Although lasting only two and a half years, Edward Gordon Craig’s engagement with the Purcell Operatic Society was his most consistent and productive period of work on the stage. This article re-examines this time during Craig’s life in order to ascertain why he saw it to be the zenith of his career. In particular, it analyzes his work with the amateur group to argue that it was foundational in the development of his approach to theatre-making and, further, helped him to introduce the entity of theatre director to Britain and what the role of such a person could be. By examining this material in relation to wider contextual factors, the article also shows how the group offered audiences an alternative to the dominant ‘star’ system of the early 1900s. The article thus indicates why Craig scholarship needs to place the Purcell Operatic Society at the centre of any of its discussions. Philippa Burt is a lecturer in Theatre and Performance at Goldsmiths, University of London. Her recent publications include the chapter ‘American Invasions’ in The Cambridge Companion to British Theatre of the First World War (forthcoming, September 2022), as well as articles on Harley Granville Barker and Joan Littlewood in New Theatre Quarterly and Theatre, Dance, and Performer Training.

虽然只持续了两年半，但爱德华·戈登·克雷格与珀塞尔歌剧协会的合作是他在舞台上最稳定和最富有成效的时期。本文重新审视了克雷格一生中的这段时间，以确定他为什么认为这是他职业生涯的顶峰。特别是，它分析了他与业余团体的工作，认为这对他的戏剧制作方法的发展奠定了基础，并进一步帮助他将戏剧导演的实体介绍到英国，以及这样一个人的作用可能。通过结合更广泛的背景因素研究这些材料，本文还展示了该组织如何为观众提供替代 1900 年代初期占主导地位的“明星”系统的替代方案。因此，这篇文章指出了为什么克雷格奖学金需要将珀塞尔歌剧院协会置于其任何讨论的中心。Philippa Burt 是伦敦大学金史密斯学院戏剧与表演系的讲师。她最近的出版物包括“美国入侵”一章第一次世界大战英国剧院的剑桥指南（即将出版，2022 年 9 月），以及《新剧院季刊》和《剧院、舞蹈和表演者培训》中有关 Harley Granville Barker 和 Joan Littlewood 的文章。