The Committee

Chairman Vicky Burden

Treasurer Melanie Haydon

Secretary Vanessa Sharpe

Committee members

Nigel Coleman

Alan Glynne Jones

Sue Holligan

Rebecca Rickard

contact the committee on: somborneplayers@googlemail.com

Upcoming Events:

· Panto 2008 - CINDERELLA

This year’s panto is Cinderella, written by Stuart Ardern and Bob Heather and directed by Vicky Burden. The performances are on Friday 22^nd at 7.30pm and Saturday 23^rd January at 2.00pm and 7.30pm. Get your tickets now from Cross Stores or anyone involved in the production. See the attached poster for more info; better still, print it out and display it in your window for all to see. If anyone else wants to get involved backstage or front of house, please contact Vicky as soon as possible.

· Players Meal

On Thursday 13^th March at 7.30pm we will be getting together for an evening out at the Purbani in Stockbridge: a well deserved luxury after the hard work of the panto. Partners welcome. Please let Melanie know if you will be attending by 28^th February, as she will need to confirm numbers.

· April Fools

Do you think you’ve got what it takes to sing for your supper? On Wednesday 2^nd April at 7.45pm we will be gathering at Sue Spurling’s house for an evening of light entertainment – provided by the guests! Everyone will be asked to bring some food or drink to share and to prepare a short sketch/song/skit/story – whatever you like really, on your own or with others. No pressure, just good fun.

· AGM

The Players Annual General Meeting will take place at 7.45pm on Thursday 8^th May in the Scout Hut. All members and those wishing to join are invited to attend. A formal notice and agenda will be sent to all members in advance. Membership subscriptions will be due at the AGM.

· Children’s Summer School and Production

During the summer holidays, the Players will be taking on an exciting new venture. Sarah Litton, supported by other adults in the society, will be leading a week long project involving children from the local community. The summer school will take place from Monday 11^th August to Friday 15^th August, 10am to 4pm each day, during which time the children will work with Sarah to produce and rehearse a play starring only children. The week will culminate in a performance on stage in the Village Hall on the evening of Friday 15^th August.

We will be looking for about 15 young actors aged between 8 and 14 years to take part. More details will follow regarding the cost of a place on the summer school and how the week will be organised. In the meantime, if your child is interested, keep those dates free.

We are also asking any adults from the Players to consider whether they have time to assist with the summer school. This could involve rehearsing with the children or helping them produce props and costumes. If you can only help for a day, or part of a day, it would be very much appreciated. This is obviously a project which can only go ahead if we have adequate adult supervision guaranteed. Please contact Vicky if you are able to help.

· Autumn Play

Well, it might seem a long way off, but it’s already time to start planning the Autumn production. We are looking for anyone wishing to direct the next play to let us know and to start thinking about what play they might choose. The committee are here to support all Players’ endeavours and ensure there is a strong production team, so if you’re new to directing don’t hold back – we want to hear from all interested parties.

· Other events in the pipeline

Later in the year we are planning more of the kind of events we have enjoyed over the last year. We are hoping for another barbecue and walk in the summer, as well as more charade and improvisation evenings. If you have ideas for events you would like to see the Players organising, please let us know at the AGM or by email.

Past Events

· Improvisation Evening

Due to popular demand, in November Sue Holligan and Vanessa Sharpe ran another improvisation evening. With some activities similar to before and some new scenarios, everyone was soon laughing at the antics of others. But the frolics didn’t stop us brushing up on our character skills and building our confidence for performing.

· Pub Quiz

The Christmas pub quiz held at the Crown was great fun for all who came along. Brian, the resident quiz master, put on a special edition of his regular Sunday night quiz and 4 teams of Players battled it out long into the night. With a buffet of chips and sandwiches and a reasonable amount of alcohol, we put our brains to the test on topics such as music, general knowledge, and the slightly-less-popular sport. Kelda Lay (currently to be found rehearsing for the title role in our next panto – Cinderella) led her team, comprising of Andrew Flanagan, David Haydon and Sue Spurling, to victory, winning a bottle of wine kindly provided by the pub. Thanks to Alan Glynne Jones for liaising with the Crown to organise this for us.

· Panto Workshops

In January Vanessa Sharpe ran two panto workshops, focusing on voice, movement and characterisation. The workshops were enjoyed by the current panto cast as well as other members of the Players who turned up to take part. Everyone put their skills to the test with tongue twisters, and BIG gestures, just to get into that pantomime mood.

Website

For more information and photos on past events and productions, or to keep up to date with what’s happening in the Players, why not visit our very own easy to access website.

You can find this on www.giraffeandtiger.plus.com/players or by going to the Sombornes website on www.thesombornes.org.uk and clicking on the link in the Players page. The website includes current and past information on productions, events, committee meetings, AGMs and newsletters and also has links to photos and a forum for discussion.

Don’t worry if you’re not online – all important information will be delivered by hand to members who don’t have email addresses.