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Chatham, on the Medway in North Kent, was one of several towns and cities to undertake performances of the Mayflower Pageant written by the Rev. Hugh Parry (which you can learn more about here). Like many early twentieth-century pageants, Parry’s “Mayflower” involved hundreds of volunteer performers, as well as armies of costume and prop makers, set designers and stage hands. Committees for organising personnel and finance also had to be formed. This made putting on a pageant a huge undertaking for any community.
By all accounts, Chatham’s effort was a triumphant success. The pageant was staged in the stately Town Hall and involved 250 performers, most of whom acted their parts admirably – bar one or two – “not more” – who “seemed a little uncertain of their words and their cue”. The costumes were deemed “historically correct” and the staging was effective. The singers, from the choirs of the Free Churches, were also praised. Performances ran over a period of days, with two matinees on Saturday and Wednesday.