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CHESHAM THEATRE COMPANY NEWSLETTER, JUNE 2010
Dear CTC member/friend/supporter
Please forgive your committee if you've felt a bit left out of the loop of late. By way of amends, here is a round-up of recent events and future plans for 2010.
If you would like us to change the email address we have for you, or if you have any feedback about this newsletter, please contact Stella at stellapearson@tiscali.co.uk
January
On Saturday 30th January, 32 revellers braved the cold to attend a Burns Night party at 'The Temp' (The Temperance Hall, aka The Little Theatre by the Park). Disaster loomed when committee members, arriving early to set up the tables and prepare the meal, found the hall unheated. The boiler's pilot light, inaccessible in a locked cupboard, had gone out, and the only hall trustee who could be contacted had forgotten the combination of the padlock! Helpers hurried home to fetch an assortment of fan and convector heaters, around which arriving guests huddled in their outdoor clothes. A telephoned threat to break the boiler door open jogged the trustee's memory, the heating was restored, and the day was saved. Cheered by a tot of whiskey, the guests went on to enjoy a meal of haggis, tatties and neeps, followed by cranachan and shortbread, and a ceilidh comprising songs, recitations, stories and Scottish country dancing.
March
For the third successive year, we presented three one-act comedies in the 'Supper Theatre' format at The Temp. This Spring's offerings, performed on March 25th to 28th, comprised The Tangled Web by Richard Need, directed by Diana Robinson, A Mad Summer Night's Dream by Will Shakespeare, directed by Mike Consden, and The Proposal by Anton Chekhov, directed by Frank Harling. Thursday's private charity performance for Chesham Rotary Club, and the Friday and Saturday evening shows, sold out in advance, while the Sunday matinee (a first for CTC) was 70% full. Altogether, around 330 people saw the show, which made a useful profit to bolster our reserves.
Picture galleries of all three plays can be viewed on this website.
May
Our Annual General Meeting, attended by about 30 members and friends, was held at the Temp on Monday 10th May. The accounts for 2009-10 were approved by the members, the 'bottom lines' being as follows:
| Total income | £3,428.35 |
| Operating expenditure | £2,963.18 |
| Capital expenditure | £766.09 |
| Total funds at 1-4-2010 | £8,971.40 |
The following officers and committee were duly elected: Mike Consden (Chairman), Stella Pearson (Honorary Secretary), Paul Eckersall (Treasurer), Steve Cherry, Peter Larkham, Bill Templeton, Judith Watsham.
The meeting approved the outgoing committee's proposal to keep the standard subscription rate at £40 for 2010-11, and to charge the new committee with reviewing subscription practice in local amateur drama groups and presenting proposals for a more flexible subscription structure to the 2011 AGM. The proceedings ended with the presentation of a Certificate of Life Membership to Steve Cherry, in recognition of his many years of distinguished service to the company.
June
CTC manned our stall all day on Sat 12th June in Lowndes Park for the Schools of Chesham Carnival. We handed out flyers for our forthcoming 'pubs tour' and Allo Allo, took a few contact details for the mailing list, and had an 'Aunt Sally' board for throwing wet sponges at both members of the public and loyal CTC members. A great attraction which raises some much needed funds and publicity. Thank you to loyal CTC members who set up, manned, got wet, and took down. We'd love to see other members support this fun annual event next year.
Our summer outdoor event this year took the form of a 20-minute version of
A Mad Summer Night's Dream which we performed at a few Chesham pubs and one village fête in late June.
Admission was free, the quaffing public quaffed and laffed, and it was a bold way to publicise CTC to new audiences. And where else could the cast have handled the delights of dogs with a dislike of armour and ‘Walls’, projecting the voice outside with an energetic breeze and no mics? Not to mention variable performance spaces with audiences on all sides, and the occasional punter walking right through the action, oblivious to Pyramus and Thisbe in their passion!
Autumn Production
Our big-stage production at The Elgiva this autumn will be
An Evening with 'Allo, 'Allo, directed by Helen Salisbury. The show will run from Wed 10th to Sat 13th November, and full details will be available on our website after the summer break.