Macclesfield Amateur Dramatic Society

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Macclesfield Amateur Dramatic Society is a drama society in Macclesfield, Cheshire, England, founded in 1947

Contents 1 Formation 1.1 Post-War Britain — an age of austerity 1.2 The Central School Players 1.3 Capesthorne Players 1.4 MADS is founded 1.5 Rules and constitution 1.6 Church and stage: curious bedfellows? 1.7 See How They Run 1.8 The first season, 1948 2 The 1940s 2.1 Acacia Avenue 2.2 Holiday Eve 2.3 When We Are Married 3 1950s 3.1 The Sacred Flame 3.2 On Monday Next 3.3 John Hedley Palin’s first production 3.4 Festival success in the 1940s and 1950s 3.5 The Importance of Being Earnest, Love’s a Luxury, Jacob’s Ladder and Arsenic and Old Lace 3.6 Colin Read 3.7 The Bridge Inn 3.8 MADS finds a home 3.9 The Firstborn 3.10 Mishaps backstage 3.11 Will Any Gentleman?, Antigone and The Burning Glass 3.12 A Little Theatre? 3.13 Tenth season and the end of the 1950s 4 1960s 4.1 Passion and proficiency 4.2 The fiftieth production 4.3 Acting the goat with the acting goat 4.4 Upheaval and uncertainty 4.5 The Little Theatre 4.6 ‘MADS will not tackle the Bard’ 4.7 Festival success in the 1960s and 1970s 4.8 The end of the 1960s 5 1970s 5.1 Honor Blackman, Audrey Hepburn, Dorothy Nixon 5.2 Pantomime 5.3 The Talent Scheme 5.4 The arrival of Dawn Sims 5.5 Hedley Palin’s 50th production 5.6 When We Are Re-Married 5.7 Colin Read steps down 5.8 Legal changes spell trouble 5.9 Produced by John Hadfield 5.10 Crisis 5.11 Sweeney Todd 6 1980s 6.1 Redevelopment 6.2 Re-opening 6.3 New faces 6.4 John Hadfield steps down 6.5 Further refurbishment 6.6 New directors 6.7 Macclesfield Family Fun Day 6.8 The Cabinet Mole and Edge of Fear 6.9 Fortieth anniversary 6.10 Studio productions and one-act plays 7 1990s 7.1 Hedley passes on 7.2 Diversity 7.3 MADS loses its Chairman, Vice-chairman and President 7.4 Consolidation 7.5 Four new directors 7.6 1996/97: the 50th season 7.7 MADS' Golden Jubilee 7.8 The 52nd season and the end of the 1990s 8 External links

[edit] Formation

[edit] Post-War Britain — an age of austerity

Great Britain in 1947 was economically stricken, reduced almost to bankruptcy by the cost of the Second World War. Britain would no longer control the world stage, seemingly content to remain an impoverished second rate power while the Americans assumed leadership of the ‘free world’.

The Cold War was in its infancy. The Labour Government of Clement Atlee was elected in a landslide victory in 1945 and had started on its policy of nationalisation with some vigour. Starting with the Bank of England and the Post Office in 1946, the Government’s nationalisation programme incorporated the electricity, gas and coal industries in 1947, the railways in 1948 and the iron and steel industries in 1951. Atlee’s government was also responsible for the creation of the Welfare State, with the introduction of National Insurance in 1946 and the National Health Service two years later. Harold Wilson, later ingdom|Prime Minister between 1964 and 1970 and 1974 and 1976, became the youngest ever cabinet minister, joining the cabinet in 1947 as President of the Board of Trade at the age of 31.

Nineteen forty-seven began with one of the harshest winters on record, with temperatures as low as -16^oF at the end of January. Fifteen towns were cut off by deep snow in March and severe flooding later in the month caused the death of two million sheep. Coal shortages and a road haulage workers strike resulted in the shutting down of several power stations, and rationing of essentials such as meat, cheese, eggs and milk would remain in force with wartime restrictions. The bacon ration would be cut to one ounce per person per week in October, and potatoes would be restricted to three pounds the following month.

Fuel cuts in Autumn 1947 meant that the Midlands received no electricity for one day a week. Milk was restricted to two and a half pints per person per week and, by June 1948, the fuel shortage meant that car travel was set at a maximum of ninety miles per month.

The inevitable slide in sterling resulted in the devaluation of the currency in 1948.

The school leaving age was increased to fifteen in April 1947, and this was complemented by the introduction of the General Certificate of Education (GCE) in April 1948 and the comprehensive school system at the end of 1948.

Harlow, the first of the ‘new towns’ was inaugurated in 1947. Britain’s first atomic reactor opened at Harwell in August 1947. Two serious rail crashes at Croydon and Berwick-upon-Tweed in October 1947 resulted in the deaths of 52 people and, the same month, the first Morris Minor rolled off the production line at Cowley.

George VI was in the 11th year of his reign. Princess Elizabeth, the King’s eldest daughter and heir to the throne, married Prince Philip of Greece in November 1947 and gave birth to their first child, Prince Charles a year later.

The young Prince’s grandfather presided over an empire of 800 million subjects. Burma gained its independence in January 1948, closely followed by Ceylon (Sri Lanka) in February. India’s independence in August 1948 followed soon after the assassination of Mahatma Ghandi who had done so much to secure it. Britain’s withdrawal from Palestine, a protectorate since 1918, was completed by May 1948.

The Olympic Games recommenced in 1948, with Winter games in St. Moritz and Summer games in London.

The big West End hits of the time were Annie Get Your Gun and Oklahoma! The first Edinburgh Festival was held in August 1947 and the most popular song of the time was "Maybe It’s Because I’m A Londoner".

The leader of the opposition, Winston Churchill, returned to power in 1951 after significantly reducing the Labour majority in the 1950 election.

It was against this background of social uncertainty and enforced adversity that a Macclesfield butcher and amateur Thespian entertained eight friends in October 1947 to form a new amateur dramatics company

[edit] The Central School Players

The history of MADS starts with the formation of another amateur dramatic society in Macclesfield. The Central School Players was founded in 1928 and lasted for more than thirty years despite never having a permanent base. The prime force behind the CS Players was John Fytton, who helped form the group and produced most of their plays. When Mr Fytton was sent overseas for five years during World War II, the reins were taken up by Alfred Wilson . During this period, a Macclesfield butcher made his first appearance in a full length play. Nothing But the Truth by James Montgomery was the CS Players’ last production of the 1942/43 season and the role of Van Dusen was taken by one Frank Snelson, a veteran of the stage who first trod the boards in Macclesfield in 1926.

Frank Snelson would ultimately become a founder member and the first chairman of MADS in 1947. In the five-year interim, he appeared in fourteen plays in succession with the CS Players. Mr Snelson came originally from the village of Lower Withington, a few miles to the west of Macclesfield. A butcher by trade, he served his time at a butcher’s in Prestbury, then worked for Dobson & Thornhill in Mill Street before getting married and buying his own butcher’s shop on Park Lane . He and his wife Alice lived ‘over the shop’ for several years; their first daughter was born there just before the war. Towards the end of the War he bought a house in Hobson Street, a few hundred yards from his business.

Appearances suggest that the CS Players was a very small company. Even allowing for casting difficulties in wartime, only twenty-eight people regularly appeared with the company (on stage and off) between April 1943 and October 1947. Membership of the Central School Players had close connection with Christ Church in central Macclesfield and this, coupled with the demands of war-time audiences, had an inevitable influence on the plays produced by them and, ultimately, MADS.

Of the nine members who subsequently formed MADS, Alice Avery, Florence Hanson, Frank Snelson, Alfred Wilson and Sara Wilson were in situ in April 1943. Fred Pierpoint’s first credit appears in The Blue Goose in October 1943, Norman Johnson is first noted in Jack O’Diamonds in January 1944, and Joan Leigh’s first appearance was in Rookery Nook in October 1944. The last piece of the jigsaw was put in place with the arrival of Tom Bancroft for The Bishop Misbehaves in January 1946.

The productions of the Central School Players received good notices in the local press and were generally well attended.

[edit] Capesthorne Players

Frank Snelson was very popular with the local theatre-goers, at home with the usual fare of farces and light comedies. He was, according to the Macclesfield Times, ‘one of the finest amateur players in the district'. His scrapbook, covering the period between April 1943 and October 1952, is a most valuable record of the activities of the Central School Players. Perhaps his proudest moment would have been in 1946 when he was invited to take a role in a production of The Man With a Load of Mischief at Capesthorne Hall. The amateur theatricals of the Bromley-Davenport family had been revived, after an eleven-year break, by AR Bromley-Davenport, nephew of General Sir William Bromley-Davenport. AR Bromley-Davenport produced the play that ran for four nights at the beginning of September 1946, and took the part of, naturally, A Nobleman. Another member of the family, Elizabeth Bromley-Davenport, was well-suited as A Lady. Frank Snelson took the part of the Innkeeper. The programme, signed by all the members of the cast, a letter from Lilian Bromley-Davenport (AR’s mother) and Frank Snelson’s scrapbook are preserved in the MADS archive.

[edit] MADS is founded

The Macclesfield Courier of 30 October 1947 carried a report headlined ‘New Local Dramatic Society.’

It was the first public notice of the formation of Macclesfield Amateur Dramatic Society. Several members of the Central School Players had met at Snelson’s Butchers at the beginning of October 1947 to start a new amateur dramatic society ‘which could operate under a title associated with Macclesfield itself, and therefore be a Society belonging to the townspeople and independent of any other organisation.’

This official line hides a disquiet within the Central School Players. The return of founder and producer John Fytton in the early months of 1946 appears to have caused some disquiet within the ranks. Certainly Alfred Wilson was unable to stamp his mark as a producer once Mr Fytton was re-established. The result was that a significant number of the Players’ senior members decided to form a new society. Frank Snelson pledged £20, a large amount then, to start the society on its way. This first meeting took place in the days following the completion of latest Central School Players production, The Young Mrs Barrington which was performed at the Brocklehurst Memorial Hall between 22 and 26 September 1947.

David Avery has a further theory about the foundation of MADS. In a long and detailed letter to the author in March 1998, he wrote, ‘The fundamental reason for the foundation of MADS was to raise the standard of drama to that of other art forms. The town already had a choir of national repute with the JL Riley Festival Choir which would establish its pre-eminence by winning the mixed choir class at the Festival of Britain in 1951. One of its mezzo sopranos, Edith Lovatt, would win the trophy in the operatic class. The St George’s Gilbert and Sullivan Society had a number of outstanding performers including Edith Lovatt and Peter Robinson, who would win a scholarship to La Scala in the early fifties and, as Forbes Robinson, became principal bass at Covent Garden. Thirty years after leaving the Macclesfield School of Art in 1921, Charles Tunnicliffe would become internationally famous with his illustrations of Tarka the Otter. These were not isolated individuals of outstanding talent, but members of a community in which people knew each other and friendships and interests crossed both social and artistic boundaries. So MADS was founded in a spirit of optimism. The community spirit mattered. The admiration of the audience for the actors on the stage was matched by the respect which the actors had for those who shared their working lives in the offices and factories. Frank Snelson always addressed his customers as “Sir” or “Madam”. This was not only polite business practice but a genuine acknowledgement that he was simply one of them, a member of the community, and never wished to be regarded as anything else. This was modesty allied to excellence, and was the key to success.’

The first formal meeting of MADS was held on Wednesday 15 October 1947 at Frank Snelson’s house, 65 Hobson Street, and it is this date that marks the official foundation of MADS. The original nine members were all from the Central School Players: Frank Snelson (chairman), Tom Bancroft (secretary), Norman Johnson (treasurer), Alfred Wilson (producer), Fred Pierpoint (stage manager), Florence Hanson, Sarah Wilson, Alice Avery and Joan Leigh. John Fytton, who remained with the Central School Players, ‘emphasised that they were all on amicable terms and remained the best of friends.’

The Central School Players were reconstituted, despite the loss of their most senior players, and continued to present productions for many years. By mid-November 1947, a press report noted that ‘any doubts as to how the Central School Players would fare as a result of the recent “split” were dispelled last week when members held a meeting to re-marshall their forces .’ New officials were elected and a forthcoming production was announced. Amusingly, the local paper reported that this play, A New Tenant by Norman MacOwen, performed at the Brocklehurst Memorial Hall in January 1948, had ‘added attraction because of the recent departure of several “old faces” to fresh fields.’

[edit] Rules and constitution

The first rules and constitution of the Macclesfield Amateur Dramatic Society were drawn up on 22 October 1947, just one week after the official foundation. These still form the basis of the current rules and constitution and show how keen that the original nine members were to be fair and honest in their dealings.

1. The Society shall be known as The Macclesfield Amateur Dramatic Society.
2. Its object shall be to produce plays in aid of any deserving charity as decided and agreed by the Management Committee.
3. A Management Committee consisting of the Chairman, Producer, Secretary, Treasurer and one representative from the members will be responsible for the conduct and policy of the Society.
4. A Selection Committee consisting of Producer, Secretary, Stage Manager and two members of the Society will be responsible for the selection of plays, and casting of same, under the guidance and advice of the Producer.
5. Officials to be appointed at the annual general meeting to be held not later than the second week in June each year.
6. Applications for membership to be submitted to the Secretary in writing who will submit to the Management Committee.
7. All applications for acting membership must be prepared to appear before the Management Committee for an audition and no applicant can be admitted unless the requisite test in satisfactory.
8. Applications for stage staff membership must satisfy the Management Committee that they possess the necessary qualifications for this work, and the agreement of the Stage Manager is obtained.
9. All members must give an undertaking that they will conduct themselves at all time in an orderly manner and uphold and loyally maintain the prestige of the Society.
10. Members chosen to take an acting part must consistently attend rehearsals, and obey the instructions given by the producer. If any member is absent from two consecutive rehearsals without written explanation to the Secretary, a substitute will be selected by the Producer.
11. No intoxicating liquor will be allowed on the stage or in the dressing rooms.
12. The Society shall be registered at the Bank, and a banking account opened, all cheques to be signed by the Treasurer and Secretary respectively.
13. The Secretary shall faithfully record the minutes of all meetings which shall be read to subsequent meetings and signed by the Chairman.
14. The Treasurer shall keep a faithful record of all accounts which must be audited at the end of the financial year by an auditor appointed from the Annual Meeting.
15. All members must strive to maintain the Society on a sound financial and business basis, and by their loyalty to the Society should not accept a part in any other organisation which will interfere with the activities of the Society.
16. All members must give an undertaking that they will accept the particular parts as selected by the Play Selection Committee without question, but the Producer is empowered to adjust or replace the cast in the light of experience, following initial rehearsals.

[edit] Church and stage: curious bedfellows?

The programme for MADS first production, See How They Run included an address from the chairman: On this, the first production of the newly-formed Macclesfield Amateur Dramatic Society, the Committee has endeavoured to present a Comedy which will give pleasure and clean entertainment to the public of our town. Future productions will be chosen with a view to giving complete satisfaction, and variation in the types of plays will be the predominating factor. The Society has been fortunate in obtaining a number of experienced members, and we are confident that we shall be able to give service in the form of high-class entertainment to the people of Macclesfield and district. Our objects are to assist any deserving charity, and suggestions from our patrons will be favourably received and considered .

The reference to ‘clean entertainment’ in this address is significant as Frank Snelson, the writer, was an accomplished church organist and Methodist. Membership of the Central School Players was closely linked to that of Christ Church, founded by Charles Roe, the town’s leading industrialist, in 1775. The Snelsons, Averys, Wilsons and Broadbents were committed Methodists, hence the help given to Methodist churches from the various early performances. During See How They Run, for example, the profits from each night were given to Ebenezer Church , Stamford Road Methodist Church and Trinity Methodist Church as well as Society Funds and Toc. H.

The link between the nonconformist church and the theatre was always somewhat strained. Frank Snelson would have been fully aware of a curious chapter in Macclesfield’s history: the first vicar of Christ Church was David Simpson and it was through his efforts that Macclesfield’s theatre was closed down in the late 18th century. A History of Macclesfield gives further information: … there were people in the town who thought that the influence of the theatre was damaging to morals and especially bad to the young. The Rev. David Simpson, vicar of Christ Church, preached a sermon in 1780 which argued that the theatre, in the way it was conducted, was not consistent with the nature and design of the Gospel of Christ. He asserted that no person could attend the theatre without offending God. This sermon was printed and so great was its influence that attendance at the performances dwindled and the theatre was closed.

The nonconformist church remained suspicious of ‘The Stage’ and it is ironic that the rebirth of local theatre in Macclesfield was linked to the same church committees which had closed the town’s theatre more than one hundred and fifty years before.

Or perhaps not. Gail Malmgreen writes: David Simpson began a tradition of weekday evening lectures on subjects of general interest — popular science, ancient history, classics of Christian literature, and the like. Even his church services were as entertaining as they were instructive. His famous attack on the theatre, for instance, was (among other things) a short course in the history of the drama, with copious quotations, from the time of the Greeks. He was careful to underscore the pitfalls of the art, the temptation to impiety, immorality and unwholesome excitement it represented; but his hearers must have left feeling that they were recompensed in part for the secular delights they sacrificed.

By 1811, Macclesfield once again had a professional theatre, the Theatre Royal in Mill Street. This closed in around 1875 and a new Theatre Royal in Catherine Street, later known as the Opera House, was opened in 1883. This building was burned down in April 1931 and the town has been without a permanent professional theatre ever since.

[edit] See How They Run

The Macclesfield Courier report of 30 October 1947 noted that MADS first play would be See How They Run by Philip King, to open in January or February 1948. This play was first performed at the Comedy Theatre, London, in January 1945 and was a sequel to Pool’s Paradise with the same characters.

The decision to present See How They Run had already been made when a professional production was given in Buxton in December 1947. David Avery remembers that ‘a meeting was convened at the rear of the coach on the return journey to discuss the principles of playing farce. It was concluded that the humour of this play could only be conveyed to the audience if it were acted in a mood of absolute seriousness. In the mayhem of the plot all the characters are under stress and they should be seen to respond accordingly. At Buxton a drunk Miss Skillion, brilliantly played by Joan Sanderson , had posed with a supporting Ida at the front of the stage, to the amusement of the audience. This was dismissed by MADS as more suited to a music hall comedy. So See How They Run was not played for laughs, but was a roaring success. Timing was impeccable.’

Rehearsals took place at Frank Snelson’s butcher shop at 49 Park Lane. The venue chosen to perform the play was a familiar one: the Brocklehurst Memorial Hall, later the Liberal Club, on Queen Victoria Street. Central School Players had performed their productions at the Hall over the last three years. The Hall had a large stage, seating for over two hundred, a good foyer and dressing rooms under the stage area, but with little storage. Properties were stored in members’ houses and the stage sets were build in a garage on Clowes Street, transported to the Hall in a rented van on the Sunday morning to be built and dressed during the day. Light and sound equipment would need to be installed before the dress rehearsal on the Sunday evening and the first performance the following night. Brocklehurst Memorial Hall would be the venue for all main-season productions for the first six years of MADS existence.

See How They Run opened on Monday 9 February 1948 for five nights at 7.30 p.m. with this cast:

Ida, the maid-Alice M Avery
Miss Skillion, a parishioner-Margaret C Arnold
Rev. Lionel Toop, the vicar-J Kenneth Wetton
Penelope Toop-Joan Leigh
Lance-corporal Clive Winton-Frank Snelson
The intruder-Thomas Bancroft
The Bishop of Lax-Norman Johnson
Rev. Arthur Humphrey-Alfred Wilson
Sergeant Towers-Douglas Broadbent

Play produced by Alfred Wilson
Stage & Lighting Manager, Fred Pierpoint
Assistant Stage Manager, Howard Pickford
Scenery designed by Alan Pickford

Five of the eight cast, the producer, the stage and lighting manager and the scenery designer were all ex-CS Players. Perhaps the most important newcomer was J. Kenneth Wetton of Parkside Players who had joined very early in the society’s history, probably because of the feature in the Courier. Ken Wetton was a very accomplished player, adept at all types of character. It seems likely that members of MADS saw Ken Wetton’s production of Saloon Bar by Frank Harvey by the Parkside Players in December 1947 as the programme remains in the MADS archive. The Macclesfield Courier, reviewing this production, noted that ‘the whole of the large cast gave a superb performance to make the play one of the best amateur productions seen in the district.’

Ken Wetton would play a major role in the early years of MADS — both as a lead player throughout the 1950s and, between 1948 and 1952, as MADS principal producer. Martin Read recalls that: The comedy players of that era stand out particularly in my mind, and of them Ken Wetton had no peers. He could have the audience helpless for minutes on end; even the cast were not immune on occasions to creasing up.

Howard Pickford, the assistant stage manager, was an employee of Frank Snelson. The early sets were all designed to the highest standards by Alan Pickford, who continued to carry out this work despite his national service in Germany during this period. His talents served him in good stead as when ITV was first formed in 1955 his name appeared in the credits of many productions.

See How They Run received extensive press coverage: ‘New Society’s Terrific Début’ ran the Courier.

People visiting the Brocklehurst Memorial Hall this week cannot help but forget, momentarily, these worrying days of peace because the new comedy See How They Run in which the new Macclesfield Amateur Dramatic Society make a decidedly convincing début is about the funniest show ever seen on a local stage... Obviously rehearsed to the Nth degree of perfection the show bears the hall-mark of top-grade stagecraft and flawless presentation which makes the play a joy to watch.

The Macclesfield Times was equally complimentary. ‘... should prove a tonic to the most jaded palate... It was an excellent show.’

[edit] The first season, 1948

The society took the opportunity to promote their next production in the programme of See How They Run. It was to be Wilfred Massey’s Happy Days at the Brocklehurst Memorial Hall in April. Before then, however, MADS produced two other shows. The first was the one-act play Low Bridge, also by Wilfred Massey. Low Bridge, with much the same cast as See How They Run, was performed twice in March 1948; the first of these was at West Park Hospital on 4 March 1948. This appears to have been a warm-up for their subsequent festival presentation two days later and included several variety turns as the second half of the show. Low Bridge was next performed on 6 March in front of two thousand people at the Eleventh Blackpool Drama Festival of one-act plays at the Grand Theatre, Blackpool. The Society was highly praised but failed to take any prizes. Interestingly, another play performed that night was Holiday Eve by Philip King & Falkland Carey. This would be chosen as MADS next one-act production.

The Society’s next move was perhaps an unusual one. The Central School Players had produced The Camel’s Back by Arnold Helsby in January 1947, and for almost the same people to revive it a little over a year later was possibly a backwards move. But this is what happened, and The Camel’s Back ran for two nights at Townley Street School on 10-11 March 1948 with several of the cast reviving their roles. Happy Days by Wilfred Massey completed the first season, but before the summer recess another nine performances of See How They Run took place. The first six, between 10 and 15 May, were at the Garrick Theatre, Altrincham. Later that month, a further three were given at the Morton Hall, Union Street, Macclesfield. These latter performances were given to raise money for a local baby who needed an urgent operation.

The type of play given by MADS in its first few seasons can perhaps be best summed up in this extract from a contemporary review of Happy Days: Frank Snelson plays the part of the dapper, monocled Reginald Blougham, a writer who writes simply to influence his uncle that he is working, and thereby obtain an allowance of which his uncle is trustee. Uncle ‘Baggy’ (Bagshot Pilkington of Pilkington Potted Prawns), wants Reggie to marry the daughter of a local sausage king so that the prawn and sausage business can unite, but Reggie already has a fiancée...

And so on.

Doug Broadbent, one of the Society’s earliest members, and briefly chairman, was an employee at Henry Leigh Slater’s card factory on Chester Road, and through him, MADS arranged for rehearsals to take place in Slater’s works canteen. Social meetings and acting classes were held on Monday nights from 1949 in the Parish Rooms, Cumberland Street. MADS first season was immensely successful but also very busy, with 21 full length performances and a one-act play in less than four months. This first season also raised a remarkable £500 for local churches and charities .

[edit] The 1940s

[edit] Acacia Avenue

The first play of the 1948/49 season was scheduled to be Ba Ba Black Sheep by Ian Hay , but this was replaced with Acacia Avenue by Mabel and Denis Constanduros. New acting members were now appearing on the cast lists and for Acacia Avenue, the part of Peter was taken by Peter Mann. Peter Mann, a native of Rugby, gained his first acting experience in the RAF during the war and came to live in Macclesfield, his wife’s home town, in 1947 . He would become a leading light of MADS over the next ten years, taking many lead roles and producing seven main season plays between 1952 and 1958.

MADS News, the first in a long series of newsletters and magazines for members was first published in 1949 .

Acacia Avenue was scheduled to run for the usual five nights, Monday to Friday, 25 to 29 October 1949 but the demand for seats was so high that an extra night was added. Because of the publicity surrounding the golden jubilee season, 1997/98, an original poster for this production was donated to MADS by David Avery. After hanging in Frank Snelson’s shop window to advertise the production, the poster was rolled up and left in a drawer for almost fifty years. It is now framed and hangs in the theatre bar.

[edit] Holiday Eve

MADS second one-act play produced specifically for festival audiences was Philip King and Falkland Carey’s Holiday Eve. This hugely successful production was performed at the Playhouse Theatre, Buxton, as part of the Buxton Drama Festival of One-Act Plays, on Wednesday 30 March 1949. This revived festival, last held in 1940, included a total of twenty-one plays and Holiday Eve won first prize in the comedy section, receiving 95 marks out of a possible 100.

Such was the euphoria that the coach party literally gate-crashed a reception at the Mayor’s parlour when it returned from Buxton. It was perhaps as well that Alderman Breeze was an ardent supporter of the society.

Second place was awarded to CHADS of Cheadle Hulme. The three prize-winning plays were acted again at the Playhouse Theatre on 13 April 1949.

[edit] When We Are Married

The programme for the main season production of The Poltergeist in January 1949 reveals which plays were under consideration for the April production. Pink String and Sealing Wax, to be MADS first costume production, was the play eventually chosen, with The Gleam, Double Door and The Happiest Days of Your Life also reviewed. It is interesting that MADS has never performed these last three plays, nor the others considered but not chosen for this season.

At around this time MADS sets were built in the cellar of The Commercial Inn on Brook Street. Individual sections of stage sets had to be a certain width so that they could pass through the trap doors in the pavement more commonly used to deliver beer. Wood was in such short supply at that time that Ken Wetton and others would lead foraging parties to the bomb sites of Manchester.

The first play of the 1949/50 season was JB Priestley’s When We Are Married, a play that would be the first to be performed on three separate occasions by MADS . This, the sixth main season production, was the first to receive critical backlash with the Macclesfield Courier reporting ‘the cast struggling to maintain the speed it had set itself ’ and the Macclesfield Times ‘without the brilliant dialogue … their presentation … would not be a brilliant success .’ Nevertheless, the reviews of the acting were positive enough to encourage the society to enter When We Are Married into the Buxton Drama Festival of Full Length Plays on 1 December 1949, receiving second place behind the Altrincham Garrick’s production of The Guinea Pig. It was also performed at Parkside Hospital the day before, on 30 November 1949.

The first president and vice-presidents of the company were appointed at the beginning of the 1949/50 season, posterity noting that Councillor A. Robinson, a director of HL Slater where the company rehearsed, was the first holder of the honorary rôle of president.

[edit] 1950s

[edit] The Sacred Flame

The first play of the 1950s was The Sacred Flame by W Somerset Maugham. It was produced by Doug Broadbent, his first of three for MADS. The decision to perform this play was perhaps influenced by the Congleton Players’ production in December 1949.

The Sacred Flame was MADS’ first serious play, concerning the controversial subject of euthanasia. Perhaps the post-war outlook had eased enough to allow drama to enter into amateur dramatics.

[edit] On Monday Next

MADS ambition, from its earliest days, was to be able to perform in a theatre of its own. This is quite clear from the chairman’s message to patrons of On Monday Next, performed in February 1951:

On Monday Next is a story of the theatre which, for maximum effect, should be told in the theatre, and we must ask you to conjure up in your imagination... the red plush, the gilded cherubs, and that indefinable atmosphere which permeates the Temple Of Thespis. Perhaps, by the time we offer you another story of the stage, we shall not need to impose this task upon your imagination, and the red plush will be there in reality — but it’s up to you! There will not be a theatre in Macclesfield until Macclesfield is prepared to do something about it.

MADS would, eventually, own their own theatre, but it would be more than thirty years before the Little Theatre would be regarded as a fully functional theatrical venue.

Macclesfield Corporation provided a £150 interest-free loan in 1950 to enable purchase of essential equipment. This appears to have been the first time that the Corporation had shown confidence in a company that operates ‘under a title associated with Macclesfield.’ This loan was paid back over the next five years.

[edit] John Hedley Palin’s first production

This Was A Woman by Jean Anouilh, MADS first play of the 1951/52 season, was produced by John H Palin, perhaps the single biggest influence on MADS activities during its first fifty years. Hedley, as he was known, had joined in 1949 and taken a few acting roles. After playing with a concert party associated with St. George’s Street Baptist Church, Hedley became a founder member of the Macclesfield Thespians who performed at the Ebenezer Chapel in Hurdsfield Road, and later, during wartime, he took many parts in the productions of the Macclesfield Repertory Company. He was never wholly confident on stage, and contemporary reviews reinforce this.

The Courier report of Pink String and Sealing Wax (1949) says that:

John H. Palin would do well to emulate the example of the principals and put more power into his voice which, on occasion, could hardly be heard at the rear of the hall.

His suitably suave performance as Algernon in The Importance of Being Earnest (1952) would result in a similar review in the Macclesfield Advertiser, ‘He was not always audible at the back of the hall.’

Hedley’s dedication to both musical and dramatic theatre was considerable. It was as a courageous and enterprising producer, starting with This Was a Woman, that he truly made his mark. He was responsible for the production of over sixty plays for MADS between 1951 and 1990, and over twenty for the Macclesfield Majestic Theatre Group from 1971 (for whom he also acted as chairman) and the annual pantomime of the Jean Patterson School of Dancing. He also produced for Buxton Opera Group, Bollington Festival Players, Stockport Garrick, Altrincham Garrick and the de Novo Productions at Capesthorne Hall and was a member of the Steering Committee of the then newly-formed Royal Exchange Theatre Company in 1976.

[edit] Festival success in the 1940s and 1950s

MADS produced eleven one-act plays in its first eight years, mostly for festivals. The first of these, Low Bridge, was performed at Blackpool in 1948 and revived in March 1950 for the eighth Buxton Drama Festival of One-Act Plays, defending the title they had won the previous year. Although the play was placed only fourth, there was sufficient demand for this, and its predecessor Holiday Eve, to be performed in Macclesfield. The way this was done was most unusual. Holiday Eve and Low Bridge were performed with a third one-act play, The Ugly Duckling by AA Milne, as a joint production for five nights in the usual May production slot. Low Bridge was performed first, then The Ugly Duckling and, finally, Holiday Eve. Each play was produced by J Kenneth Wetton who successfully overcame the problem of three plays, three sets and three groups of actors. Douglas Broadbent, acting in the first and last of these plays, received particularly good notices. Frank Snelson and Alice Avery also acted in both Low Bridge and Holiday Eve.

Sunday Costs Five Pesos by Josephina Niggli was entered by MADS in the drama section of the 1951 Macclesfield Music Festival. The Calf Before the Hearse, Ophelia and The Proposal were presented in subsequent years. The Calf Before the Hearse by Yves Cabrol won the Ryles Trophy in 1953 competing against three other plays. Ophelia won the Macclesfield One-Act Festival in 1954 after MADS had lost by a single point to CHADS on the previous two occasions. The Proposal won the Ryles Trophy against six other groups, including the Central School Players, at the Macclesfield Music Festival in 1958. MADS also performed several full length plays at Buxton Playhouse for the annual Full Length Play Competition. The first of these was When We Are Married in November 1949, which took second place and the silver trophy. This was followed in subsequent years by The Paragon, Two Dozen Red Roses, The Firstborn and Antigone.

Two Dozen Red Roses was awarded third place against six other societies in 1951 and Kenneth Wetton won the trophy for the best individual performance. The adjudicator also noted that MADS ‘had the best set of the week and the lighting was excellent.’ Both The Firstborn in 1954/55 (produced by Hedley Palin) and Antigone in 1955/56 (produced by Peter Mann) won the trophy outright.

John Hedley Palin’s productions of The Bear by Anton Chekhov was presented at the Buxton one-act festival in 1953 and provided Peter Mann with an award for best individual actor. Yves Cabrol’s The Fish was presented at the Buxton the following season and was runner-up by one point to Hyde Light Opera Company. Hedley went one better in 1955 when his production of The Sound of Stillness won the one-act festival, completing a remarkable double for both MADS and Hedley by winning the full length and one-act festivals in the same season.

The regency comedy Ladder for Lucy was also produced, without success, in the 1954/55 season. Festival entries ceased for several years due to the loss of several experienced players at the end of the 1950s.

[edit] The Importance of Being Earnest, Love’s a Luxury, Jacob’s Ladder and Arsenic and Old Lace

The Importance of Being Earnest is one of the most famous plays of all time and an undoubted crowd-puller. MADS first performed the play in the 1951/52 season, the first of three productions of the play.

A contemporary press review perhaps surprisingly noted that the play:

has to a great extent lost it appeal. Much of its wit, once thought devastating, has been blunted by time into facetiousness. The social upheaval of the last twenty years has largely robbed Wilde’s satire of its target.

Love’s A Luxury was Frank Snelson’s first production for the society and he would continue to produce, fifteen full length plays in all, throughout the fifties and sixties and into the early seventies. Another farce, it was, according to the Macclesfield Times & Courier ‘one of the best all round productions staged by the Society.’

Jacob’s Ladder is a serious play detailing the last months in the life of a poet. The acting in this difficult production was highly praised, particularly the performances of Frank Snelson (‘never out of character’, Macclesfield Advertiser) and Kenneth Wetton (‘a convincing performance’, Macclesfield Times & Courier). MADS produced the play at the Brocklehurst Memorial Hall in January 1953 and was invited by the Playhouse Theatre, Buxton, to revive it for two nights shortly afterwards. If anything, the review by the local Buxton paper was even more enthusiastic, despite the half-filled theatre. This was a real treat rarely provided by the amateur stage — a performance that often reached the standard of professional entertainment.

Joseph Kesselring’s Arsenic and Old Lace is another popular comedy-thriller and it is perhaps surprising that MADS has only performed it once, in September 1953. Despite criticism that the play derives much of its humour from mental disorder, the play received considerable complimentary press reviews.

[edit] Colin Read

MADS founding chairman, Frank Snelson had, by mid-1953, been chairman for five seasons out of six. Kenneth Wetton had taken over for the 1951/52 season and Frank Snelson’s return was evidently only temporary. Doug Broadbent was elected as chairman at the 1953 AGM but would hold the post for only a matter of months. He was replaced by Colin Read before the end of 1953. Colin would hold the post for the next twenty years.

Colin Read was an accomplished and versatile character actor and had first appeared with MADS as the Rev. Canon Chasuble in The Importance of Being Earnest in April 1952 (a part he would repeat in February 1975). He would continue to perform regularly until the late seventies, including the role of the Ghost of Marley in the December 1979 production of A Christmas Carol. Originally from Dorset, moving to Macclesfield in 1950, he was also an opera lover who regularly appeared with operatic societies.

Colin Read’s reputation with audiences as a forceful and capable actor occasionally disguisedsome assitional attributes, as his younger son Martin recalls:

Dad, as ever, was an enthusiastic player, having come to MADS with much stagework experience and distinction from the Marple Amateur Dramatic Dociety, whilst at the same time performing Grand Opera baritone leads with the Beecham Operatic Society at the Altrincham Garrick. Nonetheless, on occasions, he did have a penchant for omitting to remember his lines correctly, either by omission or additon. Audiences would go away saying ‘Colin Read was good wasn’t he? But maybe some of the others need to work harder on their lines’, blissfully unaware that Dad had sometimes been offering his fellow players entirely inappropriate or indeed made-up cue lines while appearing totally at ease himself (‘stage sense’, I think he called it). The role of prompters became critical, for which a resolute personality was essential; keeping up with Dad’s instant script was not a task for the fainthearted. It needed a strong constitution to whisper a forgotten line from the wings only to be pulled up short with a stertorian ‘Pardon?’ from the boards.

There was one famous occasion when he transformed the action in the first act to that of the the second within one masterful speech, leaving players and prompt bewildered, other members of the cast rushing onto stage to try and catch up with the action, whilst others slunk off to the side (one of whom should have been dead), their roles cut by two thirds at a stroke. The play was over soon after nine o’clock with the local press commenting commenting that ‘Colin Read held the action together magnificently, but some of the other players at times appeared to be struggling. Being on stage was always a great leaning experience when Dad was around, bless ‘im.’

Colin’s sons Adrian and Martin appeared with the society on occasion: Adrian appeared in The Man in Grey in 1953, at the age of twelve. Martin later took a major role in Doctor in the House.

Joan Chappell (later Joan Wright) also became secretary at this time, initially as a temporary measure, and would hold the post until 1975. She was subsequently made a life member in recognition of her long-standing commitment to the society.

[edit] The Bridge Inn

Colin Read activily searched for a suitable permanent home for MADS — one with space for both rehearsal rooms and workshops and an auditorium for performances.

During the early part of the 1950s, MADS was based in the Bridge Inn, Brook Street. The attraction of this building was that it had a Victorian Music Hall on the upper floor. Plays were rehearsed here, with the ultimate ambition of converting the room into a functional theatre.

This excerpt from the newsletter of September 1953 is most interesting:

We received another setback when we learnt from the owners of our new HQ in Brook Street that they were unable to foster our scheme for its conversion into a Little Theatre, nor would they allow us the exclusive right to use the room for rehearsals. However, we shall still continue to rehearse at Brook Street every Tuesday and Thursday, and scenery preparation is also going ahead there on the same evenings.

The Bridge Inn closed in 1957, although the building still stands, close to the junction with Sunderland Street.

[edit] MADS finds a home

A more suitable location was ultimately found in Lord Street in the shape of Lord Street Sunday School. This was first reported at the beginning of 1954 with a feature in a local newspaper, written by Colin Read, expressing the Society’s intent to have a Little Theatre of its own. The rental of Lord Street School was seen as the first step. This, combined with the intention to produce a higher calibre of plays than the usual run-of-the-mill box office successes, is undoubtedly the reason why MADS has survived for so long. Ambition is one attribute that MADS members have never been short of, and a company with a history of only seven years and just thirty members to be actively fund-raising for their own theatre can certainly be described as ambitious.

The history of Lord Street Sunday School, now MADS own Little Theatre, begins in 1797 when some of Macclesfield’s Wesleyan worshippers formed the Methodist New Connexion Society after a ‘difference of opinion regarding the position and rights of the laity in Church organisation.’ The Society worshipped at Parsonage Street Chapel and, from 1836, at the larger Park Street Chapel, now a print works. A Sunday School had been set up in the vestry of Parsonage Street Chapel in 1820, and grew so rapidly that a larger building was acquired in Lord Street in 1822. The School was replaced by the current, larger building in 1869. The foundation stone was laid by James Jackson, superintendent of the school since 1821 and was built by Messrs. Burrows & Moseley at a cost of £2,250. An inscription above the main door of the Little Theatre still reads ‘Methodist New Connexion’, and above the stage door ‘Lord Street Sunday School, Est. 1822.’

For a period of its history Lord Street Sunday School was a day school: Thomas Avery, secretary for the second season, was a pupil there. The building was later used as a billet for British and American troops during the Second World War and later became a temporary library while work was carried out at Macclesfield Library on Park Green. At other times the building was used for public meetings, as a dancing school and as a labour exchange.

The building was still in the hands of the Trustees of Lord Street Sunday School when MADS agreed to rent the lower floor as a rehearsal room and workshop. Theatrical productions would take place in the chapel on the first floor; the pulpit and lectern would need to be removed from the dais before the set could be erected. The set was built in the workshop and then carried in pieces up the stone staircase to the chapel. The process was done in reverse at the end of the run.

The first play at Lord Street was Dear Evelyn performed between 8 and 12 February 1954. A ‘psychological drama’, the critic from the Macclesfield Times & Courier noted that it was ‘a play which should have popular appeal, even though the audience may be divided in their opinions as to the merits of the play.’

Colin Read noted with pride:

After many years, with our workshop, our rehearsal room and the stage for the final production set in different parts of the town, we have now gathered all our activities under one roof.

[edit] The Firstborn

The Firstborn by Christopher Fry was the most adventurous and complex play tackled by MADS so far. It was the first play deliberately chosen to demand the best from the actors and audience. The choice was both bold and ambitious. The play is set in Egypt in 1200 BC and is based on the struggle of Moses to release the Israelites from their bondage in Egypt. It is spoken entirely in blank verse. The music was composed for the production and performed live, and the costumes, designed by Hedley Palin, were specially made. The play was, perhaps surprisingly, a huge success. ‘A triumph’ reported the Macclesfield Advertiser. ‘A new peak of perfection’ blared The Macclesfield Times.

The Firstborn was revived in November 1954, both to meet the demand from Macclesfield audiences and to prepare for the Buxton Festival. A full week’s run at Lord Street, 18 to 24 May 1954 was followed by the Buxton appearance the following week. The production won the drama section of the festival, the first time that a Macclesfield company had done this. But even this success was not without misadventure as Laurie Ward, playing Rameses, dropped out of the production with a week’s notice. His part was taken by 16-year old Ron Williams, promoted from the role of a guard. The adjudicator noted that ‘he played with he played with great dignity and unassuming Frank Snelson, however, ‘was not, one felt, at ease in the poetic medium.’ Until 1954/55, MADS had been producing three full length plays each season. It was decided to increase this to four, but the revival of The Firstborn meant that, for the first time, MADS produced five full-length plays in one season. The 1954/55 season set a record because two one-act plays, The Sound of Stillness and Ladder for Lucy were also produced, along with Ophelia, an entry in the Macclesfield Festival in October 1954. This extra activity enabled a loss of £74 7s 8d in 1953/54 to be turned into a profit of £76 9s 4d in 1954/55. Eight productions in one season would not be repeated until 1991/92, but four main plays a season would become the norm for the next thirty years.

The Firstborn was revived for the second time for a most unusual production. On 11 January 1958, it was performed in front of four hundred people at Macclesfield Parish Church. Again it was a great success despite the poor acoustics in the large building. In the tradition of the miracle plays, the actors chose to remain anonymous, although it is documented in the MADS archive and in press reports that Colin Read had to seek permission from the Royal Signals for Ron Williams, completing his national service, to repeat his performance of Rameses. The final line of one review will perhaps raise a smile, ‘[MADS] proved that such plays will attract large congregations in spite of television.’ This single performance generated a considerable amount of favourable publicity for the Society, and the balance sheet shows, after payment to the verger, organist and church electricity, that the production made a healthy profit of £9 17s 7d.

[edit] Mishaps backstage

Preserved in the MADS archive is a stage managers’ log book detailing the running times of all performances between the dress rehearsal of The Firstborn in May 1954 and the last night of The Perfect Woman in September 1957. Stage managers were also encouraged to make comments on the performances as they progressed. A few highlights:

The Firstborn
14 May 1954 House ready at 7.32. Cast not ready. 6 MINS LATE

The Firstborn
15 May 1954 Audience all had cold hands. Set applauded!

Will Any Gentleman?
23 October 1954 Door slam resulted in make-up mirror dropping and noise like thunder. Very good opening.

Will Any Gentleman?
25 October 1954 Turntable trouble with Can Can record. Almost spoilt dance.

Blithe Spirit
3 February 1955 No ices. Short interval

The Bridge of Esteban
31 March 1955 Only 78 in audience.

The Bridge of Esteban
1 April 1955 Frank Snelson’s birthday. No ice cream.

Antigone
18 May 1955 No record of the National Anthem. Ought not the Society to have one?

Antigone
19 May 1955 Still no National Anthem

Antigone
20 May 1955 We now have two records of the Queen.

Venus Observed
22 November 1956 Opening interrupted by someone in audience after two lines. Act begun again.

Don’t Listen Ladies!
1 March 1957 Request from police to move car no. WMA82.

The Gioconda Smile
7 May 1957 A lot of words not in script.

The interruption during Venus Observed was at the second act when a man from the audience stood up and said ‘May I say something?’. Adrian Read, on stage at the time, gave the startled response, ‘Certainly’ as the interruptor was gently lead away.

[edit] Will Any Gentleman?, Antigone and The Burning Glass

Sandwiched between the two runs of The Firstborn was Vernon Sylvaine’s Will Any Gentleman? It was produced by Iris Diamond, MADS first female producer and the only woman to produce for MADS in its first twenty-four years.

The programme for Will Any Gentlemen? also marked the first time that the entire play season was announced in advance. Previously, notification of forthcoming productions was only available in the press.

In keeping with ending the season with a challenging ‘modern’ play, the last production of 1954/55 was Antigone by Jean Anouilh, a modern treatment of a classical Greek parable. The play was described by the ;;Macclesfield Advertiser as ‘an explanatory lecture on tragedy as a stage form’ and ‘hardly Macclesfield’s idea of a pleasant evening out.’ The Macclesfield Times noted that ‘it is only lovers of the true art of acting that would attempt a play like this.’ Despite this, or perhaps because of it, both newspapers praised the production, especially Joan Sheldon who rose from her sickbed each night to perform her part. Antigone would go on to win the Buxton Drama Festival, retaining the trophy won the previous year by The Firstborn.

Each performance of Antigone was preceded by the twenty-five minute Ladder For Lucy, one of two one-act plays then being produced by MADS. The mixture of regency comedy and classical tragedy was not deemed successful and this experiment has never been repeated. That Peter Mann produced both plays was perhaps the key to the decision to use a curtain-raiser. Ladder For Lucy was performed again for one night as a double-header with the other current (and more successful) one-act, The Sound of Stillness, the week after Antigone. This was principally to allow Macclesfield audiences to see MADS winning entry in the Buxton One-Act Festival, but was also a fund-raising vehicle for the Bollington and Macclesfield Clinic for Spastic Children.

The second play of 1955/56 was Charles Morgan’s The Burning Glass. This marked the first appearance of one of MADS most enduring actresses, Jane Davenport, transferring from the still-active Central School Players. Her role in The Burning Glass was small, but it was the first of over fifty appearances. Joining at the same time, but not taking an actor’s audition as she has never appeared on stage, was Anne Fellows. Both Jane Davenport and Anne Fellows later married MADS members John Keylock and Ron Williams and are still active members over forty years later.

[edit] A Little Theatre?

Macclesfield once had six cinemas. One of these, the Super Cinema on Buxton Road, closed in 1956 after forty-four years’ operation. Colin Read made approaches to the owners, Majestic Theatre Ltd, suggesting that the building could be sold or leased to MADS. Information is sketchy, but evidently there was some possibility in this, with Corporation involvement, as when the building was finally sold in 1959 there was dismay at the sale. Fuller details are not available, but Hedley Palin, at least, felt that the Society had been misled by the Corporation. Hopes of a Little Theatre diminished.

Another possibility, pursued the following year, was the purchase of a prefabricated theatre which would require support from the Council for both funding and a site. This, too, was a blind alley.

[edit] Tenth season and the end of the 1950s

MADS tenth season opened, as usual, with a comedy. Reluctant Heroes by Colin Morris was described by the Macclesfield Times & Courier as ‘farce with a capital F’ and, by the Macclesfield Advertiser, as ‘not the kind of play with which drama festivals are won.’ The main roles were taken by Peter Mann, Frank Snelson, Ron Williams, Colin Read, Joan Sheldon and Ken Wetton — names by then familiar to Macclesfield theatre-goers.

The description of ‘saucy French farce’ for Don’t Listen Ladies!, performed 26 February to 2 March 1957, hides a demanding play. Peter Mann, in a role with 1,200 lines, took honours again as a bigamist antique dealer, ‘a personal triumph ’, ‘he gave a performance of which any actor could be proud.’ Jane Davenport was noted to be ‘an accomplished comedienne’ giving an ‘exquisite performance’ and ‘the most interesting performance of the evening’ while the broader humour was provided by Ken Wetton and Doug Broadbent. The play was produced by John Hedley Palin and had ‘the polish and high standards usually expected from the Society.’

The Macclesfield Advertiser, keen to burn the flame of amateur theatre in Macclesfield during the 1957 closed season, published a series of profiles of leading local actors. It is perhaps a measure of MADS success that, of all the companies in Macclesfield, they were given five of the eight profiles. Short articles about Colin Read, Peter Mann, Hedley Palin, Kenneth Wetton and Muriel Cohen proved to be excellent publicity for MADS.

Continuing the trend of closing the season with a difficult play, the last production of 1957/58 was Peter Ustinov’s Romanoff and Juliet. This, according to the Macclesfield Times,

was not up to their usual standard. The fact that they had to postpone for one day the opening performance was not the best of advertisements... as a team they rarely achieved that coelescence [sic] which is the hallmark of a first class production.

The Macclesfield Advertiser noted that the play ‘bore the mark of under rehearsal. At times it lacked tempo and there were too many prompts.’ This was perhaps due to Peter Mann doubling up as both producer and leading man, as Martin Read notes:

Romanoff and Juliet was a very a adventurous production for an amateur society in those days as, quite apart from having the most demanding role of the ‘General’ (originally played on stage by the play’s author Peter Ustinov), it also on a number of occasions had to have five sets on the go simultaneously. Whilst combining the role of producer and star lead was probably unwise, Peter Mann was still excellent in the leading role and I think that audiences enjoyed the production much more than indicated in the local press.

This play was Peter Mann’s last production for MADS; his temporary relinquishment of director’s duties was permanent.

The second play of 1958/59 was an adaptation of Richard Gordon’s successful novel Doctor in the House. It was the first of three Doctor... plays that MADS has performed, the others being Doctor at Sea (1966) and Doctor in Love (1975). While providing a positive review, the Macclesfield Advertiser was led to comment:

what a long way this splendid society has fallen from the halcyon days of three or four years ago... we are not used to comedy at MADS without Snelson and Wetton.

Frank Snelson was cast in the play, but disaster struck a week before opening night when he had to retire due to ill health. His place was taken by Peter Mann who ‘brought tremendous zest to his part... without him the play might so easily have been a flop.’

The part of Simon Sparrow was taken by Martin Read, taking his only major role for MADS at the age of seventeen. Martin went on to emulate the fictitious Simon Sparrow to train as a doctor, graduating from Leeds University Medical School in 1965. The other two doctors were played by Bob Roberts and Brian Slater, and the part of Sir Lancelot Spratt was taken by Colin Read who delighted the audience by calling his son ‘Martin’ on stage during a performance.

The Society’s Christmas party of 1958 raised £50. Frank Snelson proposed that this money should be set aside to establish a Little Theatre Fund and this was unanimously agreed by the Management Committee. Further to this agreement, the money was used to invest in Macclesfield Corporation stock. Most ardent of the workers towards this goal was MADS secretary Joan Chappell, who, with her sister Lorraine, was tireless in her support and fund raising activities to raise money for the Little Theatre Fund.

Time Remembered, the February 1959 production and the third play by Jean Anouilh to be performed by MADS in a little over four years, received a gushing review from the Macclesfield Advertiser.

If we say that this is as fine as anything of his [Hedley Palin’s] that we have seen for many a season, that his delicate and sure handling of a large cast, and his exquisitely designed and lit sets gave off, like a vapour, those intangible qualities and essences of poetry which permeated every scene and under one spell, then he has only had his due.

The Macclesfield Express were equally flowery and aesthete, ‘The play is a piece of thistledown floating here and there.’

Time Remembered marked the last appearance of Peter Mann for several years. After directing and performing in many plays for over ten years, firmly establishing himself as MADS premier leading man during this period, he would be absent until The Circle in November 1965. His last appearance was in The Lark in 1966.

Four actors who joined MADS in the mid-to-late fifties would go on to become prolific producers. Bob Roberts, MADS first new producer for five years replacing Peter Mann on the Producer’s Panel, produced six main season plays — from Spider’s Web in 1959 to Doctor at Sea in 1966. Originally a member of Parkside Players, Bob joined MADS in 1957 taking leading roles in many plays, notably Doctor in the House and The Rainmaker.

Philip Corke produced nine main season plays — from The Amorous Prawn in 1964 to The Cat and the Canary in 1973. He also jointly produced Trap for a Lonely Man with Bob Roberts in 1965. David Avery told the author, ‘Pat, my wife, worked with Phil Corke at Burdins in Mill Street. On a Whit Monday night in May 1954 I travelled with him to London when I was returning to my RAF camp in Hampshire. He was going to an audition for the Black and White Minstrel Show. What was George Mitchell’s loss was MADS gain!’

Also joining at the same time, making her début in Doctor in the House, was Barbara Williamson who appeared in many plays throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Better known now as Barbara Northwood (marrying MADS member Geoff Northwood in 1967), she performed in many plays throughout the 1960s and 1970s, received co-producer credit with Frank Snelson for The Little Hut in 1970, then directed a further eight main season plays between 1971 and 1980. She returned to direct two further plays in 1993 and take occasional major roles in main season productions, including that of Gertrude in Hamlet.

John Hadfield was a major influence on MADS history. He joined in 1954 from the Central School Players and first appeared with MADS as a footman in a 1959 production. Frank Snelson stood down from his role as the Sheriff in The Rainmaker to give John his first speaking role. Restricting his first twenty years in MADS to acting, he spent a total of eleven years as chairman (1973-1979, 1981-1986). John has produced many main season plays since Stringer’s Last Stand in 1976 and was the driving force behind the theatre’s redevelopment in the early 1980s. He continues to direct and act regularly and has been involved with over fifty productions.

Refurbishment of the Lord Street premises took place during the 1959 closed season, with the Trustees paying for the materials and MADS providing the labour.

Pygmalion was the last play of the 1950s. Colin Read and Frank Snelson were ideal for the roles of Professor Higgins (‘an excellent performance’) and Alfred Doolittle (‘a role and material which suit him down to the ground’). The role of Eliza was taken by Muriel Barber who contributed ‘a delicious piece of acting.’ Hedley Palin was now building a reputation that would bring in theatre-goers on the strength of his name alone. Despite the occasional under-par production, MADS was by now being described as ‘the town’s foremost society’.

[edit] 1960s

[edit] Passion and proficiency

The penultimate production of the 1959/60 season was John Hedley Palin’s production of Caesar’s Friend, MADS' first Passion Play. An unlucky production requiring an unusually large cast and an extension to the Sunday School stage, the indisposition of Geoff Buckley as Annas on the opening night required Bob Roberts to double up and play two roles. The Macclesfield County Express suggested that ‘a series of mishaps showed that the play was painfully under-rehearsed.’ Amusingly, the Macclesfield Advertiser spotted Frank Snelson in the crowd scenes ‘disguised as an Arab or a Jew or something in a bathrobe with a towel round his head.’ Again, Ron Williams proved himself to be a capable interpreter of difficult material and, with Jane Davenport, received the only complimentary reviews. The Manchester Evening News went so far to suggest that it was the performances of these two players that ‘had the polish required to lift this religious play out of the rut of the semi-dramatic performances given by church societies every Christmas.’ Like The Firstborn before it, Caesar’s Friend was later performed in the parish church.

House by the Lake, the last play of 1959/60, marked the return of Kenneth Wetton, his first appearance for some time, and the début of Win Hall as a breezy district nurse. Win Hall remains one of MADS' most accomplished character actors playing parts such Maggie in Hobson’s Choice (1965), Daisy in Spring and Port Wine (1971), Mrs. Fairfax in Jane Eyre (in both 1974 and 1994) and Miss Prism in The Importance of Being Earnest (1995) to perfection.

An annual dance was inaugurated in 1960, held at the Town Hall, complete with Bob Tinning’s Band. This event was repeated for several years. A Christmas party has been a regular social event, moving from the Pavilion of the Brocklehusrt-Whiston Amalgamated on Fence Avenue to the Beehive Restaurant, Sunderland Street, the Redway Tavern, Kerridge and Chesters Restaurant, Chestergate, before settling at the Little Theatre.

John Hadfield and Hedley’s son Michael appeared on the front page of the Macclesfield County Express on 24 November 1960. Publicising The Rainmaker, set on an American cattle ranch, they toured the town centre on a busy Saturday afternoon distributing ‘Wanted’ posters, dressed in cowboy outfits and riding a horse. They were eventually moved along by the local bobbies; John Hadfield remembers this today with a wry smile.

The Gentle People by Irwin Shaw, presented in March 1961, required four complete scene changes. The set took over 1,500 man hours to build and Ken Wetton and his crew received the first bouquet in the County Express review. The play is mostly set at night on a fishing pier, but scenes in a Russian bath-house and on the open sea were performed on the Sunday School stage. Rehearsals were considerably disrupted by a serious ‘flu epidemic in the area.

The 700th anniversary of the granting of Macclesfield’s Charter was celebrated by a pageant of twenty tableaux of Macclesfield life. MADS were asked to provide two of these tableaux for this event in June 1961. Both were produced with Hedley Palin directing and John Hadfield taking the narrative roles. The event was held in the South Park on the back of specially dressed lorries.

[edit] The fiftieth production

The first production of the 1961/62 season was a significant milestone for MADS, the fiftieth full length production. Lesley Storm’s Roar Like a Dove, produced by Frank Snelson, marked the first appearance of Chris Nixon, a regular for the next twenty years and still an active member off-stage with lengthy stints as treasurer and bar chairman. Roar Like a Dove almost failed to live up to expectations, at least on the opening night. The review in the Macclesfield Advertiser reads ‘The laughs were there, but the roar came near to falling flat.’ Nevertheless the review goes on to praise the production and notes that it was very popular with the audience.

A souvenir programme was assembled for the 50th production featuring a history of the society, biographies of the producers (Bob Roberts, John H Palin and Frank Snelson), a resume of the logistics of staging a play and a full list of members (86 in total). The Society stood a loss of £40 with the production of these programmes.

Following Roar Like a Dove was The Rose Without a Thorn, the first costume drama for some time. Based on the life of Katheryn Howard, it was a personal success for Colin Read portraying Henry VIII. It was an ambitious play with heavy demands on both cast and crew requiring twenty-six acting members and the involvement of twenty others, headed by John Hadfield as stage manager and assisted by John Sadler, himself a talented stage manager.

[edit] Acting the goat with the acting goat

MADS received considerable press coverage for the production of Teahouse of the August Moon in February 1962. A goat plays a central role in this lengthy and now somewhat old-fashioned play. Both the search for and appearance of Snowy (playing Snowball) provided many column inches for both the local and national press with eight goats being ‘auditioned’ by producer John Hedley Palin. Many of the cast were required to portray Orientals, further complicating rehearsals and characterisation. The main role of the narrator was taken by Kenneth Wetton. The complex set was highly praised by reviews and it is perhaps unfortunate that the press coverage included photographs of a pantomime backdrop and a not-wholly-convincing jeep.

Nevertheless, the Macclesfield County Express even went so far as to suggest that Maxonians should ‘forgo the “telly” and bingo for a night and have a gay, spicy, colourful time.’ The production went on to win the McLoughlan Trophy by the British Drama League Festival for the best amateur production in the north-west during the 1961/62 season.

The next play, Libel, a courtroom drama by Clifford Wooll closed the season and split the critics. The Macclesfield Express described the performance as ‘sound entertainment ’ but went on to claim ‘there was something missing to put this production among the list of the Society’s best.’ The Advertiser went further, ‘It is difficult to see where MADS went wrong. It could have been the choice of the play that let the society down on this occasion.’

The play was discussed at the next Management Committee meeting, on 30 April 1962: It was generally felt that in spite of poor houses there had been appreciative audiences. The producer reporting on the play made the following points:- 1) players did not learn their lines nearly soon enough, 2) there seemed to be apathy in some quarters, 3) standards seemed to have dropped and there had been a general lack of discipline during rehearsal.

[edit] Upheaval and uncertainty

Press reports for Something to Hide, the last play of the 1962/63 season, hinted at a great upheaval in the MADS camp: MADS showed its last play in the Lord Street Theatre last night. Next season it moves to a destination unknown. The next two plays, Wanted, One Body and a Letter from the General, were performed at the Morton Hall, Union Street, part of the Hovis site. Understandably, attendance dropped during this period.

A further clue can be found in Colin Read’s message to patrons in the programme for Something to Hide:

As we draw to the close of our 1962-63 season there are many conjectures concerning the MADS future, as our present landlords are ceasing to exist in their present capacity.

The Lord Street Trustees wanted to relinquish the building, leaving MADS homeless.

Evidently MADS use of the building was never satisfactory to all parties. The newsletter of 4 July 1955 records that the Macclesfield Town Band were contributing ‘considerable disharmonious noises’ during rehearsals, and the Management Committee minutes for 3 November 1958 note that rehearsals were distracted by the noise of children. The building as a whole was described as MADS Headquarters in the programme for Roar Like a Dove (1961), despite the agreement that MADS would rent the lower floor only, and this, among other things, led to a few complaints from the Lord Street Trustees.

The Amorous Prawn in February 1964 was staged at Lord Street, but, as Colin Read noted ‘We have hopes that, if luck is with us, we may be settled permanently in the near future.’

Colin Read, in his report to the AGM that year said that: during the past eighteen months our plans have twice been thwarted, first at Trinity and later at a new site to be granted by the Corporation.

‘Trinity’ refers to the Schoolroom of Trinity Methodist Church, now demolished, a possible site for the Little Theatre. Negotiations broke down due to circumstances beyond the control of the Society. It is not clear what the ‘new site’ could have been. Mr Read continues:

We have again during the past few months made a bid for security of our home, but the indications are not encouraging.

[edit] The Little Theatre

Affairs were still uncertain throughout the year but it was a meeting between MADS officials and representatives of Macclesfield Council, held on 13 November 1964 that crystallised MADS plans and secured the future of amateur theatre in Macclesfield. The president, secretary and treasurer of MADS discussed several alternatives with the Mayor, Town Clerk and Borough Treasurer with the result, conveyed to Colin Read in a letter from Walter Isaac, the Town Clerk, on 4 December 1964, that the Council would make a grant of £750 and an interest-free ten year loan for a further £750. This covered the purchase price of £1,500 that had previously been negotiated between MADS and the Lord Street Trustees.

An important condition of the agreement noted that the Council would reclaim the grant and any outstanding loan payments should MADS sell the property, or if the property was compulsorily purchased for redevelopment or clearance. Funds for refurbishment of the building were raised by the members. New interlocking chairs for the auditorium were purchased through covenants and donations; some of these are still in use in the theatre today.

A major refurbishment of the stage and scenery store was carried out in preparation for re-opening. Several members, led by Ken Wetton and John Sadler, completed the work to a very tight schedule, sometimes working late into the night to ensure that the stage was worthy of the new theatre.

The Little Theatre was officially opened on 21 September 1965 by the Mayor of Macclesfield, Councillor JVG Hope who remarked that he had

heard a lot of talk that there was nothing to do [in the town]. It depends on what you want to do. If it means lounging round [sic] in a darkened cellar with long hair and drinking coffee we do not want anything of that sort in the town.

The official opening was followed by a performance of the melodramatic The Murder of Maria Marten (or The Red Barn). The Macclesfield Advertiser noted that the play was one ‘that many of the older folk thoroughly enjoyed.’ Making her début in this play was teenager Pat Poynton (later Pat Dean) who evidently was not interested in coffee-drinking. Pat would perform regularly with the Society over the next twenty-five years and hold the post of ticket secretary from 1969 to 1975 and honorary secretary between 1975 and 1981. Also appearing in this play, taking the lead, was Dennis Johns, a principal leading man for MADS during the 1960s.

The deeds of the Lord Street building were transferred to the society in September 1966. Several MADS members were included among the trustees and some are still active members today: Win Hall, Jane Keylock, Chris Nixon and John Hadfield.

[edit] ‘MADS will not tackle the Bard’

The first MADS play to receive bad press notices was When We Are Married in October 1949. ‘Hackneyed’ and ‘the Society is not to be a medium for raising theatrical appreciation in the town’ reported the Macclesfield Courier. And in the Macclesfield Times, ‘The technique and polished presentation which we have come to expect from this talented company was [sic] not sufficiently in evidence.’ However, the same reviews agreed that the acting was of the usual standard and MADS was ‘a thoroughly entertaining body.’ Indeed, the production went on to take second place in the Buxton Festival. This is the earliest example of a problem that has dogged amateur dramatic societies for decades. Should the plays chosen be guaranteed crowd-pullers, or should the society produce more challenging theatre; challenging not just for the actors and stage crew but also for the audience? MADS' policy in this regard can perhaps best be summed up by Colin Read’s philosophy ‘Worthwhile plays, well done!’.

This dilemma led to a most unusual front page story in the Macclesfield Advertiser of 19 June 1964. Headlined ‘MADS Will Not Tackle the Bard: Are Some Members Frightened?’, the report was initiated by Colin Read’s suggestion that MADS should perform one of Shakespeare’s plays to mark the 400th anniversary of his birth.

And it sparked off a squabble that would have done the Bard proud in any of his crowded street scenes.

Principal worries were that a Shakespeare play would be difficult to produce, had few parts for women, would not be not funny and would not prove to be a box office draw. Each producer present was asked to give guidance. Frank Snelson, butcher and lover of farces, was quoted as saying ‘It’s no use trying to sell the housewife a bottle of sauce she doesn’t want.’ Latent treasurer Chris Nixon was worried about the financial risk, to which Colin Read replied that royalties would not need to be paid! Hedley Palin deflected arguments about the staging by claiming that the society had a stage crew that any West End theatre would be pleased to take over. A vote was finally taken, with 10 for and 13 against.

Two years later, during the May 1966 production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Gawsworth Hall, presented by LAC Players, Salford as part of Macclesfield Festival, MADS received a credit for lighting effects, music and set decor. Colin Read was house manager.

Colin Read mentioned during his chairman’s address at the AGM of 1969 that MADS decision not to stage Shakespeare was reversed at an Extraordinary General Meeting. MADS was subsequently asked, at the beginning of the 1970s, to present the annual Shakespearean productions at Gawsworth Hall, but were unable to take part, presumably due to the commitments of the regular play season.

It was almost twenty-five years later, in 1993, before MADS took on a Shakespeare play with the production of Hamlet.

[edit] Festival success in the 1960s and 1970s

After a break of ten years, MADS one-act play The Monkey’s Paw, produced by John H Palin, won the McGrath Trophy in the preliminary round of the British Drama League’s National Festival of Community Theatre, held at the Worthington Hall, Manchester on 19 February 1965.

The Lark by Jean Anouilh was presented by MADS as part of the 1966 Macclesfield Arts Festival, allowing the Society to choose a difficult but rewarding play away from the main play season. Again produced by John H Palin, the leading role, that of Joan of Arc, was played by Dorothy Nixon in ‘a stupendous performance’.

John H Palin’s production of The Physicists by Friedrich Durrenmatt, second play of the 1966/67 season was awarded the Simon Saft Memorial Trophy at the 1967 AGM of the British Drama League (North Western Section) for the most outstanding and adventurous play. This was despite a lukewarm reception from a contemporary reviewer:

Their interpretation of the play never really settled down to a fluid presentation of the powerful situations and ideas and the drama, the pathos, and the dry humour were almost completely lost in the jerky, stilted production.

Anton Chekhov’s The Proposal, also produced by John H Palin, and previously performed by MADS at the 1958 Macclesfield Music Festival, was revived in 1968 for the British Drama League’s one-act festival and for the Buxton Drama Festival where it won the comedy open class. AW Pinero’s Victorian farce Dandy Dick was presented as part of the Macclesfield Arts Festival of 1969.

Hedley Palin gained further festival success in 1970 when his production of the one-act play The Animal won the open section of the Cheshire Drama Festival. Barbara Northwood’s production of The Lovers by Harold Pinter reached the divisional finals of the National One Act Play Final in the early part of 1972 and Hedley Palin’s production of Yves Cabrol’s The Elephant went one further, to the Northern Area Final, in 1974.

Hedley Palin’s main season production of Jane Eyre reached the final of the 1974 Cheshire Community Council One-Act Play Competition and would receive considerable complimentary press coverage following the five-night run at the Little Theatre in February 1974.

The Browning Version, produced by Dawn Sims, was awarded runner-up in the 1976 Buxton Festival, and this production won both the best actor and best actress awards at the same event. It also won the British Theatre Association Festival that season.

[edit] The end of the 1960s

Charley’s Aunt, a perennial favourite for a hundred years has twice been performed by MADS. The first MADS production, in May 1967, featured Chris Nixon as the eponymous matron and gained good notices for John Hadfield and John Keylock as his partners-in-deceit. The play was also performed for several nights at Buxton Playhouse and, by invitation, at the Colwyn Bay Festival. Chris later appeared in the 1996 revival of the play.

The MADS stage was improved and enlarged during the 1967 closed season, improving the width of vision from all parts of the theatre and increasing the backstage areas. This work was carried out by John Sadler, Bob Dawson and John Hadfield, assisted by a small number of members.

Another late-1960s play revived in the 1990s was Robert Bolt’s A Man for All Seasons. MADS first run of this play played between 30 April and 4 May 1968. Costumes from the film version, which starred Paul Schofield, were used and original music was recorded by boys of Broken Cross Secondary School. The play was produced by Hedley Palin and was praised for its simple but effective staging, consisting of just three chairs and a table. This production reached the final of the Cheshire Community Council County Play of the Year Festival. The high standard of acting was remarked upon in several contemporary press clippings, particularly John Daglish as Sir Thomas More and John Hadfield who played the multi-faceted Common Man, allowing him to ‘show his prowess as a comic and jack-of-all-trades’. John Hadfield later directed the 1994 revival of this play.

John Daglish, MADS leading man in this period, performed ‘one man shows’ reading Dickens. He would subsequently try his hand at directing, taking charge of a successful production of Moliere’s Tartuffe in November 1969. This would prove to be his only directorial outing for MADS despite may lead roles, having to relinquish director’s duties for business reasons.

[edit] 1970s

[edit] Honor Blackman, Audrey Hepburn, Dorothy Nixon

Wait Until Dark was first produced in February 1970, close behind a West End run starring Honor Blackman; ‘It would obviously be ridiculous to compare the two productions’, stated the Macclesfield Express, but went on to say that ‘both were equally enjoyable.’ A successful film featuring Audrey Hepburn had also been recently shown in the town; ‘It would be unfair to make too close a comparison between the film and MADS effort’, ran one newspaper, ‘but... there was little to choose.’

The leading role in MADS production was played by Dorothy Nixon, and the reviews were unstinting in their praise: ‘the outstanding player’ and ‘a stunning performance.’ John Daglish was also highly commended.

[edit] Pantomime

MADS' ventures into pantomime perhaps go against the principles of a forward-thinking amateur dramatic society. Nevertheless, commencing in January 1965, the society was involved in several pantomime shows. Aladdin (1969), Dick Whittington (1970) and Snow White & The Dwarfs (1971) were performed as joint productions with the Patterson School of Dancing and were produced by John H Palin.

Jean Patterson continued to present New Year pantomimes throughout the 1970s and into the 1980s, but with the credit ‘Presented by the Patterson School of Dancing with guest artistes’. These guests were drawn from both MADS and the Macclesfield Majestic Theatre Group. All proceeds, often substantial amounts, were donated to MADS. Jean Patterson (now Jean Jones) was awarded life membership of MADS in 1984 in recognition of her contribution to the Society.

[edit] The Talent Scheme

A fund-raising idea introduced around this time was the Talent Scheme. Each member was given £1 and asked to arrange an event with the intention of making a return on the investment. This was a revival of a previous scheme run in 1962.

The principal among these was a production of The Hollow Crown, 9-10 May 1970; other events included a fashion show, a slide show, a potato pie supper, bring and buy sale, art exhibition, and a ‘Wig & Undies evening’. This scheme ran for several years, raising over £600 for the company.

[edit] The arrival of Dawn Sims

The part of Irene Molloy in the November 1970 production of The Matchmaker marked the MADS début of Dawn Sims. She possessed that irresistible zest which turned a mediocre part into a performance which almost rivalled those of Brian Stewart and Jane Keylock [the lead roles].

Dawn was born in Hong Kong and took to the stage at the age of seven when she played a tree, but became stage-struck playing Joan of Arc at High School. She attended drama college and later joined the Plymouth Shakespeare Society, Barnes Dramatic Society, Bromley Little Theatre and Clarence Players (Belfast).

Following her début, Dawn took a lead role in The Chalk Garden in November 1971. This was her 100th acting role, and she again received good notices: ‘one of Dawn’s best ever performances for the society ’ and ‘a sensitive depiction of the convicted murderess’.

Dawn’s directorial début for MADS was in 1974 with the production of Relatively Speaking by Alan Ayckbourn which won the BTA’s Peel Trophy. She has since directed more than twenty main season plays, including such successful and varied productions as My Three Angels (1977), Whose Life Is It Anyway? (1985), Outside Edge (1986), A Month of Sundays (1990, winner of that season’s Cheshire Community Council County Play of the Year), Bedroom Farce (1990), Daisy Pulls It Off (1991), A Day in the Life of Joe Egg (1993) and Veronica’s Room (1996). Not a bad record for one who was most adamant that she did not wish to direct and was persuaded and cajoled into it by the then chairman, John Hadfield.

Dawn has continued to act and was particularly memorable in such recent productions as Corpse! (1994) and Noises Off (1995). Dawn also spent many years as vice-chairman, including two stints as acting chairman.

[edit] Hedley Palin’s 50th production

The 1972 production of Arms and the Man was Hedley Palin’s fiftieth production for the society; a remarkable tally in just twenty-one years. George Bernard Shaw’s satire on the unrealities of war was a great success, despite the threat of power cuts which meant that the eight-strong cast needed to keep torches backstage. Contemporary press reports note that many companies throughout the country cancelled their winter productions at the beginning of 1972, but MADS was determined to acknowledge its debt to its long-standing producer.

Hedley’s contribution had clearly been part of MADS climb to be the standard bearers of live theatre in Macclesfield. His contribution to local theatre was recognised in 1973 when he was appointed the adjudicator for the Donald McLaughlin Trophy by the British Theatre Association, a trophy that he himself had won with his production of Teahouse of the August Moon in 1962.

The John H Palin Trophy for Stagecraft, awarded by the British Theatre Association, was inaugurated at the start of the 1974/75 season in recognition of his second term as adjudicator.

Hedley was elected an honorary life member of MADS at the 1974 AGM, president in 1979 and would directed a remarkable total of sixty-seven plays for MADS before his death in 1990.

[edit] When We Are Re-Married

JB Priestley’s enduring farce When We Are Married was first performed by MADS in 1949. The first revival in 1973 would include two of the original cast; Frank Snelson and Geoff Buckley, repeating roles they had played twenty-four years before. To complete the circle, Kenneth Wetton was asked to produce the play, his first for the Society since Is Your Honeymoon Really Necessary? in 1960.

The cast was made up of the core of MADS acting talent — names who appeared regularly in plays of this period: Joan Chappell, Win Hall, John Hadfield, Phil Corke, Pat Poynton, Dawn Sims and Chris Nixon.

The play was revived again in 1988.

[edit] Colin Read steps down

Colin Read intended to retire from the role as chairman in 1971 but stayed on until a suitable replacement could be found. Two years later John Hadfield was elected chairman and would hold the post until 1979, and again between 1981 and 1986, taking the Society through two of its most traumatic periods.

Colin Read was appointed a life member in recognition of his twenty years’ service as chairman and was chief guest at a dinner on 8 June 1973 in his honour at the Deanwater Hotel in Woodford when he was presented with an armchair. He would continue to take acting roles until 1979, management roles until 1985 and remained an avid supporter of MADS until his unfortunate death in a road accident in 1993.

His son Martin, remembering his father in 1998, said: So when you have a quiet moment, remember one Colin Read, a man whose enthusiasm and deep affection for MADS knew no bounds, a man who put in many fine performances on stage for the society, and a man who on occasions could take a finely tuned production suddenly right off the rails with his extra-sensory ‘stage sense’ and copyright disregard. A part of his soul is still with you, confusing actors and prompters alike … just be thankful that he was unique.

[edit] Legal changes spell trouble

The introduction of the Theatres Act in 1968 and the Fire Protection Act in 1971 would have broad consequences for MADS, culminating in complete closure of the theatre for three years in the early 1980s. A fire escape corridor, built in late 1972, was just the first of a number of major construction works that would be required to enable the theatre to remain active. In his chairman’s report at the 1974 AGM, John Hadfield, noted that the work required to meet this legislation had been at ‘a considerable cost to the Society in both monetary and manpower terms’. This was the first indication of the problems that almost brought the Society to its knees.

At the next AGM, in 1975, John Hadfield appealed to local industry to provide financial help to offset the rising costs of the maintenance of the Little Theatre. Over £2,000 was needed for replacement guttering, and, despite making a season’s profit of £833, the Society was faced with increased costs and reduced revenue. By the next Management meeting, 4 August 1975, a total of £63 had already been raised by this method.

Doctor in Love (October 1975) was ‘an embarrassing mixture of script and ad lib.’ Pygmalion (February 1976) was haunted by ‘the spectre of mediocrity... way below their usual high standards.’ Two and Two Make Sex (October 1976) was ‘hackneyed... the type of play that hamstrings its players... nothing to distinguish it from a hundred others ’ (although this production later won the BTA’s Peel Trophy). In terms of artistic achievement, MADS was in need of drastic changes. These changes would be forced upon the society from an unsuspected source.

[edit] Produced by John Hadfield

John Hadfield’s reputation as an actor had increased throughout his twenty years as a member of MADS. In 1975 he had received excellent reviews for his lead role in There’s a Girl in my Soup, the Macclesfield Express noting that he ‘must be in the running to out-drop Brian Rix, judging by the number of times he takes his trousers off .’

John had originally planned to co-produce There’s a Girl in my Soup, but switched to take the lead role due to casting problems. His first production would, therefore, be Stringer’s Last Stand, the last play of the 1975/76 season. The Macclesfield Express suggested that this production was ‘one of [MADS] best ever.’ John Hadfield has since produced over a dozen main season plays for the Society.

A small notice in the programme for The Importance of Being Earnest marked the death of MADS founding chairman, Frank Snelson, in February 1975.

[edit] Crisis

In January 1977, MADS financial and artistic problems would come to a head when the Fire Officer refused to re-license the premises and allow performances to continue in the theatre due to the lack of a suitable fire exit from the first floor auditorium. Alleviation of this severe restriction was not forthcoming, despite urgent discussion between the Fire Officer, MADS chairman John Hadfield and treasurer Cyril Northwood. Ironically, the Society had just completed its repayments on the interest-free loan provided by the Council for the purchase of the building.

An emergency committee meeting was held on 21 January. The proposed production of Blithe Spirit was postponed and later cancelled and, as a purely temporary measure that would last four years, the stage and seating were moved to the ground floor, implementing a plan that had been devised and proposed by John Hadfield and approved by the MADS Management Committee. Move Over Mrs Markham and a planned one-act play festival were also subsequently cancelled.

The new auditorium was hardly satisfactory. The number of seats was reduced (to 180) and visibility was affected due to the pillars supporting the upper floor. The new stage was only 7 feet 6 inches deep with an additional 3-foot thrust, around a third of the depth of the current stage. The cost of `the move would total £926.17.

Night Must Fall by Emlyn Williams was the first play in the new auditorium, produced by Barbara Northwood in September 1977. The number of performances was increased from five to six to provide extra revenue (due to the reduced seating capacity), breaking a tradition in place since the earliest days of the Society. This number of performances remains in force today.

[edit] Sweeney Todd

Posterity does not record why MADS, a drama company, should have chosen to present a musical based upon the life of a murderous Victorian barber. Nevertheless, Sweeney Todd the Demon Barber was produced at the Little Theatre between 20 and 25 February 1978. Brian Stewart, Dawn Sims and Colin Read took the lead roles in a show ‘short on singing power ’; the first and last musical presented by the Society. Only eleven people attended the opening night of this production , despite the attraction of meat pies in the interval, which made a profit of £14.73.

Later in the year, There Goes the Bride, a farce, provided the first MADS stage role for John Moore, later much involved with the management of the Society as secretary (1981-1986 and 1987-1992) and chairman (1992-1996).

John Hadfield’s temporary absence from the role of chairman (due to ill health) was filled by Dawn Sims during the early months of 1979, then by Brian Jefferson from the 1979 AGM to early 1981.

[edit] 1980s

[edit] Redevelopment

Proposals for an Arts Centre for Macclesfield, drawn up by John Hadfield, had been suggested as early as 15 October 1976 at a meeting between MADS officials and trustees when it became evident that a new road through the centre of Macclesfield, Churchill Way, would not, as was proposed, require the demolition of the Little Theatre. John Hadfield took this opportunity to suggest to the Macclesfield Borough Council (MBC), Cheshire County Council (CCC) and North West Arts Association (NWA) that the Little Theatre would make an ideal Arts Centre for the town. The costs for conversion were estimated at £40,000. These proposals were given extra impetus early the following year when fire regulations forced the closure of the building for six months. Barrie Wood of Brotherton & Partners, Chartered Architects, was employed to draw up reconstruction plans from John Hadfield’s proposals and technical outlines. Hedley Palin’s scale model of the proposals excited considerable interest at that year’s AGM.

A large feature in the new Community News in July 1978 now placed the estimate at £70,000 and suggested that financial help would be available from CCC, MBC and NWA. This was finalised at a meeting between concerned parties at the Council Planning Offices, King Edward Street. The MADS Trustees heard MBC, CCC and NWA agree large matching grants for the redevelopment of the theatre: a total of £71,000. There was much jubilation within the Society that day.

Cheshire County Council ultimately rescinded their promise of a grant, resulting in both MBC and NWA backing out. Doug Pickford’s editorial of the 9 October 1980 issue of the Macclesfield Express noted

Macclesfield will be the loser if MADS was to go, but we do not think the fighting spirit will go down without an almighty struggle. Good luck to that small band who are struggling to make sure that the town will have an amateur stage not just now but in many years to come. They deserve all the luck (and money) they can get.

Although much disheartened by the pulling out of the three funding bodies, John Hadfield called a Special Extraordinary General Meeting of the membership. Supported by the Management Committee, the chairman proposed that the society ‘go it alone’ and a decision was taken to go ahead and start on the first phase of the reconstruction as well as to raise the necessary money by appeal.

Consequently, the theatre closed after the December 1980 production of Toad of Toad Hall with the intention to reopen at the start of the 1981/82 season. Planned productions of Loot (to have been produced by John Hadfield) and A Servant of Two Masters (to have been produced by Barbara Northwood) were cancelled. These alterations included roof repairs and new guttering, removal of the first floor, installation of a new stage, rewiring, tiered seating, construction of a fire-proof ceiling over the auditorium, new carpets and curtaining, a new lighting and sound box and a refurbished coffee room, kitchen and foyer.

This initial nine-month closure would stretch to almost three and a half years. A Ways and Means Committee would be set up and based at Hedley Palin’s house at 34 Lord Street. The work was planned and directed by John Hadfield, supported by Chris Nixon, Tony Morris, Hedley Palin, John Baxendale, Leo Donnelly, John Proctor and many other members and friends of the society. A massive letter drop met with limited success, but Hedley personally wrote to every contributor to the redevelopment fund and, as copies in the archive show, ensured that each letter included a personal touch such as a reference to progress being made.

Renovation workers found several items that had fallen through the floorboards and remained hidden for a century: Thomas Jackson’s exercise book, dated 9 February 1876; a programme for the annual sermons of the British Schools for 20 May 1888; a mathematics test card; an ink bottle; a blackboard slate; pieces of a jigsaw puzzle; and a wooden set square.

Society membership dropped during this period from around one-hundred and twenty to fewer than sixty. The youth group, which flourished briefly at the end of the 1970s, did not survive the upheavals.

John Hadfield sent a progress report to members on 18 March 1982. It seems reasonable to list the items on this report to show the extent of the work carried out:

Installation of steelwork, false ceiling and cat walks above the auditorium due to commence April 1982.
Fire vents for roof above stage area have arrived.
Work in progress on forecourt which will be flagged, beds for shrubs laid and a ramp to new disabled people's entrance laid in to footpath.
Lighting and sound boxes installed.
Part of old first floor removed and wood recycled.
New proscenium arch 90% built.
Main support structure installed (for raked seating).
Exterior windows reglazed.
Disabled entrance and escape door installed.
Old gas heaters removed and new heaters installed.
Walls of auditorium scraped down.
New coffee room under preparation.
New interior doors hung and fire-proofed.
Internal dividing walls under demolition.
Black-out boards for windows completed on first floor.
48 tons of rubble and rubbish removed.
Basement arches bricked up and external doors fitted.

Work for the next six months included:
Install coffee room equipment and fittings and decorate.
Prepare interior walls and woodwork for painting.
Build ladies dressing room fire wall.
Complete proscenium arch and fix décor panels.
Complete light and sound box.
Remove remaining sections of first floor.
Remove several tons of rubble.
Demolish internal dividing walls at stage area.
Build cyclorama.
Divide basement to include emergency exit corridor and door.
Complete forecourt.
Rewire building - power and lights, internal and external.
Install stage lighting.
Install emergency lighting.
Install intercom system.
Build stage and walkways.
Build seating rostra.
Install new roof over stage door.
Exterior painting and pointing.

The report noted that £25,730 had been raised from grants and donations, of which £8,500 had been raised by appeal, and that a further £20,000 was needed to complete the project. Finance was eventually provided by NWA who granted £6,000 over three years. This was matched by MBC who also provided an interest-free loan of £10,000. CCC granted £1,000 after determined negotiations by John Hadfield. The remainder spent, £20,980, was or had been raised by members; local businesses also donated many items. Seventy-five per cent of the labour, an estimated 25,000 man hours, was carried out by volunteers from the membership of the Society.

A big problem with the conversion work, and something that could not have been foreseen, was the prevalence of damp in many ground floor supporting timbers. During its time as a school, the playground had been underneath the main building, with open areas to the front and rear of the main structure (the bricked up arches can still be seen at the rear of the building; the original stone flags are still laid in the cellar). When MADS bought the building in 1964, one of the first jobs was the filling in and flagging of the open area on the Lord Street elevation to provide a forecourt. This was done without the installation of a damp-proof course, so that, fifteen years later, damp had penetrated the supporting timbers across much of the width of the ground floor. Additional supporting pillars needed to be installed. These are still in place, although one row of pillars has been converted into a wall to divide the dressing room and the furniture store.

A further idea, later abandoned, was to convert the land behind the theatre into a patio garden.

[edit] Re-opening

The Gala Opening was initially set up for January 1984 with a first production to follow in March.

Delays meant that the official opening and first performance in the new Little Theatre were held on 16 May 1984. The opening ceremony was performed by Nicholas Winterton MP in the company of Councillor Jack Thompson, Mayor of Macclesfield, John Hedley Palin, MADS president and John Hadfield, MADS chairman.

This was followed by a performance of On Monday Next, particularly apt as the play is about a troupe of actors desperately trying to get a play ready for their first night. It was directed by Hedley Palin. ‘Future Looks Good for MADS’, ran the Community News in July 1984, ‘without exception the cast extracted everything possible out of the play.’

The newsletter of June 1984 listed the work still required in the theatre. An immediate requirement was the conversion of the basement into a storage area. Short-term improvements included backstage washing and lavatory facilities and in the longer term a bar and lounge would be established in the ground-floor wardrobe. The interior refurbishment won a Civic Society Award in 1985 which was accepted by John Hadfield on behalf of the society. John was also given life membership of MADS for his leadership and technical work during the redevelopment period.

[edit] New faces

Among the new members who joined during and after the renovations were Graham and Cynthia Miles. Cynthia Miles became publicity secretary and directed five main season plays between 1984 and 1990 (MADS first new director for almost ten years and only the third since 1970). She also took many well-received acting roles. Graham Miles would contribute to both the stage management and theatre management of the Society, becoming secretary in 1986 and switching to chairman from 1987 to 1991. He directed Spring and Port Wine in 1988 and would be elected president in 1991. The Miles retired to France in 1992.

David Windsor, later chairman from 1991 to 1992, was among the cast for On Monday Next. Also appearing in this production was Tim Caulfield who took many roles for several years, most memorably as the Ghost in Hamlet. Tim was publicity officer for many years and was responsible for the development of the programme, the MADS Angels and other fund-raising activities.

[edit] John Hadfield steps down

John Hadfield gave notice at the 1986 AGM that the forthcoming season would be his last as chairman of MADS. He noted in his report to the members:

I am convinced that the society now needs a new approach, a new vision and a new style of leadership. Whoever he or she may be, they could not have a better foundation from which to make their mark.

Two months later, John was forced to resign due to internal conflicts within the membership. Dawn Sims acted as chairman until the 1987 AGM when secretary Graham Miles was elected as chairman. John Moore returned to his role of secretary.

[edit] Further refurbishment

A ‘Sponsor a Seat’ appeal was launched in April 1986 to complete the work required to refurbish the Little Theatre. Additional work carried out throughout the late eighties and nineties included a bar and bar lounge (completed in 1988), new ground floor lavatories (completed in 1991), foyer refurbishment (completed in 1993), a permanent extension to the stage and interior redecoration (completed in 1994), a replacement box office (completed in 1994), repointing of the Lord Street elevation (completed in 1995), repairs to the rear of the building (completed in 1996), installation of central heating (1996), refurbishment of the coffee/rehearsal room (completed 1997) and amendments to the proscenium arch and stage (completed 1997).

Slate pencils and printed materials from the late 19th century were discovered during the 1988 renovation work.

Finance for these works was provided by a combination of appeals, box office proceeds, loans and grants.

The theatre was listed as a building of special architectural/historical interest in 1995.

[edit] New directors

The cast of Time and Time Again, performed in September 1984, provided the MADS début for Pam Hill who directed four main season plays and Pinter’s one-act A Slight Ache between 1987 and 1990.

The December 1984 offering, No Time for Fig Leaves, included both Francesca Dykes and Maureen Ransome in the nine-strong cast. Both would go on to direct after many major acting roles for the society.

The 1985 entry into the Macclesfield Music and Drama Festival, Stanley Houghton’s Dear Departed, was directed by Roger Hordley.

Tony Thorne was much praised for his role as a man paralysed in a car accident in the March 1985 production of Whose Life Is It Anyway? and co-directed The Accrington Pals with Hedley Palin later that year.

Jean Gilbert, later Jean Hadfield, first appeared in the 1986 production of Deathtrap. Although she was then more associated with Bollington Festival Players she eventually took several lead roles for MADS, include Helene Hanff in 84 Charing Cross Road (for which she won Best Actress in that season’s All England Theatre Festival) and the eponymous heroine in Shirley Valentine. Jean became a director for MADS in 1995 taking charge of the second revival of The Importance of Being Earnest.

Another experienced actor joining MADS in 1988 and first appearing in that year’s production of Season’s Greetings was John Smith. His first directorship was the successful one-act play The Trial in 1990 and he has subsequently directed five main season plays.

[edit] Macclesfield Family Fun Day

MADS was not represented at the first Family Fun Day in West Park in 1984, but the following year, and again in 1987, presented The Body Snatchers — A Victorian Melodrama, a send-up of the sort of plays that MADS once produced.

Fran Dykes, in the MADS Newsletter of September 1987, wrote:

For those of you on holiday abroad that weekend, we had summer on 16 August. It was a real sizzler of a day. We had the same spot as last year—slightly down wind of the camel ride. Anyone would have thought that we were moving in we had so much furniture. A carpet, tables, chairs, a large parasol and even a screen for changing behind. Oh, and a tombstone…just ordinary things really. We were, of course, going to re-enact our now famous Victorian Melodrama, The Bodysnatchers, the stirring tale of a wicked baron, his evil henchman with a dastardly plot to revive the lifeless Mad Jack, but enter our hero to save the day—anyway, you know the sort of thing, an everyday story of Victorian folk. The cast was slightly different from two years ago, as was the play each time in was performed. I played the heroine, Celia Sweetbreath. It’s no wonder Victorian ladies fainted at regular intervals wearing the types of dresses they did! Nigel Moore was our hero, looking very dashing in his whites, however he had to be restrained from wearing his “dayglo” socks. We had a new baron in Graham Miles with the most amazing growth on his top lip. Poor Graham nearly joined me in swooning, he was wearing full costume and a cape and top hat! As in 1985, Dave Windsor played Mad Jack and Steve Donnelly was the baron’s assistant. Dave complained of carpet burns as he was dragged on and off stage at regular intervals. Two years ago he was aquaplaning off the stage, such was the rain. Last but not least was Steve as Albert Lick who never ceases to amaze me with his extensive knowledge of tropical diseases as expressed when asked by the baron to explain the absence of a fellow baddie. He also does a good line in silly facial expressions. Anyway, we did four performances which went down very well in spite of competition from the Express/Advertiser van calling for children to recover their lost parents and from the keep fit girls giving it their all in the main arena. We weren’t the only people there. No, there were some 20,000 milling around at the various stalls. One or two others dropped in as well…the Red Devils for instance. It was a very good day and thanks to all involved, from folks who came to support and bring us cool drinks to our two scene shifters Tim Llewellyn and Dave Ratcliffe. A very good job boys, even though they tried to upstage us! We rounded the day off with a little drinky at the Cock at Henbury, As it was still warm we sat outside and, as darkness fell, a gentle glow from sunburnt noses surrounded us.

A series of mime shows was performed in 1986, and in 1988 there was a performance of the Mechanics’ Play from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Expansion and popularity of this event have meant that unamplified performances are unheard against the noise of the funfair and other attractions and the society no longer attends the event.

[edit] The Cabinet Mole and Edge of Fear

The first play of the 1987/88 season was The Cabinet Mole by Tony Williamson, performed at the Little Theatre between 28 September and 3 October 1987. The play concerns a cleaner at 10 Downing Street, played by Fran Dykes, who answers the telephone in the voice of the Prime Minister, leading to a desperate hunt for the leak. The play was directed by Pam Hill and the critic from the Macclesfield Messenger was effusive in their praise: ‘Comedy is not an easy form of theatre — it takes confidence from the cast and a sense of timing to make it work. And the cast of Macclesfield’s ‘Mole’ had obviously worked hard to achieve both.’ The Community News went further: ‘Star of the show was Fran Dykes playing Letti Luscombe, a cleaner with a penchant for power. Her excellent imitation of Mrs Thatcher was warmly received by the audience... the rest of the cast seemed to fade into obscurity.’

Margaret Thatcher sent a message from Downing Street and Macclesfield’s MP, Nicholas Winterton, paid one of his many visits to the theatre for the final performance.

During the run up to Edge of Fear, Moira Adams, playing Emma, suffered a bad fall shattering her elbow and spending several days in hospital. She managed to perform, but with fewer costume changes and restricted use of properties.

[edit] Fortieth anniversary

MADS' fortieth anniversary, 15 October 1987, was celebrated by a dinner dance at the Tytherington Country Club on 14 November 1987. A toast to MADS was proposed by Councillor Mrs Sue Hardern, Deputy Mayor of Macclesfield. The response was given by Graham Miles, MADS chairman. A toast to guests and absent friends was proposed by John Hedley Palin, MADS president.

Graham Miles, in the February 1988 edition of the MADS Newsletter, wrote:

Some sixty members and friends celebrated out forty years of existance at the Tytherington Club on 14 November 1987—as near as possible to the anniversary of the day that MADS was formed. The evening was one for reminiscences: the more formal ones in the speeches but mostly out individual memories. The deputy mayor, Mrs Sue Harden, made a charming toast to MADS and I had the honour to reply. In addition to our founder chariman, I mentioned three other names: Colon Read, chairman for nearly twenty years; Hedley Palin, our president and most prolific producer; and John Hadfield, our most recent chairman for leading and seeing the completion of the redevelopment of the Little Theatre. Colin Read was presented with a large framed photograph of himself and spoke eloquently for a few minutes of “days of yore”. Hedley Palin gave a kind and thoughtful toast to guests and absent friends. Don Risely, whose wife Kate is Frank Snelson’s daughter, responded humerously and brough us all back to 1947 where it all began. We ate well, drank well and talked well, and vowed to meet at our fiftieth with lots of new members and friends yet to know MADS.

It seems appropriate that MADS very first production, See How They Run, should be revived for the fortieth anniversary production. Hedley Palin directed the play which opened with a gala performance on 20 February 1988 attended by founder members Joan Swindells (Joan Leigh), Fred Pierpoint and Tom Bancroft.

The gala performance was attended by Nicholas and Anne Winterton and the Mayor and Mayoress of Macclesfield. At the end of the performance, life membership of the society was bestowed upon Dawn Sims, Win Hall, Jane Keylock, Chris Nixon and Jean Patterson. A souvenir programme was produced which included a message from the chairman, lists of officers, trustees, life members and vice-presidents, a full list of the contributors to the rebuilding fund and a short history of MADS by Colin Read.

See How They Run was awarded the Dornford May Trophy by the Cheshire Community Council following an excerpt at Chester Gateway Theatre, and £230 from box office receipts was donated to the Mayor’s Charity.

An anniversary booklet, "A Scrapbook History of MADS" was written by archivist David Windsor, providing reproductions of a tiny sample of the contents of the MADS archive.

[edit] Studio productions and one-act plays

A new idea introduced at the end of the 1987/88 season to test the viability of producing five plays in a season, and later extended to allow the development of new directors, was the ‘studio’ production. Although the term ‘studio’ has never been accurately defined, its usage at MADS is generally to provide a play additional to the main season, and one that would not usually be performed as part of the main season. A minimal set and, where possible, less experienced actors and crew should also be used.

The first of these was Office Suite, by Alan Bennett, performed on the main stage at the Little Theatre, on 21 May 1988. It consists of two related single-act scenes, Green Forms directed by Francesca Dykes and A Visit From Miss Prothero directed by Sue Reeves. It was proven that MADS could produce five plays a year, and, from 1988/89, this has been the standard number of main season productions.

The studio productions have provided several main season directors. Fran Dykes directed four main season plays before deciding to concentrate, with great success, on major acting roles. The Actor’s Nightmare placed runner-up in two one-act festivals in 1994.

Andrew Smith also produced four main season plays, including Hamlet and Noises Off, along with two controversial but acclaimed and award-winning one-act plays, Ball Boys in 1991 and Bent in 1992.

Maureen Ransome was also successful with Ritual for Dolls, a one-act play that deservedly won the Wilmslow Guild Festival in 1992 but was unlucky enough to compete against a exceptional production of Bent in its other competitions.

[edit] 1990s

[edit] Hedley passes on

The 1990s started badly with the death of John Hedley Palin, at 76, on 10 April 1990. A man of the theatre to the end, he was busy with rehearsals of The Secret Tent when he was taken ill. Hedley’s will bequeathed £2,000 to the society for new sound equipment.

The 25th birthday of the Little Theatre in September 1990 was marked by the opening of the Snelson Lounge, a newly completed bar lounge in a room previously used to store the society’s wardrobe. The refurbishment of the room was only possible because of a substantial donation from Kath and Don Riseley on behalf of the estate of Alice Snelson who had died in 1989. The first floor coffee/rehearsal room was refurbished and named the Hedley Palin Room in 1993.

[edit] Diversity

Denise Deegan’s Daisy Pulls It Off in 1991 marked the first of several productions that deliberately pushed the limits of the Society.

Plays such as Blue Remembered Hills, Corpse!, Shirley Valentine, Same Old Moon, Breaking the Code, Noises Off, Up ‘n’ Under and Amadeus are only attempted by the most ambitious amateur companies.

Habeas Corpus by Alan Bennett (1992) and Blue Remembered Hills by Dennis Potter (1993) extended MADS' coterie of modern authors, and with Hamlet (1993) the society finally produced a Shakespeare play.

Alan Ayckbourn, a perennial favourite of the amateur theatre, was represented by Bedroom Farce (1990), Round and Round the Garden (1993) and Relatively Speaking (1998), and followers of Neil Simon were placated with Plaza Suite (1988), The Gingerbread Lady (1989), The Odd Couple (1994) and Relatively Speaking (1998). Serious drama was tackled with productions of Steel Magnolias (1992), The Dresser (1992), A Day in the Death of Joe Egg (1993), A Man for All Seasons (1994) and 84 Charing Cross Road (1994). Fans of farce were rewarded with When Did You Last See Your Trousers? in 1992.

The theatre was hired by the BBC during the summer of 1993 who used the building for storing costumes, cast changing and making up for the series Mr Wroe’s Virgins, shown in Spring 1993.

[edit] MADS loses its Chairman, Vice-chairman and President

Graham Miles acted as MADS' chairman between 1987 and 1991. David Windsor took his place from the 1991 AGM and Graham was appointed to the honorary role of president. David Windsor’s tenure was unfortunately short. As secretary John Moore told members in May 1992:

The management committee has accepted the resignations of the chairman, David Windsor, vice-chairman John Smith and box office manager Maureen Ransome. These resignations are interconnected and as always in these matters there are rights and wrongs on all sides. They all remain members of the society. Now being the most senior officer of the society I will be acting chairman through to the appointment of officers at the AGM on 17th June. Our president, Graham Miles, strongly objected to the content of the play Bent and our decision to enter it into One-Act Festivals. His letter of resignation will be read at the AGM with a statement from the society. You can be assured that, despite the obvious problems that have been caused, the society’s affairs are fully under control and we have every intention of seeing that our season is completed without detriment to our paying customers. Whilst attempts have been made to convey the impression that the society has lacked effective management of late, you are asked to reflect on the fact that never in the society’s history have we produced six full-length plays and two one-act plays in one season, all to a very high standard (the conclusion of independent adjudicators as well of that of friends of the society) … Our membership is at record levels and audience figures will also turn out to be an all time high. The society also manages to keep sound finances with a balance sheet firmly in the black. Our play selections … have generally been applauded. Does this really suggest that management is that inept? Relatively few people are involved in making all this happen. They have been under considerable strain and this, more than anything else, has probably led to some of our apparent shortcomings.

John Moore was subsequently elected to the role of chairman at the 1992 AGM; a steady hand during a period of considerable expansion. He completed his term in 1996, to be replaced by Richard Shute.

[edit] Consolidation

The 1994/95 season proved to be MADS most successful so far. A combination of good publicity and well-chosen plays provided a record-breaking season.

The season opened with Gerald Moon’s fast-moving comedy Corpse!, directed by Chris Donnelly during a break from his studies at Bristol Old Vic. The three main roles provided huge challenges to the actors, Steve Johnson, Dave Midgely and Dawn Sims, as did the set, constructed with many trap doors and secret exits to allow Steve to perform some brilliant quick changes that left the audiences gasping. MADS was also honoured, just before the dress rehearsal, to be visited by the author.

Corpse! was followed by Jane Eyre, with a large cast featuring Kirsty Thraves as Jane and the experienced Alan Kirkham as Rochester. The superbly elegant stage set was designed by director John Hadfield and stage manager Bob Nixon. This was the first of several ambitious sets by Bob Nixon, whose contribution to stage management during this period cannot be underestimated. It won much praise and the award for best set in that season’s All-England Theatre Festival.

Another author visited Macclesfield at the beginning of 1995 when Geraldine Aron watched a production of her play Same Old Moon.

Breaking the Code, again directed by John Hadfield, marked the return to the stage for vice-chairman Richard Shute. Richard had first appeared in The Gingerbread Lady in 1989 and, after numerous roles, would take a break from theatre activities to raise his family. His sensitive portrayal of Alan Turing would win him many admirers. Richard was elected chairman in 1996. The production was nominated for the Noel Barnes Award for Outstanding Theatre Craft in the Cheshire Community Council County Play of the Year awards.

The last play of the season was Noises Off, a most demanding play for both actors and stage staff. The play was directed by Andrew Smith. David Ratcliffe’s magnificently complex revolving set, so heavy that it went through the stage during the dress rehearsal almost stole the show from the perfectly cast players. The lead roles were taken by Simon Waring, Dawn Sims and Denis Lee. Denis, a talented comic actor, had moved into playing lead roles almost by accident. His versatility has been proved in such varied roles as Horatio in Hamlet (1993), Sir Thomas More in A Man for all Seasons (1994) and Jack in The Importance of Being Earnest (1995). He directed his first play for MADS at the beginning of 1997, tackling the psychological drama Death & the Maiden.

[edit] Four new directors

Three of the five plays produced by MADS during the 1995/96 season were directed by members taking charge of their first plays for the Society.

The first play of the season, Run for Your Wife, was directed by Steve Johnson. An experienced and versatile actor with much acting and directing experience at other local companies, Steve first appeared for MADS in the studio production of Rozencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, playing one of the two leads opposite Chris Donnelly. After performing with Chris in Bent, Steve made his main season début in A Day in the Death of Joe Egg and hit his stride playing major roles in Hamlet (as Hamlet), Corpse! (as the Farrant twins), Amadeus (as Antonio Salieri) and, perhaps best of all, a remarkable portrayal of Merrick in The Elephant Man, a part for which he won best actor awards from both the All-England Theatre Festival and the Cheshire Theatre Guild.

MADS involvement in the BT Biennial, where over a hundred companies simultaneously perform a specially commissioned play, provided an ideal studio production for Simon Waring. An adaptable actor, particularly adept in comic roles, Simon had appeared in many main season and one-act productions before making his directorial début with Nasty Neighbours. Later the same season he took on the role of Mozart in Amadeus.

Jean Hadfield’s production of The Importance of Being Earnest (nominated for best set at that year’s Cheshire Community Council awards) would be followed by John Godber’s Up ‘n’ Under, directed by Gordon Hamlin, an alumnus of the Harlequins Theatre in Northwich. Old-stagers John Hadfield (Amadeus) and Dawn Sims (Veronica’s Room) completed the roll call.

Amadeus received nine nominations for awards that season. Three of these nominations were successful, with the production winning the AETF award for best overall production and best director (the first time that this has happened in MADS history) and the MCTG award for best costume. Amadeus made a huge loss, however, principally because of costume and properties hire.

The 1995/96 season, both artistically and financially, was the most successful in MADS history, generating more revenue and critical and popular acclaim than the previous, also record-breaking, season. A total of twenty-three nominations and five awards was achieved by the five main-season plays. Other than Amadeus, awards were presented by Mid-Cheshire Theatre Guild to Fran Dykes as best actress for Veronica’s Room, and by Cheshire Community Council to Up ‘n’ Under for most original/adventurous production.

[edit] 1996/97: the 50th season

A development for this season was the revision of auditions to be arranged together in two groups in July and November, instead of spreading them out through the season.

The Cemetery Club, Dawn Sims’ 21st main season production, former directors Pam Hill and Barbara Northwood returned in their first stage appearances at MADS for four years and two years respectively.

Fran Dykes returned to main season direction with the revival of Charley’s Aunt, her first since Loot in 1992. A talented cast was lead by Simon Waring as the eponymous Brazilian. Chris Nixon returned to the MADS stage for the first time in many years.

Death and the Maiden, a psychological thriller by Ariel Dorfman, was directed by Denis Lee, his début for the society, and featured a cast of Francesca Dykes, Dick Burton and Steve Johnson, three of the company’s most experienced actors.

The season was completed by Jimmie Chinn’s Straight and Narrow, directed by Steve Johnson, with Richard Comish finally taking a lead role for MADS, and Dancing at Lughnasa by Irish playwright Brian Friel, directed by Gordon Hamlin.

[edit] MADS' Golden Jubilee

At the end of MADS fifth decade, well over one thousand performances had been given by the company, over a total of more than two hundred productions. Almost one third of these performances took place in the thirteen seasons since reopening in 1984, and it is indicative of the problems encountered during the first half of the 1980s and the renaissance in the company’s fortunes since then that MADS has given twice as many performances in the last ten years (1987/88-1996/97) as it gave in the previous ten (1977/78-1986/87).

Run entirely voluntarily as a charity-registered business concern, MADS has a wholly-owned theatre and dedicated theatre-going audiences.

In the Golden Jubilee season, September 1997 to June 1998, there were, for the first time, six main season productions, and seven main season plays.

A fiftieth anniversary committee arranged a number of events throughout the season and souvenirs of the 50th anniversary. The first edition of this book was published, complemented by commemorative sweatshirts and badges. A MADS birthday party, attended by most of the current membership, took place at the Redway Tavern in Bollington in October 1997 and chairman Richard Shute hosted an end of season barbecue in June 1998.

The fiftieth anniversary production in March 1998 was Hobson’s Choice, chosen by an audience survey carried out during the first two plays of the 1996/97 season. An additional gala performance also took place on 28 February to a packed house of invited guests. With a great many friends and followers of MADS in attendance, perhaps the most honoured guest was founder member Joan Swindells (formerly Joan Leigh) who had appeared in the first ever MADS production in 1948. The major, Councillor D. Page, and the Member of Parliament, Mr N. Winterton, were present along with many members, sponsors and friends and representatives from Wilmlsow Green Room, Heald Green Theatre, Bollington Light Opera Group, Cheadle Hulme ADS and Stockport Garrick.

With Hobson’s Choice, MADS received reviews in the local press (as opposed to previews) for the first time for a number of years.

It’s no wonder that MADS are entering their 50th (sic) year together — their current performance of Hobson’s Choice is polished and professional. The undoubted stars of this excellent productions were the three principals: John Bayley as Henry H. Hobson, Sue Sills as his daughter Maggie, and Steve Donnelly as Will Mossop. John Bayley was every inch the pompous, hypocritical patriarch, yet John managed to evoke sympathy for the self satisfied sot. Sue Sills was the original Maggie the Iron Lady, galvanising all about her into action … Steve Donnelly’s portrayal of Will Mossop was the best I have seen.

This review is all the more remarkable as both Sue Sills and John Bayley were giving their first lead performances for MADS, although both had played a number of important supporting roles over the previous few years, and Steve Donnelly was returning to the stage after a lengthy break.

A double-bill of plays by the popular playwright John Godber, Bouncers and Shakers ended the season with a flourish.

New productions of Sleuth, The Elephant Man and Second From Last in the Sack Race, and a revival of Wait Until Dark made up a varied and challenging season.

Rehearsals for The Elephant Man in October 1997 were interupted by the sudden death of MADS secretary Tony Morris, a long-serving member whose enthusiasm and friendliness would be greatly missed. One of the performances of The Elephant Man was held in his memory.

Despite a very difficult season, MADS once again received many nominations and awards, with only Sleuth not picking at leat one nomination. In a remarkable double, Steve Johnson would be awarded best actor for Merrick in The Elephant Man by both the All-England Theatre Festival and the Cheshire Theatre Guild. Simon Waring and Kate Axford were nominated by both bodies as best supporting actor and best director for their work on The Elephant Man, and the production itself would win the award for dramatic achievement from the CTG. Second From Last in the Sack Race, nominated four times by the CTG, was beaten in each category by Harlequin Players’ production of Stags and Hens in every category.

[edit] The 52nd season and the end of the 1990s

The 1998 AGM provided sober thought for the future. With only thirty members attending and with four offices remaining vacant, the ability of the society to continue to present plays was put in some doubt. As with other voluntary groups, it is often a hard-core of dedicated members who carry out the majority of the work, and, after five seasons of massive success, many of these members were choosing to take more of a ‘back seat’ role.

Secondly, a builders report carried out as part of the preparations for a lottery bid indicated that £100,000 of essential maintenance work was required to the Little Theatre. Once again fund-raising would be required to supplement any possible grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

John Hadfield was elected to the post of vice-chairman to assist with the steering of the project.

While going through a phase of relative stability and significant financial strength, few artistic developments took place at the tail end of the 1990s. One possible exception was the one-act play The Difficult Crossing, written by Andrew Wild and developed in workshops by the author, cast, director and stage manager.

[edit] External links

• MADS Official Website