History
 | This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (February 2022) |
| Formation | 1954 |
|---|---|
| Type | Amateur Theatre Group |
| Purpose | Theatrical Production |
| Headquarters | Angles Theatre |
Official language | English |
| Website | wisbechplayers.org.uk |
The Wisbech Players is an amateur theatre group based in Wisbech, Isle of Ely. The Players' aim is to offer a broad base of productions, usually two or three per year. The society is affiliated to the National Operatic and Dramatic Association (NODA) and Fenland Arts.
| | This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (February 2022) |
In the 1940s Sheila Chesters whose husband Allen was the Wisbech Grammar School headmaster, started to run dancing classes for girls in the School gardens. From this strand developed a junior theatre group.
In the 1950s Sheila Chesters, then chair of the County Music Committee was asked to form a children's choir. The group attended the Eistedfodd in Llangollen. In 1953 Alvin Thompson won a Folk Song class, in 1954 his brother, Michael did the same. In 1955 Basil Isley also won. In 1954 they sent a part of 36, much effort had been made to ensure authenticity in the costumes by getting a local basket maker to make replicas of hats held in the Cambridgeshire museum. Chesters scoured the area seeking out old folk songs, some of which appear never to have been printed. [1]
The Wisbech Players was founded in 1954 through the amicable break up of the Wisbech Little Theatre drama group run by Mrs Sheila Chesters, who was also busy running this successful children's choir competing at King's Lynn Festival, Albert Hall, Edinburgh and Aldeburgh. [2] [3]
The society's production of A Hundred Years Old, by S & J Quintero took place at the Women's Institute Hall (since 2009 The Luxe Cinema). [4] [5]
Two productions per year were put on most years once the society was established. This was eventually reduced to one.
The productions at the turn of the century were Arsenic and Old Lace by Joseph Kesselring and 'Allo 'Allo! based on the tv series by Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft.
For the fiftieth anniversary in 2004, Joan Littlewood's Oh! What a Lovely War was put on at the Georgian Angles Theatre. [6]
The society returned to two productions in 2007 with Rebecca and Steel Magnolias .
Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy and adapted by playwright Jessica Swale was the 2018 spring play. [7]
In 2019 Ladies in Lavender directed by Barbara Mews and adapted for the stage by Shaun McKenna was the Spring production performed at the Angles. [8]
The spring 2019 production was Cheshire Cats by Gail Young, which raised £285 for the Breast Care Unit at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, King's Lynn, [9] [10] followed by the autumn production of A Bunch of Amateurs, written by Ian Hislop and Nick Newman for a cast of seven. [11]
The spring 2020 productions is The Innocents by William Archibald to be staged at The Angles. [12]
Cambridgeshire is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west.
Wisbech is a market town, inland port and civil parish in the Fenland district in Cambridgeshire, England. In 2011 it had a population of 31,573. The town lies in the far north-east of Cambridgeshire, bordering Norfolk and only 5 miles (8 km) south of Lincolnshire. The tidal River Nene running through the town is spanned by two road bridges. Wisbech is in the Isle of Ely and has been described as 'the Capital of The Fens".
Fenland is a local government district in Cambridgeshire, England. It was historically part of the Isle of Ely. The district covers around 500 square kilometres (190 sq mi) of mostly agricultural land in the extremely flat Fens. The council is based in March. Other towns include Chatteris, Whittlesey and Wisbech.
March is a Fenland market town and civil parish in the Isle of Ely area of Cambridgeshire, England. It was the county town of the Isle of Ely which was a separate administrative county from 1889 to 1965. The administrative centre of Fenland District Council is located in the town.
Wisbech Grammar School is an 11–18 mixed, Church of England, private day school and sixth form in Wisbech, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England. Founded by the Guild of the Holy Trinity in 1379, it is one of the oldest schools in the country.
Wisbech Castle was a stone to motte-and-bailey castle built to fortify Wisbech on the orders of William I in 1072, it probably replaced an earlier timber and turf complex. The layout was probably oval in shape and size, on the line still marked by the Circus. The original design and layout is unknown. It was rebuilt in stone in 1087. The castle was reputedly destroyed in a flood in 1236. In the 15th century, repairs were becoming too much for the ageing structure, and a new building was started in 1478 under John Morton, Bishop of Ely. His successor, John Alcock, extended and completed the re-building and died in the Castle in 1500. Subsequent bishops also spent considerable sums on this new palace. The Bishop's Palace was built of brick with dressings of Ketton Stone, but its exact location is unknown.
Parson Drove is a fen village in the Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England. A linear settlement, it is 6 miles (10 km) west of Wisbech, the nearest town. The village is named after the central thoroughfare along which the village developed, a green drove, much wider than the current metalled road (B1166). The population at the 2001 Census was 1,030. The population is included in the civil parish of Wisbech St Mary.
Manea is a village and civil parish in the District of Fenland, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England.
Guyhirn is a village near the town of Wisbech in Cambridgeshire, England. It is on the northern bank of the River Nene, at the junction of the A141 with the A47. The population is included in the civil parish of Wisbech St Mary. It is notable chiefly for the Chapel of Ease, a rare example of church architecture of the Interregnum (1649–1660), and as a key crossing point of the River Nene.
The Wisbech & Fenland Museum, located in the town of Wisbech in the Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England, is one of the oldest purpose-built museums in the United Kingdom. The museum logo is W&F.
Walsoken is a settlement and civil parish in Norfolk, England, which is conjoined as a suburb at the northeast of the town of Wisbech, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire.
The Angles Theatre is a theatre and historic Georgian playhouse in the market town of Wisbech, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England. It is among the oldest of Britain's theatres. The current premises consists of the original theatre building and a former library, originally an 'infant' school built in 1837, both of which are Grade II listed. The patrons are Sir Derek Jacobi, Jo Brand, Claire Tomalin and Dame Cleo Laine.
Lilian Ream, née Pratt (1877–1961) was a photographer in Wisbech, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire. Her studios captured photographic images of Wisbech and the Fens for over 50 years.
Fanny Robertson, born Frances Mary Ross, was an actress and later the manager of the provincial theatres of the Lincoln Circuit.
Thomas Shaftoe Robertson was a British actor who became the manager of a circuit of theatres in and around Lincolnshire that he carried on for nearly half a century. He was able to attract well-known London actors to take parts in plays that he produced. His actress wife, Fanny Robertson, took over the Lincoln circuit upon his death.
Samuel Smith was an English photographer.
The Luxe Cinema is a cinema in Wisbech, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England.
The 2019 Fenland District Council election took place on 2 May 2019 for all 39 seats of the Fenland District Council in England. It was held on the same day as other local elections.