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NewsletterNewsletter FebruaryFebruary 20162016 In This Issue • Chairman’s Letter P3 • The Floods P4 • New Writing P6 • Comedy Tonight P8 Vol.30Vol.30 No.1No.1 FebruaryFebruary 20162016 LTG Newsletter Vol .30 No.1 February 2016 Volume 30 No 1 February 2016 Tel: 01202 516260 11 The Carriages Mob: 07528 093908 Station Road The Little Theatre Guild represents Email: WARE 110 member theatres that control [email protected] SG12 9PL and manage their Theatre buildings. Tel: 01920 461715 Our members are all amateur theatre MILLER CENTRE THEATRE New email: [email protected] companies with an annual audience of Gail Bishop over 650,000 patrons, and a turnover 92 Godstone Road The New Year Book - Corrections of approximately £4 million. Visit us at Caterham www.littletheatreguild.org Surrey Editor Tom Williams reports: CR3 6RA Tel: 07763 727263 As usual mistakes are found as soon as Email: [email protected] publication happens. Grange Playhouse LTG Diary of Events details at the head of their entry should 13th February 2016 STUDIO THEATRE SALISBURY read - corrections in BOLD. I did not notice RELATIONSHIP MEETING Tim Greathead the changes in the copy sent to me. The Stoke on Trent Rep Theatre Thyme Cottage, 7 Newtown, header is so rarely changed! Broadchalke, THE GRANGE PLAYERS CENTRAL REGION 21st February 2016 Salisbury, Wiltshire. The Grange Players Ltd, Grange Playhouse, NATIONAL COMMITTEE MEETING SP5 5DS Broadway North, Walsall WS1 2QB, West Tel: 01722-780125 and 07968-129082. Midlands 8, 9, 10 April 2016 E-mail: [email protected]. T. 01922 625100 (Theatre) 07909 036835 NATIONAL CONFERENCE & AGM (Box Office) Crescent Theatre, Birmingham (February 2002 – from the Guild Email: [email protected] 70th Anniversary Conference Newsletter – Website: www.grangeplayers.co.uk “Will Guild Reps please imprint upon their 5, 6, 7 August 2016 conscious and sub-conscious that as, if and And the audience figures for the entry for NATIONAL COMMITTEE WEEKEND when they relinquish their position as Rep, Great Asby, Cumbria they really should notify the National Studio Theatre, Salisbury were missing; Secretary, both of their retirement and the correct entry is below – LTG Reps – Changes with full details of their successor. The Productions Seats sold % recent Year Book entries have contained And Then There BOURNEMOUTH LITTLE THEATRE information of new Reps that was totally Were None A Christie 775 86 Michael Bicknell new to her!”) Is It On The Trolley? V Wood 180 100 3 Fawley Green The Biscuit Tin B Barrett 244 68 Bournemouth Change of Address The Crucible A Miller 515 77 Dorset COMPANY OF PLAYERS, HERTFORD The 39 Steps P Barlow 540 100 BH8 0EU Barry Lee Lark Rise K Dewhurst 476 89 The LTG Website: Relationship Meetings 2016 It’s a long time since we held a sequence of Relationship Meetings It seems that the most popular use of the web site is to hit the around the regions, to get to know new personnel at theatres, to Productions Diary, which lists region by region the forthcoming discuss common problems, and to find out what it is that members productions across the Guild. This is compiled by Michael Shipley most want the Guild to help them achieve. from the information sent to him by LTG Reps, and the website is The invitations are being sent out to Reps, Chairmen, Secretaries and Treasurers, and indeed any interested parties. Board members updated on a monthly basis. There is no facility to log in with your will be attending. Theatres to host these meetings are currently information direct. So, please don’t complain to anyone except being canvassed by the regional secretaries. your Rep if your productions are NOT listed! The first of these ‘get-togethers’ is to be held atStoke on Trent Of course, important news for the front page can be sent direct Rep Theatre on Saturday 13th February, organized by Jackie to Andrew Lowrie, but don’t forget to include Michael Shipley in Blackwood. Delegates will assemble at 9:30 for 10:00am, and your email, or your news won’t appear in the Newsletter! the meeting will end by 1:00pm, to enable the hosts to open the An important word about passwords: every LTG Rep is entitled theatre for a matinee performance. More details are coming out shortly by email. to a password to access the backstage area of the site. If other As Stoke is on the border of Northern and Central Regions, it is departments of a member theatre want to access the site, they hoped that theatres in the vicinity from both regions will be able must firstly get clearance from their LTG Rep. It is not Guild policy to attend. to issue passwords to all and sundry! While on the topic of electronic media, the Guild Committee Stop Press - Globe Theatre Weekend for Youth feels that it would be of general value if each theatre member, The Guild is making plans for a Youth Weekend Course at when compiling the next return for the Year Book, were to include Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, Bankside, London. its Face Book and Twitter links. If we want to engage with the The dates will be 2nd to 4th September 2016, and the play to present generation of digital people, we need to engage with their be studied and seen is Macbeth. preferred media! Make a note of the date – further details will be sent out in due course. Little Theatre Guild of Great Britain www.littletheatreguild.org Newsletter Editor: Michael Shipley National Secretary: 121 Darwen Road Caroline Chapman Bromley Cross Satley House Bolton Satley Lancashire Near Bishop Auckland BL7 9BG County Durham Tel: 01204 304103 DL13 4HU Email: [email protected] Tel: 01388 730042 Email: [email protected] The contents of this newsletter are not necessarily the official views of the Little Theatre Guild. Contributions are always welcome. Last date for copy for the next issue: 15th April 2016. 2 LTG Newsletter Vol .30 No.1 February 2016 The New Patron update is that we are still actively in discussions and I would hope to have some news to Chairman’s Letter report soon – watch this space! Christmas 2015 has come and gone and I One area which I am keen we should embrace is the know chatting to a few member theatres how digital age and we all know that our communication busy a time it can be. The Christmas production via the internet and social media is growing rapidly. If is a vital income source for many and over the years it is interesting to see how theatres have this is (and we know it is) the way forward to engage more and grown their audiences to tap into this market with our audiences and membership then we should not ignore it. and change schedules to accommodate more I know from the various regional conferences I attended last year daytime matinees for example and capture schools and families that we are all moving towards more and more digital marketing in December. In the very competitive world of chasing box office and online campaigns. I fully appreciate that the LTG profile and income if we can be more flexible in terms of scheduling I am sure communication could be improved via our Twitter and Facebook new opportunities exist. This would be a good conference topic. pages and it would be good to have a dedicated person to assist boost our presence on these platforms – is that person you? If so So what will 2016 bring ? For the LTG this is a big birthday year drop me an email and we can chat. The website is being used more, – 70 years young. The information will soon be sent about the which is good, and we are building in a session at the national National Conference to be held 8th – 10th April at the Crescent conference for feedback and ideas for improvement. Our statistics Theatre, Birmingham. It will be a great weekend not only to show the Northern Region use the website most – well done! I was celebrate the wonderful history of the Guild but look forward to also interested to note that at Questors Theatre young members embrace the future. At this early stage my thanks to those who run computer knowledge courses for mature members! are organising this event. Engaging with Youth Groups/Leaders is still an area we are Of course some of our member theatres, particularly in the North, enthusiastic to explore. Kevin Spence is actively pursuing this on the new year was a devastating time as they suffered from the our behalf and would hope to have some details to be circulated appalling wet weather with the subsequent flooding. Hebden Bridge soon. Kevin mentioned a few ideas at the last National Committee and Todmorden have been particularly badly affected and both have Meeting which he is investigating. sustained water damage to their buildings and equipment. I have spoken directly to both theatres and expressed the support from Another area which I have had a few phone calls recently about everyone at the LTG and offer of help were we can. Both theatres was assessments for stage fight scenes. Michael Shipley did a are working hard to get back to normal as soon as possible and very good piece in a previous Newsletter about stage fighting, and with a gritty spirit to continue their planned seasons. This is quite Tom Williams contributes to this Newsletter. A few theatres were remarkable when you see the pictures of the damage caused by unaware that fight scenes do need to be risk assessed and should the flooding but illustrates the sheer determination we all have that be rehearsed by the actors before every performance as it is likely the show must go on! that your insurance company will expect this.