Being Dramatic at Home!

Hi everybody!

Hope you are all safe and well and looking forward to having a laugh with us once we are all able to be together somehow or other!

We have had two virtual pantomime reads since the lock down began – with home made costumes as you see above – and they have been great fun. We will carry on with them fortnightly on a Monday evening from 8pm, please do say if you’d like to zoom in – either to take part or just to watch, we promise you will laugh!

In terms of stage performances – we are hoping that we will be able to celebrate going back on stage in the Commemoration Hall with a good old pantomime involving young and old with plenty of good laughs in January 2021. That all depends on social distancing requirements and we will keep a close eye on developments, but hope to be able to proceed with auditions (maybe remotely) in September. We’ll keep you informed – please join us in keeping your fingers crossed that this will be possible!

As always, we would love anyone to join us in any capacity – front of stage, back stage, front of house, organising – whatever you fancy! At the moment we could really do with some help with costumes, if anyone is interested?

Stay safe everyone and we hope to be with you somehow or other sometime soon!

AGM – Support Drama in Wadhurst

The Wadhurst Dramatic Club’s AGM will take place on the 10th February at 7:30pm in the Commemoration hall. If you wish to continue to see local people, young and old, expanding their horizons while entertaining others on stage in Wadhurst then please try to attend the AGM.

Click here to access the following items:

  • AGM Agenda
  • Nomination Form
  • Minutes of the Last Annual General Meeting
  • WDC Rules and Constitution – for approval at the AGM.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Our January 2020 production is Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (the musical)

‘Come with me, and you’ll see, there’s a world of pure imagination’.

WDC and WYTKidz are well into rehearsals for this well-loved Roald Dahl musical in January 2020, directed by Amanda Dann whose production of Private Peaceful last November received a NODA award.

Performances are at the end of Jan 2020. Want to get involved, backstage, front of house, making props or something else? Then, contact Amanda on 01580 200948 or email info@dramatiks.co.uk.

Oct 2019 – “Free & Easy” a very entertaining musical show

17-19th October 2019: Free & Easy from The Very Merry Roosters and friends

Set in 1960’s London, Eric and Iris Dobbins run a friendly neighbourhood pub (The Last Drop) with a regular ‘Free & Easy’ evening (an ‘Open Mic’ Night). Everybody knows everybody – it’s a real family pub, somewhere to feel safe and comfortable. This peaceful existence is threatened by a visit from Ron Stone, the brewery’s new consultant who presents them with a 5-year business plan and revised tenancy agreement. Seeing the ‘marketing potential’ of The Last Drop, Stone has persuaded the brewery to demand £25,000 for a new agreement. Failure to pay means eviction – and will allow the consultants to transform the pub into an ‘entertainment centre’ for pole-dancing and other salacious events. Eric, Iris and daughter Tracy are distraught, barmaids Vanessa and Sharon are devastated, and the regulars are disconcerted. How can this be stopped? Ah! You need to wait until October 2019.

Free & Easy will be performed by our Lamberhurst-based friends, ‘The Very Merry Roosters’, by special invitation from Wadhurst Dramatic Club.  With over fifteen songs from the 50s and 60s performed live on stage, there’s a guarantee you won’t be disappointed.  If you’d like to get involved on-stage or off-stage, there will be some room for Wadhurst actors/ singers & dancers too. 

Want to get involved? Contact the director Russ Kirton on tvmroosters@gmail.com. Get your 60’s gear ready and your dancing shoes warmed up – come and join us!

Review of 2018 (AGM)

Join us at our Annual General Meeting when we discuss ideas for the future – we’d welcome your input.

Wednesday 13th Feb 2019 at 7:45 in the Commemoration Hall


Without a new Commemoration Hall on the horizon, we need to look at how we can improve and enhance the performance, rehearsal and storage space that we have – so anyone with ideas is very welcome to come along.  In this past year, we’ve invested in new sound, light and stage equipment, so we have a very real contribution to make.
We are a very inclusive drama club, we don’t have members, so all supporters are welcome at all our events.  We are looking at restructuring the committee to try and broaden the contribution while reducing the individual workload, so there is plenty of opportunity for involvement without too much commitment.  If you’d be prepared to our friendly committee, just click reply to this email. we’d love to hear from you. And of course there’ll be nibbles and drinks to toast the success of ‘Allo ‘Allo, W.O.T.T., Private Peaceful and Bah Humbug! and to welcome in the next dramatic year!

Bah Humbug! A success!

Read NODA’s fantastic review of Bah Humbug!

Bah Humbug! the Poster

It may not be a Panto, but it is just as much fun for all the family… and it’s a story not just for Christmas.  A reminder, perhaps, to be more forgiving and generous in the year of Brexit.

Once again brilliantly directed by Kay Sasada, it features toe-tapping songs from the pen of Bill Francoeur, who you may recall from “Flapper!” and the hilarious “Way out West in a Dress“.

Private Peaceful – the NODA review

This moving story of a First World War soldier by Michael Morpurgo is translated into a powerful, thought-provoking drama performed by the Wadhurst Youth Theatre group, WYTKidz, directed by Amanda Dann.

Our local rep of the “National Operatic and Dramatic Association” (NODA) was very touched by the performance as can be seen in her: Private Peaceful NODA Review



Private Peaceful‘ is the story of a 16 year old, First World War soldier, Tommo Peaceful, who is awaiting the firing squad at dawn.  The night before, he relives his joyful childhood at school, his adventures with Molly, the love of his life, and the injustices of the war that brought him to the front line.

 

The three performances were on:
·         Friday 16th November at 7.30pm
·         Sunday 18th November 1.30pm and at 6.30pm