Signed in as:
filler@godaddy.com
CONSTANCE SMEDLEY
Constance Smedley was born in 1876 in Birmingham to a wealthy family. Her parents considered that it was their duty to provide their children with ‘the best instruction obtainable in anything for which they showed aptitude’. Constance studied at the Birmingham Art School before deciding to become a writer and a journalist.
To pursue her career, she moved to London in 1902 and joined the Women Writers’ Club, which aimed to help its members with their career. However, Constance thought that the Writers’ Club was not providing what its members really needed. She put a proposal to the Club’s committee but her suggestions were rejected.
With the help of a group of friends, she decided to launch her own club with the ambition to create an international network of clubs across the world. The life of the Club started in the family flat at 129 Ashley Gardens, Thirleby Road, behind Westminster Cathedral, but very soon Constance’s father saw the impracticality of such an arrangement and offered to help secure a venue if Constance could attract enough members.
The inauguration of the Lyceum Club for women at 128 Piccadilly, in the middle of the men’s “Clubland”, on the 20thJune of 1904, was a remarkable achievement and did not go unnoticed.
After her marriage to Maxwell Amfield, the couple moved to the Cotswolds and started to work on theatre projects. Following the success of their ‘Pageant of Progress’ in 1911, they created the Cotswold Players’ Company, which toured the village halls of Gloucestershire. The theatre company still exists nowdays and has its performance venue in Stroud.
Later Constance and Maxwell launched a new approach to theatre performance (combining music, dance, rhythm and movement into theatre) and created the Greenleaf Theatre in London. They went touring in the US for seven years, opening theatres and promoting their performance methods. On their return to the UK, they shared their time between London and the Cotswolds. Constance continued to write and over her life she published more than 40 books and papers (fiction, children’ books, plays, journalistic articles).
Constance’s personality was very inspiring for women. The creation of the Lyceum Club is a remarkable achievement for a young disabled lady. Indeed from her early age, Constance needed the support of crutches to be able to walk. However, her health deteriorated in her 30s, forcing her to use a wheelchair. Constance remained the Honorary Secretary of the Club until her failing health made this impossible.
Despite her disability, which she avoided mentioning when possible, she was known for being lively, full of energy, inquisitive and always seeking to explore new fields. She was a feminist, a suffragist and an internationalist who showed concern for other people.
Constance Smedley died in 1941 and is buried in West Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, UK.