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Life at The Little Theatre column: Our little guild comes to visit

Read the latest updates from Southport's Little Theatre.

Zainab Noor

InYourArea Community, Zainab Noor

— 2 min read
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Life at The Little Theatre column: Our little guild comes to visit

Margaret Mann

By Jennifer Corcoran and Andrew Sloman

Last week was heavenly as you flocked to see The Vicar of Dibley. For two nights, the lead actor (Siân Woolley) was ailing and thanks go to Fiona Billington for stepping up to the role. Siân’s prayers were answered and she made a triumphant return midweek.

There will be one more performances this weekend as the Little Theatre hosts the National Conference and AGM of the Little Theatre Guild. The performance is on Saturday, May 14 and tickets can be purchased via our website, although the bar/foyer will be restricted to delegates.

The Little Theatre Guild, known as the LTG was formed in 1946 to represent the views of amateur theatres across the UK. The membership is open to amateur theatres that own or lease the premises in which their productions are held, and as of January 2022 there were 124 member theatres. These theatres range in size from 64 – 450 seat auditoriums, making Southport one of the larger ones.

Margaret Mann is the driving force behind the planning of this event which will be enjoyed by delegates from near and far.

The weekend will be packed with performances, workshops and speakers. It is a wonderful opportunity to catch up with fellow theatre lovers for discussions after the difficulties of recent years.

Workshops on offer include salient themes of sustainability and equality, as well as exploring writing and directing. Steve Thompson will be delivering a workshop on writing for the screen. The former teacher wrote his first play, Damages, in 2004 and that was performed here in June 2013.  He has also written for Sherlock and Dr Who.

We also have wonderful key note speakers. Tim Firth is the writer behind Calendar Girls and Flint Street Nativity – both universally popular plays that have also been adapted for the screen.

Guy Unsworth

Our other speaker is Guy Unsworth, a homegrown talent who demonstrated acting prowess in many plays at the Little Theatre after joining as a Youth Member.  

Since completing his education, he has established himself as a professional writer and director. We are delighted to have secured his script for our 2022/2023 pantomime and you can read more about his credits on his website.

For more information about our shows, our sublets and the club in general/to book tickets for our bar production visit our website here. For updates, pictures, trivia and competitions follow us on Facebook or Instagram.

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