2023 may-aug
Find
An
COMING UP
out what's coming up this Spring/Summer at BLT (plus the rest of 2023) HEVER CASTLE
FLYING START
Save the date for BLT's musical comedy at Hever Castle this August A
exceptional start to the year, hear from our Artistic Director!
LOVEFROMASTRANGER,JANUARY2023
ABUNCHOFAMATEURS,FEBRUARY2023
EDUCATING RITA, FEBRUARY 2023
All photography: Robert Piwko.
THEUNRETURNING,MARCH2023
THEKING'SSPEECH, MARCH2023
WELCOME FROM THE CHAIR
We ended our 2022 season with a welcome uplift in audience numbers, lots of new and familiar faces despite train strikes, snow and the World Cup as competition.
Our December show, Nigel Slater's Toast, was attended by Nigel Slater himself, Henry Filloux Bennett (the playwright) as well as our new Joint President Zoë Tapper. All of them were very impressed with the production and the theatre itself
Our 2023 season has seen even bigger audiences and fabulous feedback; a credit to the team who put our programme of shows together. After trialling matinées for our January show, Love from a Stranger, we have decided to include a matinée on the first Saturday for most of our shows for this year (dependent on cast availability).
A big vote of thanks to the swimmers and sponsors for the Beckenham Rotary Club Swimalong which raised over £5,000 for BLT’s development fund. Please continue to help BLT raise the money to get started on the next phase of improvements.
I hope that you will enjoy this second issue of our season brochure, and will be inspired to book early - all of our shows are selling very well and we expect even more sell outs
Board: blt board@bromleylittletheatre org
Volunteer: blt discover@bromleylittletheatre org
Membership: blt.membership@bromleylittletheatre.org
COVER: Abigail Moss & Alfie Gosling in BLT’s December production of Nigel Slater's Toast Photography by Robert Piwko
Scan
our
BROMLEY LITTLE THEATRE
Registered Charity No. 1132561
Joint Presidents:
Michael York OBE
Zoë Tapper
www.bromleylittletheatre.org
Keith Jeremiah Chair
the QR code to sign up to receive
By the end of March 2023, the current phase of our building works was finally completed and the heating reinstated! We would like to thank everyone for putting up with the inconvenience (and cold) during the works. email
newsletter
blt.board@bromleylittletheatre.org
KEY CONTACT DETAILS:
SETTING THE BAR HIGH
I couldn't be more pleased with the return to pre-COVID audience numbers and the reactions to our shows from audiences old and new.
After a great end to 2022 with audience numbers creeping back up and famous faces showing up, we started the year with a bang with a little-known but what turned out to be an incredibly popular Agatha Christie, Love from a Stranger.
February saw the hilarious comedy A Bunch of Amateurs on the main stage, as well as Willy Russell's Educating Rita. I always love the intimacy and engaging nature of a bar show, and Educating Rita was no exception, playing to a full house every night - I urge you to try a bar show if you haven't already. They really are something special.
March was very busy for me personally, directing the wonderfully moving The King's Speech, which was incredibly well received by audiences, including the adjudicator from the Kent Drama Festival It was a technically difficult show to pull off and I would like to thank the whole creative team involved. We are always looking for more help backstage, so please get in touch if
you are interested in helping in any way (no experience necessary)
Our brilliant Youth Theatre also played to good audiences in our adaptation of The Unreturning - an edgy piece that kept audiences gripped. This was our second entry in the Kent Drama Festival and again, the adjudicator was blown away by the talent in our Youth group It was certainly an emotional last night, as many of our Youth group will be focusing on their A levels and heading off to university. We would like to wish them all the best of luck!
As I write, Hedda Gabler, The Height of the Storm, Separate Tables and Love, Loss and What I Wore are all in rehearsal and directors are sending through show suggestions for 2024the building is buzzing with creativity, which is a joy to witness!
Bromley Little Theatre are proud sponsors of the Pimms bar at this year ' s Bromley Beer Festival. We will also have a stall at the event so do come along and say hello.
Pauline Armour Artistic Director
blt.board@bromleylittletheatre.org
Saturday 17th June 2023
BROMLEY BEER FESTIVAL WHITEHALL RECREATION GROUND
m a y
Separate Tables
Directed
by
By Terence Rattigan
Hilary Cordery & Kay O'Dea
SHOW DATES
12th - 20th May
No show on 14th
7.45pm
Main Auditorium
In a 1950s Bournemouth hotel where the furnishings and the residents have both seen better days, secrets and scandal lie beneath the carefully placed tablecloths.
Marooned on separate tables, Rattigan presents a rich collection of characters who superbly present the vulnerability, loneliness and misplaced pride of lives essentially unfulfilled.
Tickets
£14 (non member)
£10 (member)
Scan the QR code for full listing & to book your ticket.
CAST:
John Malcom Andy Solts
Anne Shankland Abigail Moss
Mrs Railton-Bell Roxana Graves
Sybil Railton-Bell Kirstie Kalonji
Miss Meacham Alison Du Cane
Lady Matheson Sallie Cross
Mr Fowler Leslie Du Cane
Jean Tanner Leonor Tinajero
Charles Stratton Alex Macdonald
Miss Cooper Debbie Hedges
Doreen Rebecca Ffrancon Davies
Mabel Jan Greenhough
Major Pollock James Strange
A n a m a t e u r p r o d u c t i o n b y a r r a n g e m e n t w i t h C o n c o r d T h e a t r i c a l s L t d
A Few Good Men
By Aaron Sorkin
Directed by Paul Campion
SHOW DATES
9th - 17th Jun
No show on 11th
7.45pm
Matinee on 10th Jun
2.30pm
Main Auditorium
Tickets
£14 (non member)
£10 (member)
Scan the QR code for full listing & to book your ticket.
Two US Marines are on trial over the death of a fellow Marine. At first, their young rookie lawyer is more interested in playing softball than fighting their case. But as events unfold he finds himself valiantly defending his clients and uncovering a shocking conspiracy.
A gripping – and timely – courtroom drama that puts the military mentality on the stand.
CAST: See website for full cast list.
j u n
A n a m a t e u r p r o d u c t i o n b y a r r a n g e m e n t w i t h C o n c o r d T h e a t r i c a l s L t d
Love, Loss and What I Wore BAR SHOW
By Nora and Delia Ephron
based on the book by Ilene Beckerman
Directed by Donna Dawson
SHOW DATES
21st - 25th Jun
7.45pm
In the Bar
Tickets
£10 (non member)
£8 (member)
Scan the QR code for full listing & to book your ticket.
Witty, wise and wonderful, this play proves that great storytelling is always in fashion. From the brilliant Ephron sisters who created such mega-hits as When Harry Met Sally, You’ve Got Mail, Sleepless in Seattle and Silkwood, this funny, tender and compelling piece uses clothing as a metaphor for all the big moments in our lives. A magnificent celebration of life through old but unforgotten clothes
ENSEMBLE CAST:
Donna Dawson
Alison Green
Lucy White
Niki Mylonas
Marion Barker
Karen O’Neill
j u
n
j u l Gentleman Jack
Directed by Stevie Hughes
SHOW DATES
7th - 15th Jul
No show on 9th
7.45pm
Main Auditorium
Tickets
£14 (non member)
£10 (member)
Scan the QR code for full listing & to book your ticket.
Landowner, mountaineer, industrialist, virago and libidinous, full-on lesbian, Anne Lister fought her way into the industrial revolution when women were usually marginalised.
Anne flouted the conventions of the day, challenging the bigots, male supremacists and anyone else who stood in her way! A passionate, dramatic tale of love and survival in the face of prejudice.
CAST:
John Lister Simon Holland
Arthur Burrell James Strange
Anne Lister (Adult) Alison Brougham
Anne Lister (Young) Daniela Mansi
Christopher Rawson Chris Raven
Ann Walker Sophie Gissing
Isabella (‘Tib’) Norcliffe Izzy Willis
Mariana Lawton Elizabeth Rochester
Adapted from the diaries of Ann Lister by Ross McGregor
u l 2023 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
AGM
The Annual General Meeting of Bromley Little Theatre Limited is an opportunity for the Trustees/Directors to report on the various aspects of the Charity and for the Charity Members to approve (or otherwise) the way it is being run. All members are invited to register to attend, although only Charity Members may vote.
Please book your seat via our website:
DATE
Monday 17th July
8.00pm
Main Auditorium
To find out more about the AGM or about becoming a Charity Member, please email Richard Cornwell.
Richard Cornwell Company Secretary
blt.board@bromleylittletheatre.org
VOLUNTEER PROJECT MANAGER NEEDED!
Do you have project management skills and experience that you could lend to BLT for a few hours a week over the next few months? We're about to start on some important building development work….a mix of repairing, improving, finishing and decorating. We want to schedule and manage activity logically and costeffectively and that’s where good project management will be essential You can work remotely and when it suits you. So if you think you can help your local outstanding theatre for everyone, please contact brucewallace@bromleylittletheatre.org or 07766 826 258
j
a u g
CASTLE
BLTatTheFestivalTheatre BLTatTheFestivalTheatre HeverCastle,Edenbridge,Kent HeverCastle,Edenbridge,Kent
A Chorus of Disapproval A Chorus of Disapproval HEVER
By Alan Ayckbourn By Alan Ayckbourn
Directed by Pauline Armour
Directed by Pauline Armour
SHOW DATES
18th Aug
2.00pm & 8.00pm
19th Aug
8.00pm
Two Sisters' Theatre
The Festival Theatre
Hever Castle, Edenbridge, Kent, TN8 7NG
Tickets
From £20.50
Scan the QR code to book your ticket.
Lonely and shy widower, Guy Jones, joins a local amateur operatic society and rises through the company ranks purely by his inability to say no – this spills over into his personal relationships with members of the society. The play is juxtaposed with scenes and music from John Gay’s The Beggar’s Opera Skilfully, Ayckbourn draws parallels between the characters in the opera and the private lives of the amateur thespians.
CAST:
Guy Jones Chris De Pury
Dafydd ap Llewellyn Geoff Dillon
Hannah Llewellyn Lucy White
Bridget Baines Halimot Ibrahim
Mr Ames & Pianist Chris Gardner
Enid Washbrook Donna Dawson
Rebecca Huntley-Pike Sallie Cross
Fay Hubbard Freya Finnerty
Ian Hubbard Alex MacDonald
Jarvis Huntley- Pike Richard Gissing
Ted Washbrook Stevie Hughes
Crispin Usher Luca
Linda Washbrook Aneira Knight
Lavagetto
A n a m a t e u r p r o d u c t i o n b y a r r a n g e m e n t w i t h C o n c o r d T h e a t r i c a l s L t d
s e p 2024 Season Launch
DATE
2nd Sep 7.45pm
Main Auditorium
what'son|meetthedirectors
Tickets
Free Booking essential
Check the website for more details, or sign up to our monthly newsletter to get all BLT news straight to your inbox.
Saturday2ndSeptember2023 7.45pm FREE
BOOKINGESSENTIAL
CAN YOU SHARE YOUR EXPERTISE?
The Board of Trustees is looking for help in the areas shown below, if you might be interested in volunteering, please email us:
blt.board@bromleylittletheatre.org
2024 season launch event
FUNDRAISING | BUILDING MANAGEMENT | GOVERNANCE & POLICY | PR HEALTH & SAFETY | LAW & COMPLIANCE | EQUALITY, DIVERSITY & INCLUSION
S E P O C T
Things I Know to Be True
By Andrew Bovell
Directed by Jessica-Ann Jenner
Show dates: 15th - 23rd September (not Sunday 17th)
An Intervention
By Mike Bartlett
Directed by Colleen Batson
Show dates: 27th September1st October
An amateur production by arrangement with Nick Hern Books
Present Laughter
By Noël Coward
Directed by Roxana Graves
Show dates: 13th - 21st October (not Sunday 15th)
An amateur production by arrangement with Concord Theatricals Ltd
The Incident Room
By Olivia Hirst & David Byrne
Directed by Pauline Armour
An amateur production by arrangement with Nick Hern Books N O V
Show dates: 10th - 18th November (not Sunday 12th)
There Are No Beginnings
By Charley Miles
Directed by Gillian Gissing
Show dates: 22nd - 26th November
An amateur production by arrangement with Nick Hern Books
Blackadder
By Richard Curtis & Ben Elton
An amateur production by arrangement with Nick Hern Books D E C
Directed by Tony Jenner
Show dates: 8th - 16th December (not Sunday 10th)
Friday 29th December 2023
SBAR
SBAR HOW
HOW
coming soon Save The Date End of Year Bash
Bromley Little Theatre North Street, Bromley BR1 1SB www.bromleylittletheatre.org @bromleylittletheatre facebook.com/bromleylittletheatre blt.boxoffice@bromleylittletheatre.org
