Courtice Pounds

Charles Courtice Pounds (30 May 1862 – 21 December 1927), better known by the stage name Courtice Pounds, was an English singer and actor known for his performances in the tenor roles of the Savoy Operas with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company and his later roles in Shakespeare plays and Edwardian musical comedies.

As a young member of D'Oyly Carte, Pounds played tenor leads in New York and on tour in Britain and continental Europe. After being promoted to principal tenor at the Savoy Theatre, he created the principal tenor roles in The Yeomen of the Guard, The Gondoliers, The Nautch Girl and Haddon Hall. After leaving the D'Oyly Carte company, Pounds was a prominent performer during the transition of light musical theatre from comic opera to musical comedy, creating roles in the West End in both genres between the 1890s and the 1920s. The new musical comedies in which he starred included the hits Chu Chin Chow and Lilac Time.

Life and career

Early years

Pounds was born in Pimlico, London, the son of Charles Pounds, a builder, and his wife Mary Curtice, a well-known singer. He was educated at St. Mark's College, Chelsea. Pounds was a choirboy at St. Saviour's Church, Pimlico, and also sang at St. Stephen's Church, Kensington, and the Italian Church, Hatton Garden. When his voice broke, he went to work for his father, but continued to study music. He studied at the Royal Academy of Music and returned to St. Stephen's as tenor soloist. He also sang in variety at the Royal Aquarium theatre.

Courtice

Courtice (/ˈkɜːr.tɪs/) is a community in Ontario, Canada, about sixty kilometers east of Toronto, adjacent to Oshawa and west of Bowmanville in the Municipality of Clarington. Courtice Road (Durham Road 34) connects with Highway 401 at Interchange 425, providing arterial access to the community. Darlington Provincial Park is located just south of Courtice.

Geography

The area is bounded by Townline Rd. on the west, Hancock Rd. on the east, Pebblestone Rd. on the north and Highway 401 on the south. It is geographically contiguous with populated parts of the neighbouring city of Oshawa, but separated by a band of rural wilderness from other populated parts of Clarington; accordingly, in the Canada 2011 Census, Courtice was counted as part of the population centre of Oshawa rather than that of Bowmanville/Newcastle.

History