The whole FOTA Board would like to wish all our members and their families a very Happy Christmas and a great 2010.
Since my last post we have had our Christmas raffle with most of the tickets being sold during the run of 'The Wizard of Oz'. If you haven't seen the show then the reports I have had suggest that you are missing something just a little bit special. Sufficient people saw the show and bought the raffle tickets for the total to be a little over 800 euros.
Then we had our Christmas Lunch and that was really enjoyable. 40 members turned up and contributed to a raffle take of 70 euros. Unfortunately the restaurant charged us an extra 50 cents ahead for the lunch so that made a bit of a dent in the funds but we were still ahead and what is always more important with lunches those attending had a good time.
So now the Christmas cards have been sent, those of you in England are going to get White Christmas, those in Malaga a wet one and I shall hopefully have some sunshine in the Canaries but wherever you are enjoy it and we shall look forward to seeing you at the FOTA desk in the New Year when our first event will be a lunch with hopefully a little surprise thrown in.
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Monday, December 07, 2009
The Bazaar
Not a lot to say about this except thanks to all who helped and I promise not to take a copyright fee if you want to copy any of the photos. The final tally of the income for our funds will be posted as soon as I can but we are looking at a figure around 300 euros.
Norma and the two Helens prepare for the rush
Margaret Whitters always does a splendid
Father Christmas was ready to welcome the throng.
Norma and the two Helens prepare for the rush
Where would be be without Arthur and some woman I vaguely recognise
Margaret Whitters always does a splendid
cake stall
Our vice President and her bottles
December Board Meeting
The December Board meeting was held last Tuesday so things have moved along somewhat since then. We began with a major disappointment as the booklet with stories from the history of the theatre was not in a state where we could expect anyone to buy it. That meant that the bit of a do we had planned for the lunchtime following the meeting had to be called off. That was the least of it though because we had hoped that we could sell the booklet in the run up to Christmas as a stocking filler and this appeared to be unlikely to happen. Since then we have found a new printer and the proofs look to be very promising, certainly of a much higher standard than we had seen from the original printer and we are on course to have it by the middle of next week.
We then turned our attention to the more mundane work we normally get up to - what was that Chinese proverb - please don't let me live in exciting times - well the booklet has proved more exciting than we wanted!
Lunches are proving more popular this year and the one at Casa Dori went well with an excellent turnout. The raffle raised 52 euros. Our Christmas Lunch is at El Brujo where we have been so well treated in the past. We had fixed a provisional price of 20 euros for this lunch but the cost of the food has gone up - they buy fresh not frozen turkeys - and it will be 22 euros. Good value and a 'Cabaret Piece' is promised by our beloved President and his predecessor as a sweet delight (??) at the end of the proceedings. Cars parked on yellow lines are not an acceptable excuse for a quick getaway.
Our trips are still organised by Gina and the one to Granada booked so well we filled the coach. Even with a good stop for coffee and tostado and a more than acceptable lunch we turned a profit of 413.80 euros. Our future trips are:
February 18th - Almond Blossom and Villages
March 18th - Grazalema
April 15th - Guadix
Our Treasurer reported on our finances and it has been a good month. We handed over a further 1000 euros to the theatre with the expectation that at least another 2000 will be handed over next month.
Don't forget that one of our best fundraisers is the raffle that goes with some shows. Already tickets will have been sold during the run of 'A Christmas Stocking' (thanks guys, I enjoyed my evening even though I had a very drunk and noisy woman sitting behind me. Front of House staff did a good job for us all in getting her out before the first half was over so well done them too).
So now my next job is to report on the Bazaar. By a strange quirk of blogging you will probably have read that before you get here. It makes life quite confusing.
We then turned our attention to the more mundane work we normally get up to - what was that Chinese proverb - please don't let me live in exciting times - well the booklet has proved more exciting than we wanted!
Lunches are proving more popular this year and the one at Casa Dori went well with an excellent turnout. The raffle raised 52 euros. Our Christmas Lunch is at El Brujo where we have been so well treated in the past. We had fixed a provisional price of 20 euros for this lunch but the cost of the food has gone up - they buy fresh not frozen turkeys - and it will be 22 euros. Good value and a 'Cabaret Piece' is promised by our beloved President and his predecessor as a sweet delight (??) at the end of the proceedings. Cars parked on yellow lines are not an acceptable excuse for a quick getaway.
Our trips are still organised by Gina and the one to Granada booked so well we filled the coach. Even with a good stop for coffee and tostado and a more than acceptable lunch we turned a profit of 413.80 euros. Our future trips are:
February 18th - Almond Blossom and Villages
March 18th - Grazalema
April 15th - Guadix
Our Treasurer reported on our finances and it has been a good month. We handed over a further 1000 euros to the theatre with the expectation that at least another 2000 will be handed over next month.
Don't forget that one of our best fundraisers is the raffle that goes with some shows. Already tickets will have been sold during the run of 'A Christmas Stocking' (thanks guys, I enjoyed my evening even though I had a very drunk and noisy woman sitting behind me. Front of House staff did a good job for us all in getting her out before the first half was over so well done them too).
So now my next job is to report on the Bazaar. By a strange quirk of blogging you will probably have read that before you get here. It makes life quite confusing.
Thursday, December 03, 2009
Christmas Bazaar
This Saturday December 5th we are holding our Christmas Bazaar on the forecourt of the theatre. (inside the theatre if it is raining)
We shall have all the usual Christmassy stalls. Margaret Whitters has her cakes, Pauline will be running a bottle stall( modesty almost stops me from mentioning the 15 jars of homemade marmalade in my kitchen using Seville Oranges from Pueblo Lucia in the heart of Fuengirola) and there will be a White Elephant stall, David's cards and Norma will be looking after a book stall. you can buy tickets for the current Christmas raffle too.
It occurred to me that some readers may not know who is on the Board of FOTA - sounds grand until you realise it means lugging the trestle tables and clearing up the mess! so this is a list of the Committee and what they do:
President: David Radford
Vice President: Pauline Naylor
Treasurer: Arthur Hill
Secretary: Graham Cherry
The members are:
Helen Young who handles publicity
Helen Tomlinson who organises our front desk rota
Norma Wilson
Pat Suart.
Noticeably not here is the name Gina Foster. SALVA have decreed that nobody can sit on our Board and their Board(sadly the reason we lost Lynn Halliday when she joined the SALVA Board) so Gina comes to our meetings as the liason between the two. That doesn't mean she sits quietly in the corner or that she has stopped organising our coach trips which are an important fundraiser.
anyway now you know come and say hello on Saturday and most of us are manning the desk on Mondays. Wednesdays and Fridays.
We shall have all the usual Christmassy stalls. Margaret Whitters has her cakes, Pauline will be running a bottle stall( modesty almost stops me from mentioning the 15 jars of homemade marmalade in my kitchen using Seville Oranges from Pueblo Lucia in the heart of Fuengirola) and there will be a White Elephant stall, David's cards and Norma will be looking after a book stall. you can buy tickets for the current Christmas raffle too.
It occurred to me that some readers may not know who is on the Board of FOTA - sounds grand until you realise it means lugging the trestle tables and clearing up the mess! so this is a list of the Committee and what they do:
President: David Radford
Vice President: Pauline Naylor
Treasurer: Arthur Hill
Secretary: Graham Cherry
The members are:
Helen Young who handles publicity
Helen Tomlinson who organises our front desk rota
Norma Wilson
Pat Suart.
Noticeably not here is the name Gina Foster. SALVA have decreed that nobody can sit on our Board and their Board(sadly the reason we lost Lynn Halliday when she joined the SALVA Board) so Gina comes to our meetings as the liason between the two. That doesn't mean she sits quietly in the corner or that she has stopped organising our coach trips which are an important fundraiser.
anyway now you know come and say hello on Saturday and most of us are manning the desk on Mondays. Wednesdays and Fridays.
The Book
Well, I took my camera in to take pictures of all the beautiful people who belong to the Salon at the launch of the book but to no avail. Sorry beautiful people if you turned up but the print standard of the book was far below the level we had been promised by the printer and the whole batch of booklets were thrown back at him. A new printer is being organised and we now think that the booklet will be available before Christmas so keep a corner of the stocking free whenever you fill one up. I'll keep you posted ( as long as I am kept up to date) and we hope it will be just a little hiccup.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Booklaunch
The Booklet sponsored initially by FOTA with a history of the theatre prepared to celebrate ita twentyfifth anniversday next year will be launched at 1.30 after the Board meeting tomorrow morning, December 1st.
We hope to see you there. If you can't make it we will have it for sale at the desk and with David's cards in the theatre bar.
We hope to see you there. If you can't make it we will have it for sale at the desk and with David's cards in the theatre bar.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
The Booklet - Latest news
Further sponsors have agreed to donate 100 euros to the publication costs of the booklet - they get five copies in return but this now means that with the advertising revenue we have covered the cost of production and the full revenue from each copy sold will go straight to our funds.
The booklet will be launched shortly and will be on sale at the FOTA desk and the Bazaar at a cost of five euros.
To the list of sponsors in previous posts should be added;
D.Evans
Christina Backlund-Wall
Marie Mason
The booklet will be launched shortly and will be on sale at the FOTA desk and the Bazaar at a cost of five euros.
To the list of sponsors in previous posts should be added;
D.Evans
Christina Backlund-Wall
Marie Mason
Monday, November 09, 2009
The History Booklet
Great news. Individual sposors of the booklet (see main post below) have now increased to 9. The new sponsors are Terina Jager, Toni Devenish, Syd Wright and Brian Hindley.
We understand that the advertising revenue should reach 800 euros and this means that the cost of production has now been met so the full revenue from each copy sold will go to the theatre's funds.
We understand that the advertising revenue should reach 800 euros and this means that the cost of production has now been met so the full revenue from each copy sold will go to the theatre's funds.
Sunday, November 08, 2009
November news
Since the last post was October 1st I had better start with news from the October meeting.
Fundraising and Social activities: We had an enjoyable lunch on the port at Fuengirola. As usual there was a raffle and that raised 41 euros . The trip to Selwo had to be cancelled. It seems that in practice we have a cost limit we must work to and the trip at 40 euros a head was just too much. Later on I shall post about our trip for November and the cost target there is 33 euros. If you look in the Costa del Sol News a similar commercial (but obviously not as good trip) is twice as much.
We discussed arrangements for our Christmas Bazaar and if you have a bottle or some item suitable for the tombola lurking at the back of a cupboard - or standing proudly somewhere prominent is OK too - we would love to have it.
Then we came to the Theatre History Booklet. Good progress has been made, we were told, in its preparation and it is on target for a launch at the end of November. More later.
During October our big fundraiser was the raffle we held during the run of Cabaret. It isn't a popular task to sell tickets for raffles but a willing team did a fantastic job with the help of all who bought tickets. We were overwhelmed with the result as we sold 1602.50 euros worth of tickets. With the cost of the prize and the tickets taken off there was 1500 euros left for our funds. Thank you so much for all the support that there was for this effort. We will be repeating the exercise and hope that we can continue to make a very significant contribution from this activity.
I am sure our efforts were helped by the fact that this was a superb production. I haven't heard anything but praise for the performances. Another Peter Mitchell triumph.
So to our November meeting. This time our Fundraising/Social looked to the future only. So get the diary out and mark off November 19th for our trip to the other Granada. Already bookings are so good that we are at break even point so there aren't too many places left for what should be a great day out. I am jealous that I can't go as we have the dress rehearsal of Habeas Corpus that day. I will post some more details for this trip as soon as I can tear myself away from the script and the trauma of learning lines. On December 17th we will have our Christmas Lunch at El Brujo restaurant. We've been there before and were very well looked after. Details from the desk which include how to get there - it's not difficult.
The Anniversary Booklet of the history of the theatre during its 25 years was the next item on our agenda. Since it was originally proposed that FOTA should sponsor the booklet the cost has risen and there were some concerns expressed at the October meeting. By November this had eased a bit as advertising had contributed 480 euros with the likelihood of more to come. Sweelan Ford told us that she hoped that individual sponsors would come forward and immediately the following agreed to sponsor the booklet for 100 euros each: David Radford, Gina Foster, Pat Suart and Norma Wilson to be followed by Sweelan herself saying she would do the same. With even modest estimates of sales this means that the Booklet is unlikely to take anything from Fota's funds.
Enough for now. See you at the FOTA desk on Monday, Wednesday or Friday. And don't forget to book your ticket for Habeas Corpus
Fundraising and Social activities: We had an enjoyable lunch on the port at Fuengirola. As usual there was a raffle and that raised 41 euros . The trip to Selwo had to be cancelled. It seems that in practice we have a cost limit we must work to and the trip at 40 euros a head was just too much. Later on I shall post about our trip for November and the cost target there is 33 euros. If you look in the Costa del Sol News a similar commercial (but obviously not as good trip) is twice as much.
We discussed arrangements for our Christmas Bazaar and if you have a bottle or some item suitable for the tombola lurking at the back of a cupboard - or standing proudly somewhere prominent is OK too - we would love to have it.
Then we came to the Theatre History Booklet. Good progress has been made, we were told, in its preparation and it is on target for a launch at the end of November. More later.
During October our big fundraiser was the raffle we held during the run of Cabaret. It isn't a popular task to sell tickets for raffles but a willing team did a fantastic job with the help of all who bought tickets. We were overwhelmed with the result as we sold 1602.50 euros worth of tickets. With the cost of the prize and the tickets taken off there was 1500 euros left for our funds. Thank you so much for all the support that there was for this effort. We will be repeating the exercise and hope that we can continue to make a very significant contribution from this activity.
I am sure our efforts were helped by the fact that this was a superb production. I haven't heard anything but praise for the performances. Another Peter Mitchell triumph.
So to our November meeting. This time our Fundraising/Social looked to the future only. So get the diary out and mark off November 19th for our trip to the other Granada. Already bookings are so good that we are at break even point so there aren't too many places left for what should be a great day out. I am jealous that I can't go as we have the dress rehearsal of Habeas Corpus that day. I will post some more details for this trip as soon as I can tear myself away from the script and the trauma of learning lines. On December 17th we will have our Christmas Lunch at El Brujo restaurant. We've been there before and were very well looked after. Details from the desk which include how to get there - it's not difficult.
The Anniversary Booklet of the history of the theatre during its 25 years was the next item on our agenda. Since it was originally proposed that FOTA should sponsor the booklet the cost has risen and there were some concerns expressed at the October meeting. By November this had eased a bit as advertising had contributed 480 euros with the likelihood of more to come. Sweelan Ford told us that she hoped that individual sponsors would come forward and immediately the following agreed to sponsor the booklet for 100 euros each: David Radford, Gina Foster, Pat Suart and Norma Wilson to be followed by Sweelan herself saying she would do the same. With even modest estimates of sales this means that the Booklet is unlikely to take anything from Fota's funds.
Enough for now. See you at the FOTA desk on Monday, Wednesday or Friday. And don't forget to book your ticket for Habeas Corpus
Thursday, October 01, 2009
the Buzz is back
Last Saturday saw the end of the hot sunshine, at least for the time being. My sunbed had been tucked away out of the rain. At journeys end I came up out of the station at Fuengirola and the sky was quite grey. The rain wasn't particularly heavy so I didn't bother with my umbrella. The theatre makes wet umbrellas unwelcome so I got just a little bit wet on my way the bar. First rains since May. The exit door was open and I could hear 'Cabaret' in rehearsal. Suddenly it seemed like Autumn had really begun. It was an audition day and lots of familiar faces were gathered round the table where Doreen Slater was keeping the chart for the aspirants as we trooped upstairs to be auditioned by Marie Legge. Time first though for a cup of coffee and catch up with the gossip (not a lot, very disappointing) and then the bar filed with a break in the rehearsal. It was good to see the regular musicals casts again as I don't do that many musicals but they are always fun when I do. Confidence was high and it seems that in Andy as the MC and Claire as Sally Bowles the general opinion was that the theatre had a winner on its hands. (October 9th - 18th). Of course there was still some reading from the script and undignified stumbles but at this stage that is both to be expected and was lower in quantity than usual. With the crowd from the stage, the slightly steamy atmosphere from the rain and the chatter and noise the theatre seemed alive again as it can't quite manage to do when it is really the summer sun and heat on offer. There was a distinct promise of Autumn and a theatre season to look forward to.
The feeling of being back in the swing continued when I came in to do the desk on Wednesday morning. This time a lot of old friends and former castmates (is that a word?) were rehearsing 'A Murder Is Announced'. Our Miss Marple will be Doreen Slater and the cast includes David Vincent and Lynn Halliday and other fine regular Salon actors. That will be 30th October to 3rd November. Sales of seats on our first trip of the season to SELWO and then Puerto Banus are not going as well as we had hoped. The cost of 40 euros is good value with the 'extras' that a FOTA trip provides but we have to acknowledge that in these difficult times it can be rather a luxury to spend so much and we are all a bit nervous about luxuries. We'll talk about it at the committee meeting on Tuesday next week and I'll let you know through this blog.
Well. the audition went well. You get the phone call which tells you that you've got the part and you think Mission Accomplished! and then it sinks in that there are going to be lots of hours spent learning lines and working on the character and going to rehearsals and taking deep breaths before stepping on the stage and Oh My God! So if you want to see how it turns out the play is Habeas Corpus by Alan Bennett and you should mark a date between November 20th and November 24th in your diary. The play had a good run in the West End with Alec Guinness playing Dr Arthur Wicksteed so I hope nobody can remember that. There is challenging and challenging! So it is back again this Saturday for our first read through. The committee meeting on Tuesday and I shall be back on the desk on Wednesday. There'll be a lunch for you to book and a trip to look ahead to. See you
The feeling of being back in the swing continued when I came in to do the desk on Wednesday morning. This time a lot of old friends and former castmates (is that a word?) were rehearsing 'A Murder Is Announced'. Our Miss Marple will be Doreen Slater and the cast includes David Vincent and Lynn Halliday and other fine regular Salon actors. That will be 30th October to 3rd November. Sales of seats on our first trip of the season to SELWO and then Puerto Banus are not going as well as we had hoped. The cost of 40 euros is good value with the 'extras' that a FOTA trip provides but we have to acknowledge that in these difficult times it can be rather a luxury to spend so much and we are all a bit nervous about luxuries. We'll talk about it at the committee meeting on Tuesday next week and I'll let you know through this blog.
Well. the audition went well. You get the phone call which tells you that you've got the part and you think Mission Accomplished! and then it sinks in that there are going to be lots of hours spent learning lines and working on the character and going to rehearsals and taking deep breaths before stepping on the stage and Oh My God! So if you want to see how it turns out the play is Habeas Corpus by Alan Bennett and you should mark a date between November 20th and November 24th in your diary. The play had a good run in the West End with Alec Guinness playing Dr Arthur Wicksteed so I hope nobody can remember that. There is challenging and challenging! So it is back again this Saturday for our first read through. The committee meeting on Tuesday and I shall be back on the desk on Wednesday. There'll be a lunch for you to book and a trip to look ahead to. See you
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Welcome Back
Something light to begin. I've just come back from London where I saw two very different shows. If you get a chance to go to the National Theatre to see 'The Pitmen Painters' grab it. A very funny and serious look at art and how it can help a person grow in ways not immediately obvious. We see it here in Fuengirola in the use of drama and theatre in helping young people (and some of us older ones too) learn a little more about ourselves and the world around us. If that sounds too serious it isn't meant to be because that is what a good play or film or even TV show does after it has entertained us and this play really was very entertaining.
Our other show was very different - 'Hairspray' - at the Shaftesbury Theatre. For both shows we bought our tickets in the hut in Leicester Square (useful tip) and for 'Hairspray' we got them at half price, although when we got there the theatre was very full. So from 'Hairspray' I thought we could cheer ourselves up with a song we used in panto a couple of years ago. Although I was in the lineup then I couldn't honestly say we did it better !!
September Committee so to start the serious stuff a report on our first meeting. We are looking for a progress report on the special cleaning of the dressing rooms. We offered at the end of last season to pay for an 'industrial' clean of the dressing rooms which were showing the effects of a busy season. This is to include replacing the floor covering which was way past its sell by date with a special rubberised one recommended by John Pyne, the resident Stage Manager. We are also paying for a new extractor system to cope with the cigarette smoke on the stairwell.
I like, and I think the rest of the Board like, the idea that we can point to specific improvements we can make to the theatre as well as the financial contribution FOTA has made in the past year which is now 25,000 euros. Without that contribution we might not be looking at the season ahead with, well - anything at all. Everyone who joins in with FOTA activities is helping keep the theatre going. Apparent successful shows often bring with them enormous costs in terms of royalties and charges.
Lunches Our first social event of the new year is a lunch at Ku Damm on the port in Fuengirola on October 1st. Whilst it is not my favourite restaurant I know a lot of you like it so I hope we can get the programme off to a good start.
Following that we have plans for Casa Dori on November 5th and El Brujo for the Christmas Lunch on December 17th.
Trips:
Our first trip of the season is to be to SELWO park on October 22nd. This very popular tourist attraction is just outside Estepona and we will stop at Puerto Banus on the way back to shop till our wallets are empty (won't take me long!). The trip will include our usual stop for coffee and tostado and will include lunch. Full details will be available shortly at the desk.
Now a Bribe
Help will be needed during the run of 'Cabaret' when we will have a raffle for our funds. So far these raffles have been pretty successful but we are sure we can do better. Help selling the tickets could add considerably as last season lots of people were never approached to buy a ticket. if you can do anything then please contact David Radford who is at the theatre most days and always on a Monday, Wednesday or Friday.
Here's the bribe. The great Liza herself (I saw her at Puerto Banus last year - wow!)
Our other show was very different - 'Hairspray' - at the Shaftesbury Theatre. For both shows we bought our tickets in the hut in Leicester Square (useful tip) and for 'Hairspray' we got them at half price, although when we got there the theatre was very full. So from 'Hairspray' I thought we could cheer ourselves up with a song we used in panto a couple of years ago. Although I was in the lineup then I couldn't honestly say we did it better !!
September Committee so to start the serious stuff a report on our first meeting. We are looking for a progress report on the special cleaning of the dressing rooms. We offered at the end of last season to pay for an 'industrial' clean of the dressing rooms which were showing the effects of a busy season. This is to include replacing the floor covering which was way past its sell by date with a special rubberised one recommended by John Pyne, the resident Stage Manager. We are also paying for a new extractor system to cope with the cigarette smoke on the stairwell.
I like, and I think the rest of the Board like, the idea that we can point to specific improvements we can make to the theatre as well as the financial contribution FOTA has made in the past year which is now 25,000 euros. Without that contribution we might not be looking at the season ahead with, well - anything at all. Everyone who joins in with FOTA activities is helping keep the theatre going. Apparent successful shows often bring with them enormous costs in terms of royalties and charges.
Lunches Our first social event of the new year is a lunch at Ku Damm on the port in Fuengirola on October 1st. Whilst it is not my favourite restaurant I know a lot of you like it so I hope we can get the programme off to a good start.
Following that we have plans for Casa Dori on November 5th and El Brujo for the Christmas Lunch on December 17th.
Trips:
Our first trip of the season is to be to SELWO park on October 22nd. This very popular tourist attraction is just outside Estepona and we will stop at Puerto Banus on the way back to shop till our wallets are empty (won't take me long!). The trip will include our usual stop for coffee and tostado and will include lunch. Full details will be available shortly at the desk.
Now a Bribe
Help will be needed during the run of 'Cabaret' when we will have a raffle for our funds. So far these raffles have been pretty successful but we are sure we can do better. Help selling the tickets could add considerably as last season lots of people were never approached to buy a ticket. if you can do anything then please contact David Radford who is at the theatre most days and always on a Monday, Wednesday or Friday.
Here's the bribe. The great Liza herself (I saw her at Puerto Banus last year - wow!)
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Condolences
Anyone who has ever gone to the theatre must at some time seen or bumped into Lizz Freeman, currently Vice President of SALVA and a very regular performer working now on 'Cabaret' and it is with great sadness that I start this seasons news blogs with the information that her husband David died last Friday. I am sure that all members of FOTA will join me in wishing her well at a difficult time.
Sunday, June 07, 2009
A Visit to Ireland
An aprehensive group of six actors and two stage managers gathered in gate area C at Malaga Airport for the first foreign tour of a play from the theatre (unless you count Gibraltar). We had been invited to perform 'A View From The Bridge' at the festival in Dundalk in Ireland. The flight went smoothly (just as well since one of us had been up until 4.00 clearing his desk) and we were met by what turned out to be as hospitable a group of people as it is possible to imagine. Safely transferred to Dundalk we had a look at the theatre. A very different design to the one we are used to. From an actors point of view it meant remembering to look up rather
having the audience at your feet. Gloria and John were knocked out by the facilities and have come back with a long shopping list. Next season is going to be a busy fundraising one for us!.
Then again the actors noted with unconcealed jealousy a Green Room with TV (of the stage) as big as all our dressing rooms put together and still three further dressing rooms each suitable for a football team.
The theatre seats 350 and we were told bookings were going well.
Suitably humbled we were taken to dinner at the Riva restaurant before being sent to our lodgings. Forget stories about theatrical landladies and dodgy digs. We all spent a very comfortable four days. Even the weather was brilliant. The locals must have been very pleased we brought some Spanish sun with us. During the stay we had a brunch at Dundalk Golf Club which looked perfect with the sun showing off the work of the rain that preceded us. We almost forgot why we were there with that and a pre arranged visit to Carlingford
Local hospitality was centred around McGeoffs which serves a mean pint of Guiness and the pub opposite the theatre where we may have disgraced ourselves by beating the locals on the quiz night. Such hedonism was soon brought short when Matt Murphy appeared and reminded us why we were there. Immensely hard work by our John Pyne and their Tony was producing an excellent set but we needed to do some work. In these photos the set is nearly complete and the central cast members getting to know it.
Radio interviews done, shirts made suitably messy (nice clean car park but my shirt may never recover. Did longshoremen really get that mucky?) we had to face our audience. Some less eager than others
But I think the intensity of the play is better demonstrated - let's face it it couldn't be worse demonstrated - by this photo:
I think you can be proud of the audience reaction to the play (I should make it clear that my role was quite small and all the Kudos lies elsewhere). We were told that even the top Irish Theatre companies get one round of aupplause and are lucky if they get off the stage before the clapping stops but they called the cast back on. Here is a transcript of a radio critics report;
I was somewhat apprehensive about going to see the production of "A View From The Bridge" as one associates plays done in holiday resorts with stock amateur fare. Well this play presented by salva from Fuengirola made my doubts seem quite ludicrous.from the 1st words uttered to the wonderful climax it was completly riverting. The acting was sublime and the direction was just what we expect from Matt Murphy.the theme of jealously and obsession as a man loses his niece to an italian immigrant was fully realised. There was not a weak link, Bobbye Aaron and Brianna Mcpherson were terrific as they came to terms with Geoffrey Standsfield s mesmerising performance as Eddie Carbone. I have never seen a better played Marco and Radolpho -totally believable and Stephen Burns gave his usual assured performance as the story telling lawyer. Even the smallest roles were handled expertly. A lesson in what theatre should be all about! They will be welcomed back hopefully very soon and the many locals who visit the Costa del Sol will be looking out for "the Salon de Variete" harry lee
After the show we had supper in McGeoffs and all of us found the walk to the back of the pub a long one as the audience stopped us to chat. Harry may be right and we hope that both the Salon and Fuengirola will benefit from a connection with Dundalk.
Of course none of this would have been possible without the work of Matt Murphy who was a difficult taskmaster. At times not a kind word could be heard from the cast but we were all queuing up at the end to ask about his next piece at the Salon and presented him with a memento which we hope he will be putting in a proud place. Watching him from a corner are Stephen,Bobbye and Brianna
So it remained for us to get home for a reality check as we line up for auditions for the next time. See you there. But not in a Green Room:
having the audience at your feet. Gloria and John were knocked out by the facilities and have come back with a long shopping list. Next season is going to be a busy fundraising one for us!.
Then again the actors noted with unconcealed jealousy a Green Room with TV (of the stage) as big as all our dressing rooms put together and still three further dressing rooms each suitable for a football team.
The theatre seats 350 and we were told bookings were going well.
Suitably humbled we were taken to dinner at the Riva restaurant before being sent to our lodgings. Forget stories about theatrical landladies and dodgy digs. We all spent a very comfortable four days. Even the weather was brilliant. The locals must have been very pleased we brought some Spanish sun with us. During the stay we had a brunch at Dundalk Golf Club which looked perfect with the sun showing off the work of the rain that preceded us. We almost forgot why we were there with that and a pre arranged visit to Carlingford
Local hospitality was centred around McGeoffs which serves a mean pint of Guiness and the pub opposite the theatre where we may have disgraced ourselves by beating the locals on the quiz night. Such hedonism was soon brought short when Matt Murphy appeared and reminded us why we were there. Immensely hard work by our John Pyne and their Tony was producing an excellent set but we needed to do some work. In these photos the set is nearly complete and the central cast members getting to know it.
Radio interviews done, shirts made suitably messy (nice clean car park but my shirt may never recover. Did longshoremen really get that mucky?) we had to face our audience. Some less eager than others
But I think the intensity of the play is better demonstrated - let's face it it couldn't be worse demonstrated - by this photo:
I think you can be proud of the audience reaction to the play (I should make it clear that my role was quite small and all the Kudos lies elsewhere). We were told that even the top Irish Theatre companies get one round of aupplause and are lucky if they get off the stage before the clapping stops but they called the cast back on. Here is a transcript of a radio critics report;
I was somewhat apprehensive about going to see the production of "A View From The Bridge" as one associates plays done in holiday resorts with stock amateur fare. Well this play presented by salva from Fuengirola made my doubts seem quite ludicrous.from the 1st words uttered to the wonderful climax it was completly riverting. The acting was sublime and the direction was just what we expect from Matt Murphy.the theme of jealously and obsession as a man loses his niece to an italian immigrant was fully realised. There was not a weak link, Bobbye Aaron and Brianna Mcpherson were terrific as they came to terms with Geoffrey Standsfield s mesmerising performance as Eddie Carbone. I have never seen a better played Marco and Radolpho -totally believable and Stephen Burns gave his usual assured performance as the story telling lawyer. Even the smallest roles were handled expertly. A lesson in what theatre should be all about! They will be welcomed back hopefully very soon and the many locals who visit the Costa del Sol will be looking out for "the Salon de Variete" harry lee
After the show we had supper in McGeoffs and all of us found the walk to the back of the pub a long one as the audience stopped us to chat. Harry may be right and we hope that both the Salon and Fuengirola will benefit from a connection with Dundalk.
Of course none of this would have been possible without the work of Matt Murphy who was a difficult taskmaster. At times not a kind word could be heard from the cast but we were all queuing up at the end to ask about his next piece at the Salon and presented him with a memento which we hope he will be putting in a proud place. Watching him from a corner are Stephen,Bobbye and Brianna
So it remained for us to get home for a reality check as we line up for auditions for the next time. See you there. But not in a Green Room:
Thursday, June 04, 2009
Theatre Programme Autumn 2009
With so many of us flexible with our dates it was suggested to me that the Autumn Programme for the theatre should be somewhere on this blog so those who could only spend a short time here could plan their break. So, subject to change as they say, here it is:
18th -22nd September - Happy Birthday. This is a French farce which has been well received around the world
9th - 18th October - Cabaret. Peter Mitchell will be doing a workshop on this on Friday this week and auditions are on Saturday June 6th
30th October -7th November -A Murder is Announced. Peter Brooks will be holding Auditions on June 13th
20th - 25th November - Habeus Corpus
4th - 8th December - Christmas Show
18th - 21st December and 2nd- 5th January - The Wizard of Oz
22nd -27th January - Noises Off
5th - 9th February - Entertaining Mr Sloane
19th - 24th February - Old Time Music Hall
Well that takes us a bit past the Autumn but I hope you will find it useful.
18th -22nd September - Happy Birthday. This is a French farce which has been well received around the world
9th - 18th October - Cabaret. Peter Mitchell will be doing a workshop on this on Friday this week and auditions are on Saturday June 6th
30th October -7th November -A Murder is Announced. Peter Brooks will be holding Auditions on June 13th
20th - 25th November - Habeus Corpus
4th - 8th December - Christmas Show
18th - 21st December and 2nd- 5th January - The Wizard of Oz
22nd -27th January - Noises Off
5th - 9th February - Entertaining Mr Sloane
19th - 24th February - Old Time Music Hall
Well that takes us a bit past the Autumn but I hope you will find it useful.
Monday, May 11, 2009
AGM
Just to remind everyone that the AGM is on Wednesday June 3rd at 7.00 at the theatre.
I sent a news e mail to everyone whose email address I have - a few got bounced back so if you have given us your email address and think you should have had one let us know.
I sent a news e mail to everyone whose email address I have - a few got bounced back so if you have given us your email address and think you should have had one let us know.
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
Picnic at Chorro
The trip to Cordoba is now full even with a bigger coach. Those who booked - have agood one.
What next? I hear you cry. Well we have a coach trip planned for June 4th to the Farmer's Market at Alora
and then to the Lakes at Chorro.
Alora has a new attraction with it's Farmers Market which is set up at the Los Cabelleros restaurant. I have quizzed a friend who lives in the town and he goes especially for the pies from the Pie lady of Pizzara which are totally orgasmic. Who says the English can't cook. The idea is that you will be able to buy something delicious at the market for your picnic at the Lakeside,
now much fuller of water than two years ago when these photos were taken
What next? I hear you cry. Well we have a coach trip planned for June 4th to the Farmer's Market at Alora
and then to the Lakes at Chorro.
Alora has a new attraction with it's Farmers Market which is set up at the Los Cabelleros restaurant. I have quizzed a friend who lives in the town and he goes especially for the pies from the Pie lady of Pizzara which are totally orgasmic. Who says the English can't cook. The idea is that you will be able to buy something delicious at the market for your picnic at the Lakeside,
now much fuller of water than two years ago when these photos were taken
Friday, May 01, 2009
More on the Patios
I know it sounds like a cheap sales stunt but if you were thinking of coming to Cordoba with us you should book soon. We thought it might not sell so did some extra publicity and as of last Wednesday we have 40 booked for the trip which only leaves 14 seats to go. It is great that we should be able to add to our donations to the theatre by making a profit but I hope that we don't have disappointed members. See you on Monday or Wednesday. Who knows, Friday may be too late!
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Not enough pictures and our best trip yet?
Make a note in your diary for May 14th when we have a trip to the Patios of Cordoba. This is a taste of what you will see:
Each year there are fears that the dedicated Cordobans will be a dying breed and the patios will decline (but when has that stopped a proper Yorkshire man from growing leeks?).
The patios are only open for a short time and that is why we have an earlier date for our trip than is usual. And the best part is that the trip with a stop for tostado and coffee and lunch included is only 35 euros.
That isn't all of course. Cordoba has the Mezquita
which Charles V thought one of the most beautiful buildings in Europe - and he was ruler of most of Europe at the time - and a splendid Arab Palace and Baths. The Roman Bridge is unshrouded from its restoration and the Jewish quarter has intriguing alleyways and a stunning square which is just lived in by ordinary Cordobans. You will want to go back if you haven't been before.
Each year there are fears that the dedicated Cordobans will be a dying breed and the patios will decline (but when has that stopped a proper Yorkshire man from growing leeks?).
The patios are only open for a short time and that is why we have an earlier date for our trip than is usual. And the best part is that the trip with a stop for tostado and coffee and lunch included is only 35 euros.
That isn't all of course. Cordoba has the Mezquita
which Charles V thought one of the most beautiful buildings in Europe - and he was ruler of most of Europe at the time - and a splendid Arab Palace and Baths. The Roman Bridge is unshrouded from its restoration and the Jewish quarter has intriguing alleyways and a stunning square which is just lived in by ordinary Cordobans. You will want to go back if you haven't been before.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
A View From The Bridge
There have been some really good productions this season at the theatre and we can all be proud of the work that has been done but those of you who did not see A View From The Bridge may be kicking yourselves by now. (I declare an interest as I had a very small part in it). Comments on the production (directed by Matt Murphy whose first production here it was) were unanimous that it was the best, or very nearly so, play seen at the Salon. The play has been invited to the Festival at Dundalk in Ireland and will be seen there on May 30th. Naturally we are all very excited about this and really looking forward to it. If you want to see what the fuss is all about there will be a final rehearsal for the trip , provisionally on May 27th. I don't know what the ticketing arrangements will be, if any, but an audience would be nice and even without the terrific set that John Pyne put up I think you would have a memorable evening at the theatre.
April News
The Committee meeting at the beginning of the month began with a sad moment. Lynn Halliday sent in a letter of resignation from the Board of FOTA. Now that she has been elected to the Board of SALVA they have told her she must resign from FOTA and we shall miss her. Fotunately she will not be far away and remains committed to what we do. As Lynn had been Vice Prsident of FOTA a replacement was needed and we are lucky that Pauline Naylor accepted the position. Lynn had also been membership secretary and Helen Tomlinson agreed to do this.
Our Trips have been very successful this year. The last one was fully booked and a bigger coach had to be ordered. The current trip to Tarifa and Baelo Claudia is full (though if you want to go we shall be at the desk tomorrow -April 22nd - in case of cancellations) and already some bookings are in for the trip to see the patios of Cordoba. After that we have a visit to the Farmer's Market at Álora and a picnic at the Lakes which this year are quite full (I hear a groan from winter visitors but we did need the rain). Bright ideas are needed for trips for next season. All in all a big thank you to Gina for organising these.
The next discussion point was a bit tricky. Sweelan Ford offered at the last SALVA AGM to prepare a booklet on the history of the theatre to mark the 25th anniversary. SALVA agreed to this but didn't offer any financial backing. The information has been gathered together and Barry Suart is editing it but the finance for the project was not in place. The selling price of the booklet will be 5 euros and it will need 300 coies sold to break even. Some Committee members could not see a market, even at the most optimistic, of more than a 100 which would leave a loss of a thousand euros. By a majority the Board of FOTA agreed to back the project and make every effort to ensure that sufficient copies would be sold. So now let's hope that we can all persuade as many people as possible to buy the booklet when it comes out in September.
Another 1000 euros was handed to SALVA for the theatres reserves. This makes the total donations from FOTA for this season 23000 euros.
Our final item is date for your diary and is the AGM on June 3rd. By rotation Graham Cherry, Pat Suart, Helen Young and Norma Wilson will be retiring and will be standing for re-election. It would be a great help if any further names could be passed to the President (David Radford) or Secretary (Graham Cherry).
Our Trips have been very successful this year. The last one was fully booked and a bigger coach had to be ordered. The current trip to Tarifa and Baelo Claudia is full (though if you want to go we shall be at the desk tomorrow -April 22nd - in case of cancellations) and already some bookings are in for the trip to see the patios of Cordoba. After that we have a visit to the Farmer's Market at Álora and a picnic at the Lakes which this year are quite full (I hear a groan from winter visitors but we did need the rain). Bright ideas are needed for trips for next season. All in all a big thank you to Gina for organising these.
The next discussion point was a bit tricky. Sweelan Ford offered at the last SALVA AGM to prepare a booklet on the history of the theatre to mark the 25th anniversary. SALVA agreed to this but didn't offer any financial backing. The information has been gathered together and Barry Suart is editing it but the finance for the project was not in place. The selling price of the booklet will be 5 euros and it will need 300 coies sold to break even. Some Committee members could not see a market, even at the most optimistic, of more than a 100 which would leave a loss of a thousand euros. By a majority the Board of FOTA agreed to back the project and make every effort to ensure that sufficient copies would be sold. So now let's hope that we can all persuade as many people as possible to buy the booklet when it comes out in September.
Another 1000 euros was handed to SALVA for the theatres reserves. This makes the total donations from FOTA for this season 23000 euros.
Our final item is date for your diary and is the AGM on June 3rd. By rotation Graham Cherry, Pat Suart, Helen Young and Norma Wilson will be retiring and will be standing for re-election. It would be a great help if any further names could be passed to the President (David Radford) or Secretary (Graham Cherry).
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
March Committee News
I am delighted to begin with success stories. The trip to see the flamingoes was fully booked so we made a nice profit for the theatre's funds. Just as important it's success has made the next trip already fully booked - in fact by last Friday we squeezed the last tripper on the bus. There is a waiting list and it is too late now even for that.
The next trip on April 23rd is to Tarifa and Baelo Claudia. Many will know Tarifa as a windsurfers centre and ferry point and not much more but it is a charming small town nearly all pedestrianised and with narrow atmospheric streets and a daily market. Tarifa was an entry point for the Moorish invasion of Spain and has a tenth century castle now called el castillo de Guzman after the Spanish commander during the siege of 1292.
There is a gruesome story behind the siege when....... no, you'll have to wait till you get to the Castle.
Then on the Baelo Claudia. Founded in the second century B.C. it became an important town for fish processing.
There is a well preserved forum, three temples to Roman gods and even one to Isis of Egypt. Shops, main street and theatre. Near the beach is the fish processing plant and here a sauce was produced that the Roman's regarded as a rare and very expensive luxury. But it did rather smell
The trip after that will be a bit earlier than usual because we are going to see the famous Patios of Cordoba. Each Spring the patios are lovingly decorated with flowering plants but only for a brief period, hence the change of date. Not to be missed.
Lunches: I think everyone enjoyed their vegetarian lunch at Vegetalia. Even those making slightly nervous jokes beforehand came out with a smile. The next two dates for your diary are April 2nd when we hope to go to Casa Dori and then May 7th when Antonio Videra is the choice. They have both been popular on previous visits so I hope we will see you there.
During the meeting we handed over 1000 euros to the theatre. That makes a total of 22000 euros this year. I think that demonstrates how even a little contribution can add up. The theatre now seems to be in a pretty healthy state as long as we don't have a crisis and with a building as old that is who knows what is round the corner. (The roof over the storage area for David's cards leaked badly a few weeks ago) That is why we continue with the fundraising and why all your contributions, help and support are so important.
The next trip on April 23rd is to Tarifa and Baelo Claudia. Many will know Tarifa as a windsurfers centre and ferry point and not much more but it is a charming small town nearly all pedestrianised and with narrow atmospheric streets and a daily market. Tarifa was an entry point for the Moorish invasion of Spain and has a tenth century castle now called el castillo de Guzman after the Spanish commander during the siege of 1292.
There is a gruesome story behind the siege when....... no, you'll have to wait till you get to the Castle.Then on the Baelo Claudia. Founded in the second century B.C. it became an important town for fish processing.
There is a well preserved forum, three temples to Roman gods and even one to Isis of Egypt. Shops, main street and theatre. Near the beach is the fish processing plant and here a sauce was produced that the Roman's regarded as a rare and very expensive luxury. But it did rather smell
The trip after that will be a bit earlier than usual because we are going to see the famous Patios of Cordoba. Each Spring the patios are lovingly decorated with flowering plants but only for a brief period, hence the change of date. Not to be missed.
Lunches: I think everyone enjoyed their vegetarian lunch at Vegetalia. Even those making slightly nervous jokes beforehand came out with a smile. The next two dates for your diary are April 2nd when we hope to go to Casa Dori and then May 7th when Antonio Videra is the choice. They have both been popular on previous visits so I hope we will see you there.
During the meeting we handed over 1000 euros to the theatre. That makes a total of 22000 euros this year. I think that demonstrates how even a little contribution can add up. The theatre now seems to be in a pretty healthy state as long as we don't have a crisis and with a building as old that is who knows what is round the corner. (The roof over the storage area for David's cards leaked badly a few weeks ago) That is why we continue with the fundraising and why all your contributions, help and support are so important.
Beware the Ides of March
Sweelan Ford has asked me to remind all devoted readers(!) that she needs copy for the anniversary book of theatre reminiscenses by March 15th. Next year the theatre is 25 and Sweelan is preparing a book to record our history and celebrate the existence, often against the odds, of this strange phenomenon of an English Theatre in the South of Spain. I have had some fascinating chats with Norma Wilson and seen some of her scrapbook. I must confess that my attitude to begin with was a bit cynical but now I can't wait to read what others will be putting Sweelan's way. It is a tight deadline if you haven't started yet but that really shouldn't phase anyone connected with this theatre.You have all had plenty of practice.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Full Monty and the Oscars
Congratulations to Simon Beaufoy who wrote the screenplay for the Full Monty on winning an Oscar for his adaptation of Slumdog Millionaire. Word has it that the Salon's production of The Full Monty will be very popular and the writing may not be one of the reasons but for whatever reason you are sitting there it is good to know that the show has a real quality about it. Terrence McNally who wroyte the book of the show is no slouch either.
You wil have a great evening.
The Full Monty is on at the Salon from 20th March to the 29th
You wil have a great evening.
The Full Monty is on at the Salon from 20th March to the 29th
For Your Diary
Tuesday March 5th Lunch at Vegetalia. Vegetalia is about the best of the vegetarian reataurants along the Costa del Sol. Lunch is a good choice buffet which is being offered to us at the reduced rate of 10 euros. Even a dedicated meat eater will enjoy this unusual lunch and it is certainly a bit different to our regular choices of restaurants. Vegetalia is in Los Boliches just before you get to El Corte Ingles and the rail staion.
Thursday March 19th heading back into the Andalucian countryside we will really visit an asparagus farm this time.(On the Estepa trip the asparagus wasn't ready for harvesting yet) and then on to a Leather factory
we are still negotiating to complete the rest of the season's programme so watch this space.
Thursday March 19th heading back into the Andalucian countryside we will really visit an asparagus farm this time.(On the Estepa trip the asparagus wasn't ready for harvesting yet) and then on to a Leather factory
we are still negotiating to complete the rest of the season's programme so watch this space.
We saw some Flamingoes - honest
Last Thursday saw a full coachload of friends and supporters set off for a day trip. Over the past few months the ultimate destination of this trip has changed a number of times so although it wasn't billed as a mystery tour those of us who had sat in meetings where each new possibility was raised kept our fingers crossed
Our first stop for the usual tostada and coffee. Later we returned for a pretty reasonable lunch.
Excitement mounted as we then headed for Fuente de Piedra and the Flamingoes. It is early in the season for them but the winter was wet enough to encourage hopes that they would be there and they were. BUT only those with binoculars could actually see anything very much. There was a small group who were clearly very pink but mostly they were white. Still all around were other water birds and the weather was terrific with a gentle breeze so nobody was complaining (except possibly you as I couldn't get a photo, sorry). If you go independently it seems you can get a bit closer with a car than is possible with a coach.
So after lunch it was on to Estepa. First impressions were good as we approached along a country road and could see the castle on top of the hill with almond trees in blossom reaching the road. Between then all was green after the recent rains. The coach took us up to the castle which presents rather a strange sight as it is the process of being restored so medieval stones were butressed by plain concrete.
The monastery of the Franciscans at the other end of the hill was closed to the public. it looked rather German than Spanish. It would be intersting to hear if anyone knows how well occupied it is as the building looked well maintained and was quite large.
We followed this with a ride through Estepa and then to the chocolate factory which only makes chocolates between September and Christmas. Never mind, there was cafe for those of us who wanted a little tea and a fancy and lots of good local produce - including chocolate - on sale.
A final view of Estepa before the bus home to bed.
The trip turned out to be a good fundraiser for the theatre so thanks to all who came, we hope you enjoyed it.
Our first stop for the usual tostada and coffee. Later we returned for a pretty reasonable lunch.
Excitement mounted as we then headed for Fuente de Piedra and the Flamingoes. It is early in the season for them but the winter was wet enough to encourage hopes that they would be there and they were. BUT only those with binoculars could actually see anything very much. There was a small group who were clearly very pink but mostly they were white. Still all around were other water birds and the weather was terrific with a gentle breeze so nobody was complaining (except possibly you as I couldn't get a photo, sorry). If you go independently it seems you can get a bit closer with a car than is possible with a coach.
So after lunch it was on to Estepa. First impressions were good as we approached along a country road and could see the castle on top of the hill with almond trees in blossom reaching the road. Between then all was green after the recent rains. The coach took us up to the castle which presents rather a strange sight as it is the process of being restored so medieval stones were butressed by plain concrete.
The monastery of the Franciscans at the other end of the hill was closed to the public. it looked rather German than Spanish. It would be intersting to hear if anyone knows how well occupied it is as the building looked well maintained and was quite large.
We followed this with a ride through Estepa and then to the chocolate factory which only makes chocolates between September and Christmas. Never mind, there was cafe for those of us who wanted a little tea and a fancy and lots of good local produce - including chocolate - on sale.
A final view of Estepa before the bus home to bed.
The trip turned out to be a good fundraiser for the theatre so thanks to all who came, we hope you enjoyed it.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Coming events.
The theatre has it's new flyer out and already changes need to be made. But it is great to start with news of an event that is over and much more successful than we had ever thought it would be. Last Thursday we had the first lunch of the year at Casa Rustica in Fish alley. We were a bit despairing last Monday with four booked but when Thursday came we had 50 members and their guests. The restaurant looked after us really well, and it couldn't have been easy having so many extra numbers at this time of the year. They even gave a meal voucher donation to our raffle which raised 100 euros for our funds. We have some difficulty with the venues for the next two lunches so do come along to the desk and find out what is planned. If we can do as well as Casa Rustica you will have a splendid day out.
Talking of days out we have a trip booked to Estepa on February 19th. Famous for asparagus and chocolate, not necessarily together, the end result is only part of the pleasures of the day. This time of the year southern Andalusia can look really attractive particularly as we pass almond groves in blossom.
We will be building on that with a more deliberate approach to finding the most beautiful parts of this region with our trip on March 19th
A past blog told you that we were cutting back on our fundraising events (booksales, bazaars etc) as age and backs caught up with us. So instead we tried a raffle for the Christmas Show and it proved so successful we had another one for the panto. Not quite as good but still a great contribution to FOTA's and ultimately the theatre's funds. Thanks to all who bought tickets. We plan another one during the run of 'The Full Monty'
Talking of days out we have a trip booked to Estepa on February 19th. Famous for asparagus and chocolate, not necessarily together, the end result is only part of the pleasures of the day. This time of the year southern Andalusia can look really attractive particularly as we pass almond groves in blossom.
We will be building on that with a more deliberate approach to finding the most beautiful parts of this region with our trip on March 19th
A past blog told you that we were cutting back on our fundraising events (booksales, bazaars etc) as age and backs caught up with us. So instead we tried a raffle for the Christmas Show and it proved so successful we had another one for the panto. Not quite as good but still a great contribution to FOTA's and ultimately the theatre's funds. Thanks to all who bought tickets. We plan another one during the run of 'The Full Monty'
My notes on the SALVA AGM
SALVA may not mean much to some of you but it is the controlling body of the theatre. It produces most of the plays seen there. Some productions come in from outside groups ( and it's a great way to visit the Costa del Sol) and SALVA will then be the local producer. It holds the lease of the theatre.
FOTA's history goes back along way (another time) but now we support the work of the theatre by fundraising and in what follows it's worth remembering that this year FOTA has given the theatre 19,000 euros partly because of a near emergency over the financial stability of SALVA.
At the meeting we were told that Lynn and Eddie Barnett (all names are on the SALVA Board unless otherwise stated) were sorting out legal problems, especially with regard to employment matters. As the theatre has grown with more and more productions, paid staff have become necessary. This has been the case for some time and now job descriptions and a proper contract setting out their parameters have been prepared.
Lynn and Eddie were also working closely with directors to prepare and monitor budgets for productions much more vigorously. They had examined production costs over the last two years to try to produce guidelines and this was described as a 'work in progress'. This was all necessary because the past year had been the best ever at the box office but had only produced a modest profit - hence FOTA's decision to hand over so much money.
There were no contests for the places on the Board which were due for re-election and the one vacancy was filled by Lynn Halliday, our Vice-president.
When Any Other Business came along it began with Sweelan Ford(non Board) asking if anything special would be done to celebrate 25 years of the theatre. She then volunteered to produce a booklet and calendar (see last post).
The cost control exercise took up some more time with it becoming more apparent that greater clarity in organisation structure and control was a significant need.
Lizz Freeman asked whether there were too many shows being put on since there was a limited pool of performers. No decision was taken.
A question was put about tickets being ordered and not picked up or paid for. A credit card system was not considered a good idea so I hope that no FOTA member does this !
The loop system for the hard of hearing is out of action at the moment and this is because the system seems to be incompatible with the theatre's current sound system. Howard John will try to find a way round this.
The meeting ended with a presentation and thanks to John Mack who is leaving the post of Treasurer after 19 years.
FOTA's history goes back along way (another time) but now we support the work of the theatre by fundraising and in what follows it's worth remembering that this year FOTA has given the theatre 19,000 euros partly because of a near emergency over the financial stability of SALVA.
At the meeting we were told that Lynn and Eddie Barnett (all names are on the SALVA Board unless otherwise stated) were sorting out legal problems, especially with regard to employment matters. As the theatre has grown with more and more productions, paid staff have become necessary. This has been the case for some time and now job descriptions and a proper contract setting out their parameters have been prepared.
Lynn and Eddie were also working closely with directors to prepare and monitor budgets for productions much more vigorously. They had examined production costs over the last two years to try to produce guidelines and this was described as a 'work in progress'. This was all necessary because the past year had been the best ever at the box office but had only produced a modest profit - hence FOTA's decision to hand over so much money.
There were no contests for the places on the Board which were due for re-election and the one vacancy was filled by Lynn Halliday, our Vice-president.
When Any Other Business came along it began with Sweelan Ford(non Board) asking if anything special would be done to celebrate 25 years of the theatre. She then volunteered to produce a booklet and calendar (see last post).
The cost control exercise took up some more time with it becoming more apparent that greater clarity in organisation structure and control was a significant need.
Lizz Freeman asked whether there were too many shows being put on since there was a limited pool of performers. No decision was taken.
A question was put about tickets being ordered and not picked up or paid for. A credit card system was not considered a good idea so I hope that no FOTA member does this !
The loop system for the hard of hearing is out of action at the moment and this is because the system seems to be incompatible with the theatre's current sound system. Howard John will try to find a way round this.
The meeting ended with a presentation and thanks to John Mack who is leaving the post of Treasurer after 19 years.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Your Help Needed - No Work Involved
At the AGM of SALVA held last week - of which more anon - SWEELAN FORD put up the idea of producing a small booklet of anecdotes, scenes etc from the history of the theatre to be published to celebrate the theatre's 25th anniversary next year. She is looking forward to compiling it and has asked for contributions by the end of May when she leaves for Singapore. The aim is to have it published for Christmas.
If you have anything you think might be good her e mail address for the project is slf.svarietes@hotmail.es
Rack those memories
If you have anything you think might be good her e mail address for the project is slf.svarietes@hotmail.es
Rack those memories
Thursday, January 08, 2009
January Committee meeting
I shall start with some notes for your diary.
Next Thursday, January 15th, we have our first lunch of 2009 and this will be at Casa Rustica in 'Fish Alley'. We've been there before and had a few cast parties there too and never been anything other than pleased.
After that we have a lunch planned for February 5th and again on March 5th. We have got to go back to the drawing board on venues as the restaurants we had thought to use are no longer available.
On February 19th Gina has organised a visit to Estepa (yes I know we said we'd go there before Christmas but we had a very pleasant trip to Rute instead). The main attractions are a visit to an asparagus farm - bit different that- and chocolate is involved somewhere. Not necessarily with the asparagus but I haven't looked at my Jamie Oliver recently so anything is possible.
Then the March trip is called 'Springtime in Andalucia' quite the most beautiful time to see our new homeland. Previous trips on the same sort of theme have involved stops for local produce and tastings to add a real interest to the day.
More details will be available on the desk on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and you can book at the same time. Each trip is 30 euros which includes the breakfast stop and lunch.
Now our main purpose is to raise funds for the theatre and as many of you will know there has been a bit of a crisis this past year. At one time there was some doubt that the theatre would be able to open for 2009 and FOTA has raided our piggy bank and so far 19000 euros has been handed over to SALVA.
Our fundraising has changed emphasis a bit. The events held on the theatre forecourt (book sales, bazaars etc) whilst profitable - the Christmas Bazaar made 340 euros - involves quite a bit of physical work and backs and other bits are protesting so we have moved the main activity to raffles held during busy shows. The raffle during the Christmas show raised 835 euros so thank you to those who bought tickets. The raffle during the panto wasn't quite so successful but we think we will be pleased when the final total is calculated.
Outside fundraising will continue on a limited basis with Helen Young organising another 'Petticoat Lane' for April 18th.
Many people think the theatre makes vast profits but I hope you can see that the contribution made by FOTA members and supporters makes a real difference. The yearly membership is now due (yes I did pay mine last week!) and any encouragement you can give to those who use the theatre and don't want it to go, to join us and join in will be great.
I shall look forward to seeing you on Wednesdays on the forecourt and the desk is open Mondays and Fridays as well.
Next Thursday, January 15th, we have our first lunch of 2009 and this will be at Casa Rustica in 'Fish Alley'. We've been there before and had a few cast parties there too and never been anything other than pleased.
After that we have a lunch planned for February 5th and again on March 5th. We have got to go back to the drawing board on venues as the restaurants we had thought to use are no longer available.
On February 19th Gina has organised a visit to Estepa (yes I know we said we'd go there before Christmas but we had a very pleasant trip to Rute instead). The main attractions are a visit to an asparagus farm - bit different that- and chocolate is involved somewhere. Not necessarily with the asparagus but I haven't looked at my Jamie Oliver recently so anything is possible.
Then the March trip is called 'Springtime in Andalucia' quite the most beautiful time to see our new homeland. Previous trips on the same sort of theme have involved stops for local produce and tastings to add a real interest to the day.
More details will be available on the desk on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and you can book at the same time. Each trip is 30 euros which includes the breakfast stop and lunch.
Now our main purpose is to raise funds for the theatre and as many of you will know there has been a bit of a crisis this past year. At one time there was some doubt that the theatre would be able to open for 2009 and FOTA has raided our piggy bank and so far 19000 euros has been handed over to SALVA.
Our fundraising has changed emphasis a bit. The events held on the theatre forecourt (book sales, bazaars etc) whilst profitable - the Christmas Bazaar made 340 euros - involves quite a bit of physical work and backs and other bits are protesting so we have moved the main activity to raffles held during busy shows. The raffle during the Christmas show raised 835 euros so thank you to those who bought tickets. The raffle during the panto wasn't quite so successful but we think we will be pleased when the final total is calculated.
Outside fundraising will continue on a limited basis with Helen Young organising another 'Petticoat Lane' for April 18th.
Many people think the theatre makes vast profits but I hope you can see that the contribution made by FOTA members and supporters makes a real difference. The yearly membership is now due (yes I did pay mine last week!) and any encouragement you can give to those who use the theatre and don't want it to go, to join us and join in will be great.
I shall look forward to seeing you on Wednesdays on the forecourt and the desk is open Mondays and Fridays as well.
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Happy New Year
That says it all really. Sorry it's a bit late but I've been away and anyway we only had our committee meeting this morning so it isn't just from me to you.
Goodbyes
2008 ended with sad news for FOTA members. One of our longest serving committee members, Jackie Brierley, lost her husband Eric after a long illness. Tomorrow (Wednesday January 7th) there will be a service followed by a lunch at the theatre bar. Many of you will know Jackie for her performances at the theatre, she has regularly manned the FOTA desk on Fridays, organised our lunches and been a stalwart of the various fundraising events we have held. Our sympathies are with Jackie at this difficult time.
On December 29th Ted Schepers, was found at his flat in Fuengirola. Ted was a regular on our FOTA trips and could be seen almost daily with his morning coffee and Daily Telegraph either at the theatre bar or across the way taking the sun. If you can't quite place him he was a Canadian and despite living in Putney for many years never lost that twang that Toronto gave him. One of the nicest people I have met in Fuengirola.
Finally our sympathies also go to Beryl Tidy. Beryl and David had not been long with us but rapidly became willing helpers at our events and with their sunny dispositions cheered us all up no end. Dave had been a willing worker backstage and was a great heaver of ropes and pulleys. Beryl comes back to Fuengirola next week and we are looking forward to seeing her.
On December 29th Ted Schepers, was found at his flat in Fuengirola. Ted was a regular on our FOTA trips and could be seen almost daily with his morning coffee and Daily Telegraph either at the theatre bar or across the way taking the sun. If you can't quite place him he was a Canadian and despite living in Putney for many years never lost that twang that Toronto gave him. One of the nicest people I have met in Fuengirola.
Finally our sympathies also go to Beryl Tidy. Beryl and David had not been long with us but rapidly became willing helpers at our events and with their sunny dispositions cheered us all up no end. Dave had been a willing worker backstage and was a great heaver of ropes and pulleys. Beryl comes back to Fuengirola next week and we are looking forward to seeing her.
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