Will You Do NOTHING To Help Strode Theatre?!

Street Director and Producer Peter Wintle asks the local community to support Strode Theatre during financial uncertainty and wishes to promote a brilliant production coming to the theatre in September.

Peter writes:

Will you do NOTHING to help Strode Theatre...?!

No, seriously, on 25th September this year you can make a valuable contribution to Strode Theatre by doing almost nothing! Please will you help me? Get out your diary and read on...

You probably know that Strode Theatre is facing an uncertain time ahead, with increasing pressure on all local authority budgets. Consequently theatre manager Liz Leyshon is urgently looking for financial support wherever she can get it. One of the ways in which the theatre gets financial support is from the Friends of Strode Theatre, who work hard to raise money for the Strode and then make generous contributions towards, for example, new items of essential equipment which the theatre otherwise simply couldn’t afford.

In 2008, a small group of us got together under the banner of Red Line Theatre Company to present an evening of entertainment at the Strode which we called “Men & Women”. It featured some very familiar local faces and because of the generosity of a very healthy audience (and some damn’ fine acting!) we were able to donate £953 to The Friends. If you were one of those who came along to see the show or who sent us a donation, thank you very much.

Of course, £953 is soon spent, so we’re doing it again this year, but this time we want to be able to put up the “Sorry, sold out” signs on performance night! So, on Saturday 25th September at 7.30pm Red Line Theatre Company will present David Tristram’s ridiculous comedy, Inspector Drake and the Black Widow. You probably know that Street Theatre has had considerable success with these characters before and Rob Prince, John McGrouther and Olwen Herridge will be back to present what is probably the daftest Drake-fest yet. Murder, skulduggery, unconvincing cross-dressing and edible tortoises abound, in this very silly tale, weaving a truly unbelievable but highly amusing story.

And all you have to do is to sit there and do NOTHING. Well, except buy a ticket beforehand, of course. And laugh a lot!

Any moment now, the Strode Theatre brochure will drop through your letterbox. Or if you’re not on the mailing list, email theatre@strode-college.ac.uk to get one. At the top of page 21 you’ll see our ad. Booking for the show opens today, Thursday 15th April so please help us to help the place we all call home and book a bunch of tickets now. Yes, you can book your tickets online right now.

Thank you very much – we can’t do this without you and of course every penny of the profits from the Saturday night’s performance will once again go to The Friends.

Regards and best wishes,

Peter.

P.S. You can book your tickets online at www.strodetheatre.co.uk of by phoning the box office (10am – 2pm Monday to Saturday) on 01458 442846.

Peter Wintle

Director

Red Line Theatre Company

1 Pine Close

STREET

Somerset

BA16 0RS

01458 841 552

07759 730 355