Dear Friends and Members,

While enjoying this sunny spring day, I’m reflecting on our first Annual General Meeting in two years, held on 22nd March via Zoom. We now enjoy freedom from lockdown, and the Gage is looking forward to summer events, when we hope you will be there with us.

The Walton May Pageant, on 21st May, is an interesting and deservedly popular event, where we look forward to running our Gage stall and the bottle tombola stall next door to it. Donations of bottles would be appreciated, please, as the tombola is a great draw for people, so the more, the merrier!

However, the Pop-up Poetry matinee performance with Walton on the Hill Primary School has been deferred to March 2023. So many Surrey school children are now unwell with Covid, plus their families and teachers in many cases, that a September date would have been the earliest feasible one – but then the children in the top two classes would have changed at the start of the school year, leaving little time for all the preparation involved, and then closely followed by a very busy November/December getting ready for the school’s Christmas events. So they have agreed that next March would be best, and we look forward to that.

Our active member, Chris Slater, an accomplished organist, pianist, choirmaster and conductor, is planning a concert to celebrate his 90th birthday. His proposed date is 14th August at 3.15pm at St Peter’s Church, Walton on the Hill, followed by tea at 4.15pm at Breech Lane Community Hall. The programme is chosen but Chris is looking for more tenors and basses. The music would be rehearsed at 2pm ahead of the concert, so singers would need to be good sight-readers. Please contact the Gage if you can help. Although this is an event personally organised by Chris, the Gage will wholeheartedly be supporting him in the audience.

A rehearsed reading with supper is planned for 24th September – Playgoers by Sir Arthur Wing Pinero, directed by Chris Slater. Audition dates at Chris’s home will be set nearer the time.

Once again, our hoped-for winter production is going to be Molly’s Calling by Pip Rolls, performance dates planned as 24th, 25th and 26th November. Due to Covid and lockdowns, this would be our fourth attempt to stage this wonderful comedy and we will be so happy to see it performed on stage at last.

Two grant applications are in progress for funding to tide us over until we have built up our reserves to pay the very considerable up-front costs for a main production, and our winter play this year is partly contingent on our receiving at least one of these grants, so we eagerly await news .

Looking ahead to 2023, we hope to put on another main production in April, directed by Chris Slater, audition, rehearsal and production dates to advised at a later date.

Wishing you all a happy Easter when it comes, and looking forward to seeing you soon.

Best wishes,

Gay

Gay Weeden
Chair, The Gage Players

Dear Friends and Members,

I hope you are keeping well and are enjoying a bit more freedom now that most Covid restrictions have ended. I am writing this on a bright, crisp day, looking forward to the coming of Spring, with longer and warmer days ahead.

The Gage were delighted to tread the boards last Saturday with our first stage event in two years, an informal occasion for Gage members, their families and friends. Five short, historical comedies written and directed by Pip Rolls made up an evening of rehearsed readings, and they were hugely enjoyed by everyone – Pip, cast and crew, and visitors. The audience were amazed by the quirky twists and turns, altering the outcomes of history, and said what a clever concept it was and how much they’d relished it all. We were pleased that in the end more people came to enjoy the fun than was initially anticipated, and also that we were able to recoup a small part of the losses made in March 2020 when we were obliged to cancel a full show days ahead of opening.

The show that never opened was Molly’s Calling, also written and directed by Pip Rolls. In fact Pip brought the play to the point of performance twice more during 2020-2021, but two lockdowns and the continued risk of low audience numbers made it impossible to risk. Pip has now chosen a caretaker director, Val Anscombe, to lead on what we all hope will be a triumphant staging later on this year – we will keep you posted on dates, of course, and trust that all our stalwart supporters will return to enjoy a good story and a lot of laughs.

Unfortunately, due to the rising numbers of Covid cases among pupils and teachers in schools locally, we have had to postpone our planned March Saturday matinee, Pop-up Poetry. This is a joint Gage Players/Walton on the Hill Primary School event, for which children have a competition to write their own, or choose a favourite poem, and the best three from the top two classes will join the Gage on stage to read them out. A number of Gage members will also take part on stage, and currently we are hoping to put this event back in the calendar for September.

We are greatly looking forward to taking part in the Walton May Pageant on Saturday, 21st May. The pageant theme is ‘Our precious planet’ and as usual will begin with a costumed procession starting opposite the Blue Ball pub, up to the Pageant Green Arena in Howard Close, Walton on the Hill. The Gage will have its own stall and will also be running the tombola, so we look forward to welcoming old friends and making new ones at what is always a very popular day out for people, with or without their dogs, but generally with.

For now, we are hoping to stage some more one-off events, with people bringing their own choice of supper and enjoying the Gage’s additional catering. As we found on Saturday, these are very popular, and make a light-hearted and sociable evening out. We also have another full play in the planning, and one which we believe will be an instant draw for audiences, but more of that another time.

On 22nd March at 7.30pm we shall be holding the Gage AGM via Zoom, to review the period
gone by since the last one, and to outline forward plans. That is also the time when we ask members, old and new, to pay their subscriptions – £20 for full membership and £10 for juniors. The Zoom link will be sent round nearer the time, and if you are not already a member and would like to sign up to receive this, please visit our website:

www.thegageplayers.co.uk

I hope to welcome many of you to the AGM. Meanwhile, keep safe and stay well.

Very best wishes,

Gay

Gay Weeden, Chair, The Gage Players

Dear Members and Friends,

Season’s greetings to you all. Hoping Christmas will be happy and that 2022 will be a much better year than the last!

It was with great disappointment that we had to cancel our November play, Molly’s Calling by Pip Rolls. We found that with the possible Covid risk, our ticket sales were too low to enable us to cover the cost of the production. It was a tough decision to make. In order to keep The Gage alive we need our performances need to do a bit better than break even – and of course to enjoy large audiences – but we couldn’t do anything like that this time.

However, undaunted and with increased enthusiasm, we plan to go ahead with a February 2022 evening of rehearsed play readings, a collection of short comedies written by Pip Rolls entitled What Really Happened. These are hilarious tales re-arranging the course of historical events with amazing outcomes! A fun evening to be enjoyed when all the Christmas and New Year festivities are over. There is nothing like live theatre to lift the spirits and we are looking forward to entertaining you during the drab winter days.

The evening will begin at 7.00 pm with a fish and chip supper (and vegetarian option), followed by three short plays – The Pyramids of Giza, The Battle of Hastings and The Reformation – then an interval when coffee/tea and cakes will be served, followed by two more short plays (The Battle of Waterloo and Giants of Science), with the evening finishing at about 10.00 pm. Please bring your own wine or beer or drinks of choice and glasses will be provided. The date is 5th February, the time 7.00pm and the place The Riddell Hall in Walton on the Hill. Food booking information will be circulated nearer the time. Do come along to support us and to enjoy laughing and rolling in the aisles!

In common with professional theatres and other indoor venues, following current Covid regulations, we will ask our audience members to wear a mask when not eating or drinking, unless they are exempt.

Because our social Zoom evenings of poems and short plays were so successful we thought it would be a good idea to make a programme of them for a matinee – a completely new and different kind of event for us, and one which will involve children too. The head of the junior school where we now rehearse has agreed to hold a poetry ‘competition’ for the children of the top two classes, to present a reading of their chosen poem and even perhaps to write their own. Those who do really well will perform on stage with The Gage Players company, in between our members reading poems or presenting short sketches. The matinee will take place on the afternoon of Saturday, 12th March. There will be an interval for afternoon tea, and a presentation of small gifts with a certificate for all those children taking part. If this proves a success, matinees may become a regular feature for us, so please come along and give all of us your support – do put the date in your diary now.

Our planned spring 2022 production in April is Agatha Crusty and the Village Hall Murders by Derek Webb, directed by Christopher Slater. The performance dates for your diary are 28th, 29th and 30th April. The audition notice has gone out and is also on our web site, with audition dates in January plus contact information for Chris; rehearsals will start on Monday, 7th February, with Wednesdays and Mondays thereafter. This is a comedy thriller with a twist in its tale, so do step forward to audition for one of the great characters on offer, and put the playdates in your diary.

Looking further ahead, we will take part in the Walton May Pageant, but will send more details on that nearer the time, as well as for other social events during the late spring/early summer, and early autumn.

We plan to have our winter production next year on 24th, 25th and 26th November, 2022. The choice of play has yet to be decided, but please make a note of the performance dates in your diary.

We are looking forward with optimism to all the events planned for 2022, and won’t allow this variant of Covid to get us down!

I look forward to seeing you at our supper evening production on 5th February and wish you all a Happy Christmas and a healthy New Year!

Merry Christmas and good wishes,

Gay

Gay Weeden
Chair, The Gage Players

Dear Members and Friends,

I hope you are well and enjoying these bright days before the clocks go back!

As summer gives way to autumn, we at The Gage are looking forward to our November production, Molly’s Calling, written and directed by our own Pip Rolls. Rehearsals are well under way in our delightful new rehearsal hall at Walton Primary School – it has been so good to see everyone face to face after many months of Zoom meetings – and rehearsals are going well, with everyone enjoying the play’s clever humour. We are wrapping up warm while rehearsing simply because we are keeping the windows open for good ventilation – still, most of us have rehearsed in far worse conditions, so we can make light of it.

I hope you have all made a note of our performance dates: 25th, 26th and 27th November, with an 8.00pm start. Tickets are bookable now at our box office – 01737 812 703. Everyone ringing will be asked to remember to wear or bring layers of clothing, or other means of keeping comfortable, as the windows of the Riddell Hall will also be open for fresh air during performances. Hand sanitation will be available on entry and at other points in the hall and cloakrooms. If you wish to wear a face covering, please do, but it will not be compulsory, unless regulations change beforehand.

Looking ahead into 2022, we have lined up a really hilarious evening of short plays on Saturday, 5th February to get the year off to a good start. Step forward again Pip Rolls, who has devised some wonderfully whacky alternative takes on history that might have been. What if The Pyramids of Giza were really built by the Marrinot Hotel Group in a bid to capture the long-term market? What if The Battle of Waterloo was really fought at Waterloo Station during the day, to avoid rush hour? These and three other uproarious scenarios from across the ages will be played out for you in fast-moving, full-blooded comedy.

The evening will begin with supper at 7.00pm (to be pre-ordered in due course), followed by three plays and then an interval for coffee and cake, then two more plays to round the evening off by about 10.00pm. A call for auditions will go out in December, and booking information for members and friends will be sent early in the New Year, so keep the date free – remember, 5th February.

Our main spring production in 2022 will be Agatha Crusty and The Village Hall Murders by Derek Webb, with playdates of 28th, 29th and 30th April. More information next time, but you won’t want to miss this one, so do keep a note of the dates. The call for auditions will go out in January.

We have other events in view for the first half of the year, including our anticipated participation in the Walton May Pageant, and other plans (perhaps even including a matinee) at the Riddell Hall. Please let us know your views on matinee performances via our website – if lots of you are in favour of these we will do our best to comply.

In the second half of 2022 there will be the Gage Invitational Trophy Quiz, on 17th September at St Katharine’s Hall in Merstham, hosted by the previous winners, St Mark’s Players, and The Gage helping with admin. More about this in due course.

Our winter production dates will be 24th, 25th and 26th November, auditions in July, with rehearsals to start in September.

Back to this year – we are planning to hold the next informal Gage meeting on Zoom for play- and poetry-readings among friends on Tuesday, 2nd November at 8.00pm, and we hope as any people as possible will join in.

We are looking at suggestions for fund raising to help us cover the unavoidably increased costs of rehearsal space, so if you have any ideas you would like us to consider please get in touch via our web site.

We also look forward to welcoming you back to The Gage next month to enjoy Molly’s Calling, so do book your places soon, and help us ensure that live performances continue in our community.

Very best wishes to you all.

Gay

Gay Weeden
Chair, Gage Committee

Dear Members and Friends,

I’m sure you are enjoying the glimpses of sunshine between the clouds – rather like life during this pandemic! I hope you have kept well and perhaps have managed to have a holiday in our lovely country and seaside.

Unfortunately, our rehearsed reading with supper on 11th September has had to be postponed due to unforeseen problems, but we hope you will all come to enjoy it during 2022.

However, after months of uncertainty, The Gage are looking forward to performing on stage and are excited that rehearsals for our long awaited November production will recommence on 13th September. Molly’s Calling, written and directed by Pip Rolls, was intended for April 2021, so it’s fortunate that all the cast are still available and have certainly had plenty of time to learn their lines! Performances will be on 25th , 26th and 27th November at 8pm in the Riddell Hall, so please reserve these dates for this special play in your calendar. We can assure you that all Covid safety and hygiene measures will be in place to protect the audience and the cast. Tickets are £12.50 – the box office number is 01737 812 703.

A new early venture on 5th February 2022 is the staging of short plays written by Pip Rolls (already tried out impromptu by Gage members at our weekly Zoom get-togethers). These rehearsed readings will be held at the Riddell Hall, and the evening will begin with a supper. Audition and rehearsal dates are 26th and 31st January and 2nd February, most likely to be held at Pip’s home and/or by Zoom. These clever comedies will certainly brighten the dull times after Christmas and New Year, before we start rehearsals for our spring 2022 production.

I know many of you would have wished to attend Paul Brown’s memorial service, but due to Covid and Church rules, no more than 80 people were eventually allowed into the church. Jo, Paul’s wife, was very sorry that she had to keep strictly to the rules, and the service was shown on Zoom for everyone who wanted to be there. The service was beautifully organised, with lovely hymns and music that Paul had chosen. Jo gave a history of Paul’s life; I think few people knew of his talents, because he was a modest man. He was a top high board diving champion in his younger days and he also held a pilot’s licence, apart from representing England’s veteran cricket team in a recent year, in Australia. Of course, you all know of his drama talents, both acting and directing. His daughters and all five grandchildren paid tribute to his memory. I really felt sad for them, being so choked with emotion that they could hardly get their words out. It was all very moving, and I’m very pleased that I was included in the limited guest list.

On a different note, we would welcome any fundraising ideas to help offset the greater hall hire charges, as well as the maintenance and repairs of costume and store sheds. Prices have increased so much that your suggestions will be very welcome.

It will be good to see you all at our November play, Molly’s Calling, and to believe that the world is beginning to get back to something like normal.

Very best wishes,
Gay

Gay Weeden,
Chair, The Gage Players

Dear Members and Friends,

I hope you are all enjoying this cooler weather and making the most of our long-awaited freedom from lockdown.

The Gage is keen to get back to normality, and our future plans are now under way.  However, firstly we had to find a different venue for our rehearsals, because of greatly increased charges not being able to have our usual evenings and timings.  After contacting several possible halls, it was decided that Walton Primary School was the best choice.  They are very welcoming and we have our usual Monday and Wednesday evenings at our preferred times, and use of their facilities.  We can, in return, help them with their school productions, and it will feel good to be involved with the local community.  The hall is next door to our previous venue, and offers off-road parking.

Because we are nevertheless paying triple the cost for hiring a rehearsal space we urgently need to raise funds.  It has been decided to increase our ticket price to £12.50 – the first increase in six years.  But greater production costs still need to be met, so we need other ways of raising money.  Your suggestions and support would be very helpful, so thinking caps on, please, and do contact us via our website if you have ideas we might be able to use.

Our first event since November 2019 will be a rehearsed reading with supper for Gage members, their families and friends.  The play is Playgoers by Sir Arthur Wing Pinero and will be directed by Chris Slater.  The date is Saturday, 11th September, 2021 – 7pm supper followed by 8pm performance at The Riddell Hall.  Information on how to book your places and your food will be circulated in good time.   

For our winter 2021 play we are delighted at last to be performing Molly’s Calling, written and directed by Pip Rolls; this was originally scheduled for April 2020, then November 2020 and then April 2021, each time delayed because of Covid 19 restrictions.  We now look forward to performing it on 25th, 26th and 27th November this year at 8pm each evening at The Riddell Hall.  There have been no auditions this time as the original cast are still available, so please put the dates in your diary and give The Gage your valued support once again.  Box office number is 01737 812 703. 

For the first time there will be an early event in 2022, another evening of rehearsed readings: supper at 7pm, the performance to begin at 8pm, an interval around 8.30 followed by the second half.  Pip Rolls has written some short comic plays for us, so it should be a very good evening.  The date is Saturday, 5th February at The Riddell Hall, with an auditions notice expected to be circulated in early December. 

Our spring 2022 production performance dates will be 28th, 29th and 30th April – the play is nearly chosen, so please put these dates in your next year’s diary, more information will follow next time.  Until rehearsals start, we enthusiastically continue our weekly Zoom get-togethers on Wednesday evenings at 8pm, reading short plays and poetry, keeping the Gage alive, and enjoying the humour and company of good friends.

I wish you all a good summer and look forward to welcoming you on 11th September and at our winter play.

Gay Weeden

Newsletter May 2021

Dear Everyone,
I hope you have all kept well during this worrying pandemic and lockdowns.
This has been a year like no other for The Gage, with all plans put on hold until we can mingle safely again. As a team, we have been inventive, determined to keep The Gage interesting and alive. Since mid-September we have held weekly 8pm Zoom sessions for all our members, with poetry, prose and play-readings. The variety has been great fun and our evenings very entertaining, sometimes with limericks and poems written by our own members, at other times listening to well-loved favourites, which so often could be new to others.
Recently we have begun to do one-act play readings – if they’re short we can often fit two into one Zoom session, so everyone can read/take a part. We are lucky to have our own playwright, Pip Rolls, who has provided some brand new hilarious shorties on topics we can all relate to. Even after lockdowns and restrictions have ended we plan to keep our Zoom sessions going, as they make such an entertaining break and are a fun way of keeping in touch.
As I write, theatres and halls are beginning to open their doors for plays and concerts – oh, how we have missed them and will appreciate their performances more than ever.
The Gage at recent Zoom committee meeting began to make tentative plans for its own events this year and next at The Riddell Hall, scheduling hall bookings, auditions, rehearsals and performances. We shall obviously be guided by any rulings or restrictions in place at the time.
So, diaries to the fore and please pencil in the following productions in the hope that we can all share enjoyable evenings together again soon.
On Saturday, 11 th September, 2021 we plan a rehearsed reading with supper at The Riddell Hall of Playgoers by Sir Arthur Wing Pinero, directed by Christopher Slater, with supper after the performance. Curtain up at 7pm with supper at 8pm. Auditions and booking information will follow.

Our winter 2021 production will be Molly’s Calling, written and directed by Pip Rolls, to be performed at 8pm at The Riddell Hall on Thursday 25th, Friday 26th and Saturday 27th November.
We are also planning a Saturday evening event in February 2022, ahead of our spring production in late April.
We so look forward to seeing you all again.

******

Our renewed condolences to Clare Smyl, whose husband Ned died in February. Clare is one of our invaluable stage managers, and Ned was a stalwart backstager, always ready to lend a hand.
Many of you will have known Paul Brown, who died last year. Paul’s wife Jo will be holding a memorial celebration at Mickleham Church on Friday 30th July at 2.30pm, with refreshments afterwards in the village hall, and would be delighted to see many of you there.
Perhaps some of you are looking forward to a much needed holiday, so I hope the sun will shine for you after so much rain. Keep well and enjoy the summer with its gradually growing freedoms.
Very best wishes to you all,

Gay Weeden
Chair