HAODS - For the best entertainment in live theatre, together with top quality drama - amdram at its best, Henley Operatic & Dramatic Society has it all. Performing at the Kenton Theatre, Henley-on-Thames, NODA award winning HAODS musicals and plays are renowned for excellence.

Book and lyrics Ron Pember and Denis De Marne

Director - Michael Huntington
Musical Director - Anthony Witt
Choreographer - David Parsonson

"Murderously funny"  New York Times
"I nearly died laughing" Washington Post
"A rip-roaring romp" Chicago Tribune

Fresh from its award winning American tour, where it gained critical acclaim, Jack the Ripper, The Musical, is about to break out on the Kenton Stage once more. HAODS last performed this show in 1995 when it made a lasting impression on many members of the cast as a great fun show with some unforgettable songs. It was also memorable because Brakspears Brewery donated a barrel of beer to be used on stage!

Now written into English folklore, the story centres around the infamous murders of five women in Whitechapel in1888 by the self-styled “Jack the Ripper”. Set in an East End music hall pub, The Steam Packet, it is told in real time through the song and satire of the music hall songs that the Victorians were so good at, but it is also a social comment on the times, which is still relevant today. An unlikely subject for a musical perhaps? But then so is Sweeney Todd and the Titanic - and we all know the ending to that one! Although it does have its obvious dark side with the subject matter, as you see by the newspaper reviews from its recent award winning American tour it will not only give you a good scare that we all love, but will also have you laughing uncontrollably and send you home with such songs as Saturday Night and Half a Dozen Pints in your head which will be impossible to stop singing!

 The show runs from 18 – 20 April 2012 at 7.45pm, Sat 21 April at 1.00pm and 6.00pm

Please note the times for the Saturday performances. For those members intending to come to the Matinee, there is all day parking at Henley Rugby Club, Marlow Road, RG9 2JA for just £2.30.

Christine was a long-term resident of Henley, having moved to the town in 1963 with her husband, Maurice, and her children, Linda and David. By the late sixties she was a secretary at Gillotts School (where both her children were then pupils) and Maurice had just started a business as a quantity surveyor. But in 1969 tragedy struck and a major car accident, in which the whole family was injured, drastically changed the direction of Chris's life. Her husband died of injuries sustained in the accident and she was left to raise her teenage children alone.

She also saw the abrupt end of a busy social and professional life. Maurice had been Chairman of the Henely Round Table at the time of his death, so Chris threw herself into her own hobbies and was an active member of HAODS, where she headed the wardrobe department for a production of West Side Story. She was forever grateful for the friendliness and spirit shown by so many Henley friends who continued to include her in the activities at the theatre, in Ladies' Circle and Tangent for the rest of her life. She had tremendous courage and had to come to terms with the loss of sight in one eye, and the subsequent inability to drive, so she moved from the house she and her husband had built to be closer to town.

In retirement she remained an enthusiastic member of HAODS and Tangent, where she enjoyed meeting friends old and new. She watched her daughter, Linda, forge a successful career at the BBC, and her son, David, establish and grow his business locally. She was equally proud of them both.

Chris was in good health when she celebrated her 81st birthday in mid-November. A short illness at home caused her to be admitted to the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading where she died on Christmas Day of pancreatic cancer.

Her family are relieved that what could have been a prolonged illness was mercifully short, and send their thanks to all in Burghfield Ward at the hospital.

Geeky, quirky, snappy, wacky.... and every other cookie adjective you can think of ... I mean it's crazy, who has ever heard of a man eating plant? Ridiculous! However, after two hours in the company of Audrey II I was ready to believe anything! Henley Amateur Operatic and Dramatic Society (HAODS) have done it again with their production of Little Shop of Horrors. They have branched out into the exotic and potted up this horticultural horror of a show for us with their usual style and panache, and a clever, clever set and an atmosphere that left us in no doubt that we were in an alley in Skid Row in the late 50s.

Little Shop of Horrors is a rock musical which has enjoyed several re-pottings over the last fifty years. It began life as a low budget black comedy film in 1960, but composer Alan Menken and writer Howard Ashman turned it into a musical in 1982 which continued to amaze and delight off-Broadway audiences for a staggering 2209 performances and was awarded the New York Critics Award for Best Musical. Little Shop Of Horrors then made history when the musical, based on a movie, was then shot as a movie itself starring Rick Moranis as Seymour, Ellen Greene, reprising her stage role as Audrey and Levi Stubbs, of the Four Tops as the voice of Audrey II.

The music is in the legendary style of the 60s with rock and roll, doo-wop and early Mowtown combining in irresistible toe-tapping numbers, including Downtown, Somewhere that's Green and Suddenly Seymour. Musical Director, Alan Lineham, says that he has sold his soul to rock and roll and that surely comes across in the terrific interpretation and discipline of this hot-showadi-wadi all-singing cast. The timings and musical cues were effortlessly accurate, demonstrating just how hard this small cast has worked. The musical backing is provided by a sizzling trio of on-stage, back-combed beauties, Chiffon, Crystal and Ronnette, played respectively by Claire Wallis, Lucy Potter and Daisy O'Halloran, who also turn their hands to a little dentistry, bribery and composting.

Whilst in that euphoric half sleep in the darkest before dawn, I was there. I was there in Llareggub, that sleepy little Welsh sea-side village of less than five hundred souls and three quaint streets and black dab-filled sea, where the one place of worship with its neglected graveyard is of no architectural interest and bugger all happens. Dylan Thomas's words pulsing rhythmically through my mind, backed softly by Polly Garter singing wistfully about her long dead lover rocked me gently awake. For for a few short hours the night before, I had been privileged to hear the story of Under Milk Wood by the Welsh wizard word-smith who has woven such a story in words around this sleepy back water of life that has enthralled audiences for almost sixty years. The words simply stay with you ar hyd y nos  all through the night.

Llarregub is, of course, Bugger all backwards and for just two nights, Henley Amateur Operatic and Dramatic Society gave spellbinding performances of this classic tale in their intimate performance space, the HAODS Studio. The dreaming, the scheming, the drinking, the dead and the living all portrayed with graphic clarity by the members of the Society. The story of Under Milk Wood was actually the play within the play for it was the Pontypridd Repertory Amateur Thespian Society - The P.R.A.T.S - who had won the a competition in 1954 to broadcast their reading of the play at the BBC Wales studios in Cardiff. I have seen it as a full stage play, but this was a unique way to stage it, for Thomas actually described it as "A Play for Voices" and that is exactly what we were treated to, as we were transported back to those heady days when radio was in its zenith and sound effects were created live with an array of implements including a very convincing cock-crow that came from somewhere among this talented cast!

Anthony Head, a long-standing member of the Henley Operatic society passed away on the 16th November, 2011 aged 46 years after a year long struggle against cancer. Anthony was a good friend of mine and his lovely wife Caroline has let me write a few words about him and his time with HAODS. I had known Anthony as a little boy as Barbara and Brian Head had performed with my parents since the late 1960s but I really only began my friendship with Anthony when he reached his teens. Anthony dragged me off the street one rehearsal evening in 1986 and pulled me in to join with him in the cast of Carousel. Anthony had a very positive attitude towards life that made him a person you wanted to be with. If he suggested doing something, I would be there like a shot as I knew it would be fun. Carousel was just exactly that, great fun and from that point both Anthony's and my involvement with the society went from strength to strength. As well as Carousel, I had the pleasure of performing with Anthony in Fiddler on the Roof and West Side Story but when Anthony went on to perform a starring role in Camelot I merely watched him from the wings, my face beaming whenever he was on stage.

We had a lot of fun during rehearsals whilst viewing the drama both on and off-stage. Both Anthony and I enjoyed watching the emotions, politics and human chemistry that the performers exhibited during a HAODS show and we used to talk about the goings-on in the society and laugh deep into the night. Anthony wasn't just content to sit back and watch, he was a contributor and a doer - he performed confidently and in his own style. He loved singing and whilst he sang he was disarming, charming and loveable. He performed whenever a keyboard was near and loved to entertain. I think that will be my abiding memory of him, a man that was fun to be with because he was so eager to please. He was a man who was easy to love because he was so clever and charming yet so naughty. Anthony was a good man and the world is a poorer place for his loss. He leaves his wife Caroline and three children, Lewis, George and James. Our condolences go out to them and to his parents, Brian and Barbara and his sister Rachel, whose loss must be so deep. Cheerio Ant, we'll miss you.

I was fortunate to see Tuesday night's performance of Little Shop of Horrors, and I am glad I saw it so early in the run - it gives me plenty of time to spread the word on just how good this show is! It is running until Saturday 19 November, so get your tickets and come and enjoy it.

The set cannot be praised enough. Not only did it look amazing, but the use of it by the cast was extremely funny and timed perfectly (once you have seen it you will know what I mean!). The costumes were excellent, with close attention to details  - such as Audrey's leopard print sling and apron.

But of course, it was the performers themselves who sparkled when the lights went up. Every character was presented perfectly, and there were some exceptional moments from every single member of the cast. The singing was of a consistently high standard, and the harmonies were striking.

I could go on and describe how the sound, lighting and music enhanced this production, and the individual moments which stood out for me, but the best thing I can say about this production is - go and see it! I have seen this show performed several times before and I can honestly say that I have not seen a production come close to this one. The only thing that is letting it down is audience numbers. The cast and production team have all worked so hard to get it to this level and they deserve full houses. So if you haven't booked your tickets yet, then make sure you do come to the Kenton and see this remarkable show. I promise you, you will not be disappointed. And if you come on Saturday night you will see me there - once wasn't enough for me, so I will back in the audience for last night. I hope to see you there too.

Tickets can be ordered online or from the box office on 01491 575698.

With just over a week to go until Little Shop of Horrors opens - the cast are working hard to perfect their performances, the band are rehearsing with band call tomorrow, the production team are finalising lighting and sound, the crew are building set and finalising props and costumes - it is definitely all go.

Promotion of the show is still so important - we want everyone to get the chance to enjoy the show. So please tell your friends, collegue, family, total strangers on the street and book your tickets NOW!

The cast working hard and tomorrow lunchtime the full cast will be in the Market Square in Henley to encourage the public with a rendition of Skid Row - come along and cheer us on if you are around!

 Two other important things that member have told me to mention in my updates:

1) We are not performing The Rocky Horror Show!! Meeting a HAODS member in Waitrose the other day (as one does!), he informed me he wouldn't be coming as Rocky Horror isn't quite his thing. Although Little Shop is also a parady of a B-movie, has extreme characters and saying there is no men in drag would also be a lie - it is a different show!! Little Shop is a great story, with fantastic songs and although a little Sci-Fi - should be enjoyed by all so come along and give it a chance!

 2) "The cream of the society" will be performing - another HAODS member's words not mine! There really is an amazing level of talent in this show and with Lloyd White (director of HAODS' award winning West Side Story) at the helm it is coming together beautifully. The amazing James Gwynne is playing the hapless florist worker Seymour - previously seen in Bedroom Farce, James hasn't been in a HAODS musical for a while. The magnificant Sally Rowlandson is taking on the role of ditzy blonde Audrey - better known on stage in Maidenhead but a welcomed talent to the Kenton. The fantastic Tim Harling will be playing another quiet and understated role as Orin Scrivello. The outstanding Greg Stack will be making his musical theatre debut as Mushnik and new talent Mark Khutan will be the voice of Audrey II - read more about Mark in this week's Henley Standard.  The sensational Ioan Havard will not only be building the set but also playing "a few" roles in the show - and they say men can't multi-task! Plus the wonderful and beautiful Claire Wallis and Lucy Potter will be joining me as the 3 Skid Row urchins - Crystal, Ronette and Chiffon.

Book your tickets now and don't miss out on Little Shop of Horrors! www.kentontheatre.co.uk or 01491 575698 (between 11 and 5 generally)

Do you realise that at the time of writing it is only eight weeks to Christmas? Sorry to mention the “C” word, but best you be prepared! We shall, of course, be having our usual Christmas extravaganza with Big Al playing Santa as usual. This year’s date is 12th December, so put the date in your diary.

The time is flying by with an in incredibly busy start to our season! September saw the first in the season of Up Close and Personal – our evenings with a West End Star, and despite the fact that our headliner, Jodie Jacobs was ill, we were treated to not one, but four artists – followed by the October evening with James Gillan. We began our 90th Anniversary year with the wonderful exhibition in the Studio masterminded by Ann Jenkin and executed by Mary Dickinson and Hazel West Manning followed by a dazzling evening in the Hotel du Vin.

However, I am writing this still basking in the triumph of our production of Under Milk Wood. Our audiences were excellent both nights, which bodes well for future Studio Productions, with a very special addition to the audience on Saturday, members of the Oxford Welsh male voice choir who were on their feet and helped us raise the roof with the Welsh National Anthem with full harmony! I am sure that those who were there will agree that it was an emotional moment. It was almost too much for me! The applause and cheering was such that we took at least six curtain calls until we had to get them to calm down and go to the bar! Everyone was absolutely brilliant with their characterisation and I want to extend a personal thank you to everyone who took part. There will be more Studio Productions in the future, bringing low-cost, high quality drama to Henley.

And now to the future. We have a wonderful production of Little Shop of Horrors coming up on 13 - 19 November – get your tickets now from The Kenton theatre box office on 01491 575698 or on line at www.kentontheatre.co.uk

Little Shop of Horrors is just around the corner and audiences can be guaranteed a night of pure entertainment presented by this exceptional cast. Get your tickets and publicise this show to your friends and family. We want to make sure that we get the audience that this show deserves.

But as is the nature of amateur societies, we are already looking forward and preparing our next shows. The productions have been selected for the next two years, and we are sure that there is something to please everyone in these offerings.

Spring 2012 Jack the Ripper the Musical. We revisit this amazing musical which we first produced in 1995. It follows the fate of the five prostitutes murdered by the Ripper through the medium of song set in an East End Music Hall Pub. Since HAODS produced it, it has enjoyed a smash Broadway run and has just finished a successful UK and Korean tour. A true Society musical that everyone can be a part of. Readings are on Tuesday 22nd and Thursday 24th November at 7:30pm in The Studio. Auditions are on Saturday 26th November at 2pm in The Studio.

Autumn 2012 Witchfinder. In true pioneering spirit, as with Raffles of Singapore when HAODS won the nomination for the best musical, HAODS are producing another new musical, Witchfinder. Based on the Pendle witch trials in 1612 this year will be the 400th anniversary of the hangings. Great music and great opportunities for all age groups, with a good strong chorus.

Spring 2013 Cabaret or Guys and Dolls. HAODS had very much hoped to produce Cabaret in the Spring of 2012, but we have been unable to secure the rights for the show. We still wish to keep it on our radar as we know that there has been a lot of interest in it, but if it is still to be unavailable this time next year, then Guys and Dolls will be a great alternative.

Autumn 2013 Disney’s Beauty and the Beast. Bordering on pantomime, but not quite, with a wealth of great parts and songs, this delightful piece has been snapped up by amateur societies around the country. We look forward to the fun and kudos of this lovely show.

It is scary how quickly we have gone from starting rehearsals to show time – it always goes so fast! We have our first Sunday rehearsal this weekend and are now off books (well - with a few prompts needed along the way!) The dances and songs are becoming really strong and there are some great moments through the show – that still make the cast laugh so hopefully the audience will enjoy!

Final set decisions, lighting and sound are now being organised with the very talented production team and the band are liasing with MD Alan ready for next weekends band call.

We have the much anticipated arrival of “THE PLANT” aka Audrey II next week. Anyone who has seen the film will remember the massive shop-encompassing plant and transferring this to stage is no easy task. Mark Khutan – a first time performer with HAODS - is taking on the challenge of the plant's character, words and songs with Richard Evans taking the role of chief puppeteer! The two are going to have to work closely together help get Audrey II to come alive on stage.

So it is all go in the LSOH camp! The only thing we need all HAODS members, families and fans to do is to be there to enjoy it. Tickets are on sale now in the Kenton Theatre Box Office – www.kentontheatre.co.uk or 01491 575698.

HAODS members old and new, former and current and young and less young, all joined together to celebrate the 90th birthday of HAODS. The guests were invited to attend dressed "in true theatrical tradition" and they certainly did! The ladies donned lots of glitter and feathers, while the gentlemen proved that there is nothing quite so dashing as a DJ.

The attendees were welcomed to The Studio with a glass of wine, and were then invited to look round the wonderful displays of past productions. There was lots of fun in spotting people in the photographs and publicity material and marvelling at how young we all once looked, and a lot of memories of past triumphs were brought back.

But the evening wasn't just about celebrating the past. Once the guests had moved on to the beautiful Hotel du Vin, we were entertained by cast members of the next HAODS production, Little Shop of Horrors. Due to illness, they were unfortunately without Audrey and Seymour, but the Ronnettes, aided by Ioan Harvard and Director Lloyd White, performed some excellent musical numbers and gave the audience an idea of just how phenomenal this show is going to be. Special Guest, Alan Elston, led everyone in singing some songs from Oklahoma, and Julie Huntington updated everyone on the shows for the coming year - Jack the Ripper the Musical and Witchfinder.

A huge effort had gone into the evening, and it is thanks to Julie Huntington and the Social Committee that the event was so enjoyable. Thank you to everyone who helped with the displays and the organisation, and thank you to those who performed and entertained the guests. A special thank you also for the wonderful cake (baked by a HOADS member) that was much admired by all guests, and definitely tasted as good as it looked! It was a fitting way to mark our society's birthday - by bringing together so many members to celebrate their achievements and to look forward to the many achievements that are yet to come.

Ever woken up with a bad hair day? This is how HAODS chair, Julie Huntington, felt when she heard the news at the eleventh hour that the first in the season of Up Close and Personal with a West End performer might end in disaster as the billed star, Jodie Jacobs, had gone down with serious throat problems! With Jodie's opening night in Rock of Ages at the Shaftsbury Theatre looming in just two days time, her doctor had ordered her to bed. Thus, HAODS were potentially left with a stage without a singer! However, enterprising musical director, Andy Smith, called in several favours and managed to pull four replacement performers out of the hat!

The evening was rescued by James Milton, who was nominated for Best Actor for his role as Marius in Les Miserables, Poppy Carter, who has recently played opposite Keira Knightley in Children's Hour in the West End, Stuart Armfield, whose credits include Gad in Joseph and his Technicolor Dreamcoat and Samuel in Pirates of Penzance, and Helen Petrovna, who swore to us that she was "only a dancer" despite having played Cosette in Les Miserables, and Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors! The stars chatted casually with the audience, sharing personal information and funny anecdotes about their performances - more often than not about things that had gone wrong and how situations were rescued!

With only one run through at 6pm the artists were ready to perform at 8pm. The show was a resounding success, just going to prove the true professionalism of the stars that Britain is lucky to have gracing the stages in the West End.

An enthusiastic audience was also treated to some comic songs from little known musicals by HAODS member, Ian Head, and some songs from James Gwynne and Sally Rowlands who are playing the lead characters of Seymour and Audrey in the up-coming musical, Little Shop of Horrors, which will be performed at the Kenton Theatre 13 - 19 November (Kenton box office 01491 575698).

Readings - Tuesday 22nd and Thursday 24th November at 7:30pm in The Studio. 

Auditions - Saturday 26 November at 2pm in The Studio.

For our Spring production in this, our 90th Anniversary year, HAODS has chosen Jack the Ripper, the Musical, by Ron Pember and Denis de Marne. You may think this is a bit of a macabre choice, but although it does have its obvious dark side with the subject matter, there is a lot of fun in the show.

Set in an East End Musical Hall Pub, The Steam Packet in 1888, this intriguing show, which has just enjoyed an award winning tour in the States, centres around the infamous murder of five women in Whitechapel. The story is told in 'real time'  through the music hall songs, some nineteen musical numbers in all. All cast are on stage 90% of the time and the show is packed with memorable songs and dances (including a ballet sequence). There are parts for all ages and lots of opportunities for singers and dancers alike - a true Society show! However, for all its fun, it brings home the fear felt by the local community and makes a social comment which is still relevant today.

HAODS last produced this show 16 years ago and performed to packed houses. We have the chance to re-visit the Steam Packet and bring a fresh new look at the show - hopefully with the same audience levels! Further information on audition dates etc to follow.

Cast:
The victims:
Marie Kelly (tart and music hall entertainer) murdered 9 November
Lizzie Stride (tart and runs a boarding house) murdered 30 September
Annie Chapman (tart) murdered 8 September
Polly Anne Nicholls (tart) murdered 31 August
Catherine Eddowes (tart) murdered 30 September

Liza Pearl, Martha Tabram, Frances Cole

Montague Druit (social reformer)
Chairman of the Steam Packet show/Sir Charles Warren

Daniel Mendoza (Gang leader)
Dinky Nine-Eights (gang member)
Bluenose Stack (gang member)
Slop Wallace (gang member)

Lord Overcoat ( dirty old tramp), Police Sergeant Coles, P.C. Bogey, P.C. Farty-nine, Holy Joe (salvationist), Queen Victoria
chorus: Dockers, Salvation Army, Boozers at the Steam Packet
Ballet dancers

No.18 Stanley McMurtry - Cartoonist (1936- )

Stanley McMurtry - better known as 'Mac' for almost forty years as the celebrated cartoonist of the Daily Mail - was born in Edinburgh but moved to Birmingham when he was just eight years old. At the age of fourteen he became a student at the Birmingham College of Art and in 1954 he was, like many of us, called up for National Service.

After leaving the army he became a film animator and also began to submit cartoons to various magazines. About this time he moved to the Henley area and joined the Henley Players.

In January 1961, Today magazine published one of his cartoons and this was the beginning of a career as a freelance cartoonist. For several years his drawings were seen in children's comics such as Wham! and Buster and he was, at the same time, a regular contributor to Punch.

In 1968 he joined the Daily Sketch where he adopted the pseudonym 'Mac' and, when the Sketch was absorbed by the Daily Mail in 1971, 'Mac' was also absorbed and soon became the regular Political and Social Cartoonist.

His style has been described as "apolitical" but Mac himself says "My philosophy is simple; I'm not just making a social or political comment, I'm also making people laugh".

In 2008, Mac revealed that he had, for many years, included a portrait of his wife somewhere in his daily cartoon, sometimes in the ripples of a puddle, floating in the clouds or tangled in a hedge.

Stanley McMurtry appeared in several of the Henley Players productions but he is probably best remembered for his portrayal of Carnoustie Bligh in Sailor Beware, performed at the Kenton 4th - 7th February 1959.

Bill Port

Last night's rehearsal got me thinking about those involved in Amateur theatre – there is just such a mixture of people and personalities. HAODS includes everyone from lawyers to sales staff to teachers to estate agents – all of whom have one thing in common – a love of the theatre.Whether it is to escape from the realities of a tough day job, a chance to meet like minded people, the opportunity to try new things and challenge oneself – whatever the reason, the result is great!

Rehearsals are now well under way for Little Shop of Horrors and we are starting the dreaded first run through – always a scary moment! Everyone's characters are really coming alive now and people are relaxing into their movements and accents – although personally, I am still slipping from New York to newly out of private school (definitely a work in progress!)

Everyone is buckling down now to some real hard work – practising dance routines in tea breaks or grabbing any opportunities to go through harmonies with MD Alan. Although with the mixture of characters in the show and amazing comedy moments – it is sometimes hard to be serious!

The cast are hoping to get the opportunity to give a little taster of the show to everyone attending the 90th Anniversary celebration at Hotel du Vin on Sunday. A great chance to promote the show and get singing the songs in front of an audience.

I am still searching for new opportunities to bring in audience members though – please get in touch if you have an idea for promotion or if you have somewhere you can handout leaflets to people. Any help much appreciated. It is going to be a great show and it would be great to have a strong audience supporting us!

Rehearsals are underway for the HAODS production - Little Shop of Horrors (13th-19th November 2011)! With lots of clever harmonies to learn, accents to work on and crisp dance routines to memorise the cast definitely have a challenge on their hands but are loving it so far.

For those of you not familiar with the show, here is a bit of background:

Little Shop of Horrors is a musical about a hapless florist shop worker who raises a plant that feeds on human blood! The musical is based on the low-budget 1960 black comedy film - The Little Shop of Horrors. The music was composed by Alan Menken in the style of early 1960s rock and roll, doo-wop and early Motown, including several well-known tunes including Skid Row, Somewhere that's Green and Suddenley, Seymour.

In addition to the original long-running 1982 off-Broadway production and subsequent Broadway production, the musical was made into a 1986 film of the same name - starring Rick Moranis as Seymour, Ellen Greene as Audrey, Steve Martin as Orin and Levi Stubbs as the voice of the Plant. It even starred Bill Murray!

Avid fans and total newcomers to the show will both enjoy this upbeat, funny, clever and entertaining show. It is definitely worth putting the date in your diary!

New timings, pricing and promotions have been put in place for this show to encourage a larger audience. It would be great to see larger numbers than we have had for previous shows –
if you have a way to promote the show or an idea for publicity please get in touch with Daisy O'Halloran ( email her here or 07983 333757)

Tickets are available direct from the Kenton Theatre: www.kentontheatre.co.uk

Happy Birthday to us....!

Yes, HAODS is about to celebrate a staggering 90 years of bringing first class entertainment to Henley. The first meeting of the Society was on 14th October, 1921 which was the first rehearsal of the Gilbert and Sullivan Operetta, The Mikado. To mark this amazing achievement, we shall be holding an exhibition of memorabilia in the Studio, with a celebratory glass of wine, followed by a buffet at the Hotel du Vin on Sunday 16 October. The exhibition will be charting the progress of the Society (for instance, did you know that we were once called Henley Royal Amateur Operatic Society?). From those heady days when the Society performed in the Town Hall, right up to date with our own 'home' in the Studio. The Social Sub-Committee are working hard on the details, but mark the date in your diary - and tell all members or past members you know to do the same!

Following our very successful Drama Double Bill in the Studio, when the Henley Players joined us in performing our award winning festival plays, further steps are being taken to transform the studio into a real a performance space, with freestanding wings and proper black-out blinds on the skylights. We have two exiting projects lined up already, with our new season of Up Close and Personal ... An Evening With...? and our production of Dylan Thomas' Under Milk Wood. All our Studio productions will be bringing first class low-cost entertainment to you and to Henley.

Little Shop of Horrors has now been fully cast and what a cast it is! I was privileged to sit in on the recent auditions for the Voice of Audrey II. The competition was fierce, which meant that the standard was extremely high. See the cast list on the Little Shop of Horrors page on this site.

I was recently treated to a wonderful show in the Apollo Theatre in the West End, where our President Simon Williams, is starring as Sir Humphrey in the delightful Yes Prime Minister.