It’s always a delight when a play is called to the bar
UNDER normal circumstances, this time in the theatre calendar sees the final performances of the season being practised and honed.
Our bar production usually falls around the first week of June.
This gem cannot currently be a part of the Subscriber Season because the number of seats in the bar is less than half that of our auditorium.
This unique production, as you might imagine, is performed in our beloved bar.
When the theatre was first licensed in the 1960s, the bar was on the second floor.
However, after the car park was remodelled to be part of the building, the bar as we know it opened 40 years ago.
The bar production has been a firm feature ever since.
More often than not, the director will contain the action to the floored area in the centre, and present their play “in the round”.
Having your audience on four sides is a unique challenge to ensure everybody gets a good view.
Props must be carefully placed, and the dialogue must be delivered so clearly.
For the actors, having your audience so close is both intimate and intimidating.
You have the opportunity to pull people into the story even more deeply, but you can also hear every sniff and sigh!
There are a multitude of reasons our play selection and casting committee might nominate a play for suitability for the bar.
It is a nice space for a small cast, or a play with monologues.
Two examples of this would be Alan Bennett’s Talking Heads, performed 20 years ago, and The Regina Monologues, performed five years ago.
The latter was a modern retelling of the six wives of Henry VIII and each wife delivered several monologues in turn.
The running time of this imaginative piece was akin to a one act play, so it featured in a double bill titled Kings And Queens and was complimented by scenes from The Lion In Winter.
Another characteristic of a play that might make it more suitable for this setting is if it is a challenging piece; maybe a new play or one with a contentious or sensitive subject matter.
This is subjective, but an example of such a play would be Equus, performed 30 years ago in the bar.
Peter Shaffer’s play tells the story of a psychiatrist treating a young man who has a pathological religious fascination with horses.
Equus enjoyed a West End revival in 2007 with Daniel Radcliffe in the role of the boy.
In 2009 we were lucky enough to be able to present a play written by a member of the Southport Dramatic Club.
The late Alistair Hewitt wrote the witty The Dangers Of Tobacco that was a firm hit with members and audiences alike.
Hopefully we will be able to bring you another bar production in 2021, so keep an eye out for this when the theatre reopens.
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