Percy Anderson

Percy Anderson (1851 – 30 October 1928) was an English stage designer and painter, best known for his work for the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree's company at His Majesty’s Theatre and Edwardian musical comedies.

Beginning with The Yeomen of the Guard (1888), Anderson designed the costumes for all the original productions of the Savoy Operas. He continued to design costumes for D'Oyly Carte revivals in the early twentieth century, including for Trial by Jury, H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance, Patience, Iolanthe, Princess Ida, Ruddigore, The Yeomen of the Guard, and The Gondoliers. For Herbert Beerbohm Tree at His Majesty's Theatre, Anderson designed Twelfth Night, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Richard II, King John, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Tempest, and two plays by Stephen Phillips, Herod and Ulysses.

Among Anderson's other successes were Kismet (1911) and Chu Chin Chow (1916) for Oscar Asche, Trelawny of the 'Wells' by Pinero, Véronique (1904), Merrie England (1902) and Fallen Fairies (1909) at the Savoy, and productions of musical comedies for George Edwardes. He designed the costumes for Henry James’s ill-fated theatrical effort, Guy Domville; The Times was not impressed by either the play or the costumes. He designed the costumes for the hit musical San Toy in 1899, The Duchess of Dantzic in 1903, and the hit British premiere of The Merry Widow in 1907 and for many successful musicals. The Royal Opera House also commissioned Anderson to design costumes in 1900. Anderson's designs were also used in a number of Broadway productions.