History of the Attleborough Players
The following written by Neil.K.F.Loveday contains information derived from Old Players Meetings Minutes and Personal Records with adapted extracts from "Commitment and Arrogance" by David Brewer.
When we are asked about our pastimes and extracurricular activities, we invariably say we are involved with 'Amateur Dramatics' . The Oxford Dictionary describes 'Amateur' as "A person who engages in a pursuit as a pastime rather than a profession". To enjoy what he or she is doing is the main requisite of the amateur performer and then this will be transmitted to the audience and will enhance their enjoyment of your efforts.
The purpose of this narrative is to record the history of the Attleborough Players, for the origins of which we must go back to the immediate post war period. A group of local people, including Vi Loveday (mother of Neil) got together to form a dramatic group which had limited success and which struggled on for a number of years until finally winding up during the sixties. At some time along the way one of their members had been a member of the Toc H organisation and the group became associated with them and as a result they were renamed the 'Toc H Players'. For those of you who are unaware of the significance of 'Toc H, this was a Christian fellowship set up after World War one and named after Talbot House an establishment in Beleidin. The word TOC is the old phonetic symbol for T, hence TOC H for Talbot House. When the group finally folded there was some money still left in their accounts and when the Attleborough Players were formed at the start of the seventies this money was bequeathed to them to help give them a start. In fact, some of the old Toc H members were also founder members of the new group, so it could be said that there was a degree of continuity from the old organisation to the new.
In addition to the ‘Toc H Players’ during the Fifties a certain Babs Francis and her husband also produced Pantomimes with the name of their group being Attleborough Junior Players. It was with this group that I made my stage debut in February 1954. This group folded sometime in the middle to late Fifties but Babs was to revive her musical shows in 1969. (See later note re Connaught Hall)
- The Beginning
- Progress
- Connaught Hall
- Pantomine
- Coming Together
- 1981 to date
- It's production progress was followed by Radio Norfolk (Presenter - Roy Waller had requested local groups to contact Radio Norfolk if they were doing a pantomime) and the Players were selected as one to be followed.
- The usual Saturday Matinee was completely bought out by the East Coast Truckers for a charitable performance that was attended by the Mayor/Mayoress of Great Yarmouth and of Attleborough also Radio Norfolk Presenter Wally Webb and his wife.
- An extra Saturday Matinee performance had to be run.
- Backstage
- In the Community
- Commitee
- Conclusion
The following is an extract from the Annual Report read at a meeting of the players on 17th April 1972 :-
'Following on the "What's On In Attleborough" Meeting , a group got together for play-readings. Early last year, it was decided to enter the Norwich Fringe Festival, which took place in May. The play chosen was "The Fish"'.
From this we can deduce the new Attleborough Players gave their first performance (a One Act Play) in May 1971.
Meetings were held in members' houses, Attleborough Primary School and occasionally in local hostelries as the Players at that time had no real place that they could call home. The first 3-Act production a play called "The Blue Goose" by Peter Blackmore was due to be performed at the start of 1972 however with the power strikes etc at the time it did not occur until the 7th and 8th April 1972 when it was performed in the Attleborough High School (which at that time was still a Secondary Modern School). There were no real plans to follow this up and the group continued to meet to have play readings and discussions without having any real idea of the way ahead and it was in May 1973 before the next production "Among Those Present" by Aubrey Feist took to the stage at the Hoveton Fringe Festival with a somewhat "if it can happen it will" result. Finally somebody had the notion that it was time to bring in some professional help. The Norfolk County Council drama advisor to the education department at that time was a gentleman called David Dixon and to this somewhat eccentric but highly experienced person went the cry for help and I think it is true to say that from that moment on the Players never looked back. He discussed with the group their problems and aims and made some very positive suggestions as to the way to go, at the same time agreeing to mastermind the next two or three productions. All this happened towards the end of 1973 and as Christmas was approaching he suggested that it might be good experience for the group to visit a local retirement home and to entertain the residents with seasonal songs, poems and readings. This the group did most successfully and it gave the members all the confidence to display their 'talents' once again to a wider and possibly ticket buying audience.
But what to go for as a first step ? David said we should walk before we ran and should choose something simple which was easy to stage and not too difficult to perform. In the event it was decided to present "Maria Marten OR Murder in the Red Barn" by Brian J. Burton. This popular old Victorian melodrama based on a true story also had almost local connections as the grisly events portrayed all took place not far away, at Polstead in Suffolk. Victorian melodrama gives actors a chance to 'go over the top', with flowing gestures and lots of dramatic action, coupled with the flowery speech of the age and we made the most of it, all under the direction of Mr. Dixon. He proved to be a hard taskmaster and instilled a discipline into all of us that has never been forgotten. He worked us hard at rehearsals, which were continued to be held at the Primary School, until we were word perfect and knew all our moves. One of his tricks was to sit us all round a table for a word rehearsal which we then had to do at breakneck speed without hardly drawing a breath, but if anyone faltered or fluffed a line we had to go back to the beginning and start over again! Needless to say, we were word perfect very quickly. The performances were staged in the main hall of the High School (at that time we couldn't afford the Connaught Hall) and were well received by the audiences. A reviewer in the local paper made the following comment:
"David Dixon's direction hit just the right note and the cast held it from beginning to end, never for a moment dropping the ranting style for which the play was written. one knew too, that they were making fun of it but only just" Note that our admission charges for this production were 30p and 15p! This production required a somewhat large cast but this proved to be a favour as many of those who joined to take part stayed with the group for several years.
Flushed with success the group were next presented with a real challenge. David decided to produce "She Stoops to Conquer" by Oliver Goldsmith, again at the High School, in December 1974. This was quite a complex costume comedy of misunderstandings which involved a great deal of hard work as timing was of paramount importance in many of the moves. Again from the local press review at the time which was headed "Success With Bold Choice" and read: "It took the Attleborough Players some time to find their feet after entering the arena of local amateur dramatics a couple of years ago, but their latest production demonstrated how far they have come." Our admission charges by this time had been increased to the princely sums of 35p and 20p!
And so the group was off and running and ready for anything. It now met on a regular basis for workshops and training and participated in the Breckland Drama Festival (BDF) at Thetford in 1975 (entering a Drama "Incident" by David Campton and a Comedy "Trevor" by John Bowen) and won the award for Best Comedy. This success prompted the Players to perform both plays that had been entered to an Attleborough audience and for this came the move to a new venue, the Connaught Hall.
At this point just a few words about the Connaught Hall which has been the Players' adopted home for many years. During the Second World War, American bombers were stationed at Old Buckenham but the aircrews and ground personnel were lodged in Attleborough. The original community hall (or Public Hall as it was commonly known) was erected on what is now the car park of the existing hall and it was used as an AngloAmerican club (the purpose for which it was built). The basic structure of the hall as we know it now was opened in 1969 the first production being an Olde Tyme Music Hall to which the public was admitted free of charge. This event was devised and organised by a Mrs. Babs Francis, who with her husband was largely instrumental in getting the new hall built.
Babs ran a concert party group called The Nomads and periodically a musical revue type show was presented at the hall, consisting of songs, sketches and dance routines plus a lot of humour from local talent ! This group ran side by side with the Players and in fact some members belonged to both groups. (see later Coming Together)
The next play in October 1975, "Two Stars for Comfort " by John Mortimer, deserves special mention because producer David Dixon decided to repeat the format he had used with the One Act plays “Trevor” and “Incident” when they had been performed at the Connaught Hall the previous May. The performance was held on the floor of the hall with the audience on the stage ! It seemed to work very well as there were still small audiences for straight plays, and the stage had ample room for the paying public, however there were problems, not the least of which was listening for entrance cues from the hall for the cast who were waiting to enter from the foyer!
It was an experience that the Players have never tempted to repeat.
At this point the players ventured into a different realm of theatre, that of the Pantomime.
Performed in January 1976 "Dick Whittington is a Little Late This Year" was an original new version, of an old favourite, written specially for the group with original songs and music by a gentleman named David Caine and the musical accompaniment was supplied by the South Norfolk Youth Symphonic Band under the direction of Mike Booty.
This pantomime set a precedent and has become a tradition of the Players which has continued until the present with only a break in 1978 (when a Children's Play was performed) and in 1979 (when owing to illness and financial problems there was no Winter production). It was the first time that the group showed its' vocal talents and from this gained the confidence to develop the musical side. It was also a stage (no pun intended) when the audience began to fill the hall and so the group knew just how it felt to look at a sea of faces stretching to the back of the hall , instead of the first four rows which it had been used to. This also seemed to be an indication of the sort of entertainment that the local public wanted.
Appearance in the BDF in April 1976 (Terry White-won Best Actor) was followed in September by "When We Are Married" by J.B.Priestley, a sophisticated comedy involving the use of northern accents. The small audiences were very disappointing, although those that did come seemed to enjoy the efforts and the local review commented that the production "Overall Was Thoroughly Enjoyable and Deserving of a Larger Audience". Rehearsals followed for the the next pantomime (another David Caine new version of an oldie) "Jack and the Beanstalk" which was performed in January 1977. In April 1977 the Players made their most successful appearance in the BDF when the group won all the awards. (Best Comedy - "The Devil in Summer" by Michael Faure, Best Drama - "Riders to the Sea" by J.M.Synge, Best Actress - Mary Whattam, Best Actor - David Bailey). Autumn of 1977 saw the players produce Relatively Speaking and followed this with rehearsals for "The Incredible Vanishing" a childrens play by Denise Coffey. This was performed in January 1978, and was the only time the Players were to perform anything but a pantomime for its’ Winter production. Once again in Spring 1978 the Players had success at the BDF when they won Best Comedy ("None the Wiser" by Anthony Booth) and Best Actress (Mary Whattam). The next production in 1978 was in the Autumn, a drama "The House of Bernarda Alba" by Frederico Garcia Lorca. However owing to financial and illness problems there was no Winter Production 1979 and the next productions happened in quick succession. In May 1979 “Sailor Beware” by Philip King and Falkland Cary and in June 1979 the players entered 2 One Act Plays in the BDF, followed by "Blithe Spirit" by Noel Coward in the Autumn of 1979. Finances improved and the Players were back on track. 1980 started with a panto in January, "Fun On Treasure Island", a double bill of festival plays followed in May, and then came a production in October which was the beginning of a new era for the Players.
The production was "Oh What A Lovely War" and as the numbers needed for this event were quite considerable it was decided to approach Babs and her group the Nomads to join in doing this show. As a result Babs became the musical director for the show and as she had been a professional performer in her earlier days she was able to bring great expertise which was of considerable benefit to all. This was a very complex show involving lots of World War One songs, projected slides on to a screen above the stage and all the players taking many different parts, both solo and chorus. This was a tremendous challenge and thought to be one of the best efforts that the players have ever produced. In fact the press review in the Norfolk and Suffolk Journal of October 1980 read : "It is difficult not to enthuse profusely over Attleborough Players' production of 'Oh What a Lovely War', but I'll do my best.The performance of this classic was not perfect, but it certainly provided the patient Attleborough Players' audience with their best night out ever." Praise indeed ! It was certainly well received by all the audiences and thoroughly enjoyed by all who participated and subsequent to this production several of the Nomads joined the Players and vice-versa.
A regular succession of plays, pantomimes and musical/variety shows has continued without a break up to the present day. You can see our full list of productions online.
The following just mentions a few of the happenings :-
In October 1981 a community project in which the Players were invited to participate ended with a few members, including yours truly, performing an ad-libbed intro to the function which was televised in a BBC Special Documentary of the day!
In 1982 performances of 2 very different types of comedy occurred. In May we had "Come Blow Your Horn" by Neil Simon followed in October by "The Creature Creeps" by Jack Sharkey (A spoof horror).
1983 BDF “Husbands Supplied” by Falkland Cary won Best Supporting Actor (Neil Loveday)
1984 BDF “Mother Figure” by Alan Ayckbourn won Best Actress (Sandra Drapper) and the new Technical Merit Award.
During the years 1983-88 productions for the public followed a trend which related to audience response and consisted of Pantomimes and Variety Shows, whilst entries were made to the BDF for the groups' own satisfaction.
In 1987 on 19th March an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting of the players was held. The outcome of this meeting was the final recognition of the amalgamation of The Players and The Nomads and the type of productions that were now being performed. The Players name was amended to Attleborough Players Music and Drama Society.
September 1989 "Gaslight" by Patrick Hamilton was performed and it was the first 3-Act Play since 1982.
1990 – 1993 A mixture of Pantomimes, 3-Act Plays, Variety Shows, Victorian Melodrama and 1-Act Plays for the BDF were produced. It was during this time the players started to perform 3 productions a year as well as performing in the BDF.
1994 and 1995 were very busy years :-
January 1994 A Pantomime "Hansel and Gretel" by Derek Tomlinson.
May 1994 an entry in the BDF "A Different Kind of Woman" by John Hynam.
In October 1994 the Players performed "Hobson's Choice" by Harold Brighouse (at that time who would have forecast that the next straight 3-Act Play would not be until 2001)
The Players had Attleborough Town flagged on a Map of England as being a special site where a commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of D-Day and VE-Day was being held :
June 1994 A musical documentary production “We’ll Meet Again” by Bob Brister
November 1994 “Let the People Sing” (an adaptation of We’ll Meet Again ) by Ken Miller and Betty Leigh at Hingham
February 1995 A Pantomime "The Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe" by Eddie Hughes.
7th May 1995 Some members of the Players combined with members of the Dereham Operatic Society and friends to perform a version of “We’ll Meet Again” at the Theatre Royal – Norwich to raise money for the British Legion, Big C and the Bryan Gunn Luekemia Appeal and again at the Memorial Hall in Dereham on 11/13.5.1995.
June 1995 “Forces Favourites Music Hall” by Pauline and Ken Miller.
October 1995 the Players premiered “Bloodline – A Strange Tale of Jack the Ripper” by Bob Walker and Ken Miller a musical version of the infamous murders with their interpretation of who dunnit !
October 1996 saw a musical adaptation by Derek Tomlinson and Ken Miller of "The History of Mr. Polly" by H.G.Wells.
June 1999 saw a special variety show "The Life and Times of Bernard Flangewick 1901-1999" devised by Lucy Chilleystone and David Brewer. It was the Players show for the millennium and included music and comedy which spanned the 20th century.
June 2001 "Queen Elizabeth Slept Here" by Talbot Rothwell the first 3-Act non-musical production since 1994. This was produced by Barry Taaffe who came in specially to do this, and the outcome was a successful production and a revived interest in 3-Act plays.
June 2003 saw another Barry Taaffe 3-Act production "Let's Kill Agatha Christie" by Anthony Hinds.
October 2003 "Movie Nights" devised and produced by father and daughter team of Terry and Katey Ward. This show consisted of characters and scenes from well known films being depicted on stage with the cast being costumed and made up to look like the originals, and this proved to be a very successful show.
February 2004 Pantomime – "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" by Derek Tomlinson. This pantomime provided a first for the players in three ways :
All in all a very successful production.
June 2004 "There Goes The Bride" a farce by Ray Cooney and John Chapman.
Oct 2004 “Show Nights” by Derek Tomlinson produced by Katey Ward and another first in that the main body of the cast was made up of the younger members of the group with just a few of the senior members taking part..
Feb 2005 “Alice in Pantoland” by Derek Tomlinson who as well as writing produced this production with his wife Ann. Once again a Special Saturday Matinee was held for the East Coast Truckers Charity.
Jul 2005 “Move Over Mrs Markham” a farce by Ray Cooney and John Chapman
Oct 2005 “Cabaret Nights” another show produced by Katey Ward
Jan 2006 “Beauty and The Beast” by Derek Tomlinson produced by Anne Greenwood. As for the last 2 years a Special Saturday Matinee was held for the East Coast Truckers Charity.
Jun-Jul 2006 “Hen Nights” devised and produced by Lucy Chilleystone who had all but 1 member of the cast dressed and performing as Roosters and Chickens (I think the film “Chicken Run” has a lot too answer for here!)
Oct 2006 Another ground breaking production in .that the Players combined with the Old Buckenham Players to put on 3 1-Act Plays with members of both groups producing and acting.
Jan 2007 “Treasure Island” by Derek Tomlinson produced by Isla Butcher (her first attempt at production) assisted by Ann Tomlinson. The lead roles of Jim and Maggie being taken by 2 of our up and coming young members Caroline Wood and Hannah Blackman. Once again a Special Saturday Matinee was held for the East Coast Truckers Charity.
A full list of the players production history is available online.
No show can, of course, be presented without a backstage crew and we have always been fortunate in having people who have been willing to put their hands to whatever has been required.
Stage, Scenery, Lighting and Sound
In recent years we have had :-
Stage /Scenery building / maintenance Graham Beales / Barrie Paul
Artistic Work : Lucy Chilleystone and Peter Long (Both are also performers and Lucy also looks after the Players Carnival Float)
Sound :and Lights Keith Waite / Pete Thatcher.
Costumes and Make-Up
A fine collection of costume has accumulated over the years and now rests in a rented room at a local charity shop. Many of these costumes have been made by a succession of wonderful unsung ladies and have always been of a consistently high quality which have enhanced productions. To this end thanks must go to Gill Decent, Janet Arthurs, Ann Tomlinson and Helen Goward who over the past years have been the stalwarts in this operation as well performing on stage. Nowadays Helen also acts as prompt for our productions and Ann is involved with producing and doing make-up, particularly any special look that is required, (“The Beast” in our 2006 pantomime “Beauty and the Beast” was a prime example).
At this point I must mention Barbara Long, a non-member who volunteered her help with make-up sometime back in the Nineties and has continued to give time for a production ever since!
Storage
Storage has always been a problem, however the Players President - Mr. John Alston kindly gave on a sort of permanent loan the use of one of his barns in which an ever increasing stock of scenery and props could be stored. A gesture for which the Players will always be grateful.
Music
Nowadays, following a trend in the professional theatre, the players music is derived from backing tracks on cd which has been achieved with help from Pete Thatcher but prior to this all music was played on a piano and/or organ with some accompaniament.
Babs Francis was one of the first musical directors the Players had, and she was followed by Min Kennison, Ken Miller and then May and Chris Lowe.
Choreography
Choreography, always a difficult one this, has recently been in the hands (or should we say feet) of Caroline Wood (one of the players younger members) and Anne Greenwood and prior to them there was Elaine Taaffe, Pauline Miller and Sara Large.
Front of house
Here the players give thanks to Eileen Bowhill and the ladies of the W.I. and those friends who have given their time on production evenings to manning the door, running the raffle and general front of house business.
Production
In the 1970s most productions were taken from published scripts and mainly produced by David Dixon or John Heckles. In the 1980s this started to change with the advent of members who could write scripts and devise variety shows. From the 1990s onwards the players now even had members with the skill to adapt a written work plus the ability to completely write a new script and music for a production. In this respect the mantle has fell upon Derek Tomlinson and Ken Miller whose Pantomimes and Musical adaptations have been a great success.
As an added bonus having the writers on hand has also encouraged other members to turn their hand to producing for example Isla Butcher, Elaine Taaffe and Anne Greenwood. Add to them such members as Lucy Chilleystone, Betty Leigh, Neil Loveday, Janet Arthurs, Pauline Miller, Terry Ward and Katey Ward who have all devised and produced shows as well.
The Players have always tried, when productions allowed, to be involved with projects in the community. Over the years they have participated in the Town Summer Carnival and the Xmas Carnival (either by entering a float or entertaining or both).
They have performed 'Mini' shows in local Residential Homes and participated in the Breckland Tattoo from the very first public pageant in 1977 until the last in 2001.
Fund Raising, an important part of many Amateur Groups, also involved the community in that during the early years this usually consisted of Jumble Sales etc which evolved to Quiz Nights but now thanks to a well known TV Show the players have their own very successful "Who Wants to be a Millionaire – Fish and Quiz" evenings.
Over the years the group have been fortunate to receive some awards from local companies and more recently received a wonderful boost (£5000) from the "Awards for all England" with which new Sound Equipment was purchased.
Sponsorship has also been to the fore, shown by the backing the group has received from Panasonic, LG and now JVC.
This ensured that we have good lighting and effects which add to the presentation and enjoyment of a production.
Every Group needs someone at the helm and the Players have had Graham Smith fulfilling the role of Chairman most successfully. In fact the Players have pride in themselves that there has always been a continuity in the makeup of the committee which has carried them through the years. This can be seen in the Officers History although this does not show the full committee thanks must go to all who have served for all their hard work to ensure the players keep running.
Remember all these people perform this role as well as Performing and/or Producing.
The Players have waxed and waned both artistically and financially over the years. There have been times when they have had to beg and borrow to stay afloat but always managed to bounce back. Nowadays the society is on a sound financial footing and the future, therefore, bodes well.
The aim is to keep giving the punters what they want and maintain the standard that has been established over the years.
It has been said that amateur actors are arrogant , on reflection, however, a little arrogance when you are performing is not a bad trait, it is really only a form of confidence that we all need to make the adrenalin flow.
The keyword of the whole process COMMITMENT. A word you have all heard uttered (ad nauseum) but it is the most important of all. When in a production Commitment must be made and adhered to without exception, so keep the word engraved on your hearts.
Remember to project and to smile and above all enjoy yourselves. It is the enjoyment and pleasure in what you are doing that is transmitted to the audience and which will enhance their enjoyment.
