Much talent has come to fore through the TG’s program of molding youths with the enthusiasm.
One commentator wrote that the Theatre Guild: “Brought people like Errol Hill from Trinidad and Derek Walcott, a St. Lucian working out of Trinidad. So Theatre Guild was like a theatre university, because you had people from all over the world. You had people from Canada, from America, from the rest of the Caribbean, from England, from certain parts of Europe.
We had people from India; we had people from Australia even. So, my early groundings and learning was as if I was attending university.”
Though the Theatre Guild had been faced with neglect and decline in the late 20th Century, it was said to have tried at a brief attempt at revival during the years 1994 to 1996. With the aid of the public and private sectors, TG was up and running by 2003. The TG board of officials concluded that the migration of their community of young talents was the reason for its 
neglect and decline.
The Theatre Guild Inc. also went on to state that, “the active membership and with them the activities sponsored by the TG began to dwindle in spite of the efforts and talent of the small group of people who remained committed to the arts in Guyana. The playhouse building began to fall into disrepair.” As a means of reviving its function, the Theatre Guild has been making use of its outdoor garden theatre, known as the Eucalyptus Garden Theatre. The stage of the Eucalyptus Garden Theatre is a perfect circle, the audience is seated around it, coliseum style; and all of this is settled softly in a beautiful therapeutic garden behind the Guild’s Playhouse in Kingston. The Garden Theatre is available to rent for private and corporate gatherings, charity fundraisers, wedding receptions and other special events. Notwithstanding its agedness, the Theatre Guild has been the recipient of many outstanding awards. It was awarded the Memory of Service Award, the Icon of Arts Award, the Lifetime Award, current Consistent Service to the Guild by a Non-Guild Member and the Consistent Coverage of the Arts in the Media.
The theatre functions today as a stage for local play productions from schools and other sectors.
