Theatre poster for the Town Hall, Birmingham, for Wednesday evening, 12th May 1852, when the "amateur company of the Guild of Literature and Art" will perform Bulwer Lytton's new comedy "Not so Bad as We Seem" The cast includes Charles Dickens, Wilkie Collins and John Tenniel. This is to be followed by "Mr. Nightingale's Diary," a farce by Charles Dickens and Mark Lemon, both of whom figure in the cast, along with Wilkie Collins and others. Dickens is also the stage manager. The Guild referred to above is intended, among other worthy aims, "To encourage Life Assurance and other Provident habits among Authors and Artists." 12th May 1852