About Us
St. Cuthbert's Amateur Dramatic Society Today
Our Society today is affectionately known by its initials – SCADS.
We are a friendly group of people who like nothing better than welcoming newcomers to join us – especially when it comes to pantomime time. This is our big production of the year and people from throughout the community become part of this very ‘professional’, amateur production! Our youngest usually come from the Year 2 class in St Cuthbert’s Primary School and our … shall we say, most experienced, have been retired from their careers for many years! Each year we look out for new people to join us on stage, back-stage, wardrobe helpers, choreographers, front of house and every other department that helps to put on an award-winning production.
Pantomimes
Pantomimes
St Chad's Theatre
Our theatre is housed in St Cuthbert’s Church of England Primary School on St Alban’s Road, where we have a large, fantastic stage along with lighting and sound systems, a wonderful array of screen cloths and flats, and a cellar that houses several hundred costumes and a collection of props.
Our Community
We work closely with our Ofsted Outstanding Primary School community and we have two former headteachers on our SCADS Committee. We have anything up to 50 of the school’s pupils in our pantomime along with other children from the local community. They love being part of our award-winning productions with many of them staying with us after they move on to secondary school. Over the years we have also seen St Cuthbert’s teachers, headteachers, other staff and governors on stage as well as many sharing their talents to help us backstage. St Cuthbert’s Parish Church is also well represented including our priest, who always has a starring role in our pantomime!
If you are interested in finding out a little more about our Ofsted Outstanding Primary School or our Family Friendly Church please visit the links below.
St. Cuthbert's Church
www.stcuthbertwithststephen.org/st-cuthberts
St. Cuthbert's Primary School
What We Do
At St. Cuthbert's Amateur Dramatic Society we host a number of events throughout the year.
Please see below for more information...
Quiz Nights
We host two quizzes each year - at the beginning of the year and in the autumn. Both are held St. Cuthbert’s Primary School hall. Places can be booked in a variety of ways - church, school, Facebook or our booking office. They are both fun quizzes with teams of six and there is a bar with very reasonable prices! We also have a potato (or cheese and onion) pie supper during which there is usually a picture round that everyone finds interesting to do! Our winter quiz is held in memory of Mr Neville Cordingley, a dedicated committee member who faithfully gave many years of service to SCADS. Neville was a much loved and respected asset to our society and is missed tremendously. We remember him each year by presenting the Cordingley Cup to the winning quiz team.
Dramas
After Easter, in late spring or early summer, we produce either a drama or murder mystery. Whichever we choose. it’s usually a light-hearted affair! Sometimes with supper and a bar.
The murder mysteries are always popular - an evening of detective work over a few drinks and then a pie supper.
If we chose to do a drama, we take care to make sure that it is a comedy or a light-hearted farce!
Pantomimes
Our big production, a pantomime, comes in November.
This mammoth production begins in February by which time a script is chosen. We then go through gathering a prospective cast, auditioning, awarding parts, and all the various gatherings that come before official rehearsals and back-stage crew workshops begin in early summer! Come the autumn, everything steps up a gear, getting more and more intense as November approaches.
Being long standing members of NODA - National Operatic and Dramatic Association, we invariably ask for our North West Representative to attend and write a review for us. This then means that we are considered for the various NODA Awards. Over the years we have won several NODA trophies and had even more nominations for various aspects of pantomime! Read More...
Committee Members
These dedicated people are the driving force behind everything that we do, and this is drawn from our church, school and wider community. This hard-working group of people gather in order to make the all-important decisions concerning our society. Good attendances at our meetings shows that these gatherings are looked upon as a social night out as well as a business meeting. The committee also work tirelessly to ensure that each and every event that we put on happens in a timely and most professional manner.
Let me introduce them to you …
Claire Marsden
Administrative Lead
Amber Gibson
Health and Safety Lead and Marketing Lead
Karen Clegg
Vice Chair
Roger Marsden
Website Lead
Jenny Tomlin
Secretary and Treasure
Denham Robinson
Stage Manager
Jane Cordingley
Committee Member
Matthew Wainwright
Sound and Lights Lead
Tracy Evans
Membership Lead
Janet Grime
Chair
Fr Nicholas Davies
Vicar of the Parish of St Cuthbert and St Stephen, Darwen
Get Involved
If you have an interest in any of the many skills and talents are needed to put on an award-winning production - acting, dancing, choreography, singing, playing an instrument, costumes, set building, prop making, sound and light, refreshment co-ordination, programme selling, booking office organisation, marketing... Whether you want to rekindle an old hobby, develop a current one, or you’ve just always had a yearning to get involved in amateur theatre, why not get in touch, you may just live out that dream!
Patrons
If you would like to support our society without being an active member, why not join us as a Patron? Patrons are invited to all our events – both productions and social functions. You would also receive free/reduced price tickets and refreshments. So why not support us and enjoy a few evenings out at the same time.
If you are interested in becoming part of our society in any way please Contact Us.
Frequently Asked Questions
When and where do rehearsals take place?
At the moment –
Cast - Friday nights and/or Sunday afternoon
Senior Chorus - Wednesday evenings
Junior Chorus - Wednesday after school
All take place in St Chad's Theatre, St Cuthbert's Primary School hall, St Alban’s Road Darwen, BB3 0HY
There are often additional rehearsals as opening nights approach
When do the stage crew meet?
Stage crew meet in the school hall most Saturdays from approximately May to November with extra days during some school holidays. They are sometimes joined by our technical team for light and sound
What about Wardrobe?
The wardrobe group initially meet by arrangement then much of the work is done in their own homes, meeting up together or for fittings as necessary
Do I need experience?
No, but if you do have a particular skill, please tell us!
How old do I need to be?
Children who are in Year 2 are the youngest children that join us in the Junior Chorus, other roles are looked at individually as they must be age appropriate
How much do I have to pay?
We ask for a small annual contribution towards our NODA fee - but it doesn’t cost anything to come and have a look
Do you loan out your equipment and costumes?
Yes, we are happy to loan out many of our items to help other amateur productions and for more information we ask that you get in touch
If you are interested in our society and would like to find out a little more about one of the many different areas that are part of putting on an award winning production we'd love to hear from you.
Please Contact Us.
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