The Queen of Hearts is on the warpath; the rainforest is green, and she doesn’t like it one bit! Under her strict orders, the Tweedle Twins, Dum and Dummer, are on a mission to repaint every inch of the jungle red.  Our holidaying heroine, Alice, alongside mother Dame Dolly and new-found friend Charlie the cat are looking for the endangered and rarely seen white rabbit, when they hear about the Queens evil plot on the grapevine!  Now in search of both the bunny and the baddy, join the gang as they encounter the tea-drinking, cake-eating duo March Hare and Mad Hatter, a Dormouse, and a very different ‘King’ of the jungle!

Join the Hawarden Players on the all singing, all dancing panto adventure on the 17th 18th and 19th January 2014

 
All the dates and times are on the poster below, with tickets available online from our Purchase Tickets page.

As Christmas fast approaches, the Hawarden Players’ rehearsals for Alice in Jungleland are in full swing, and with just 6 weeks until performances, we are pleased to announce that tickets are on sale from this page!

All the dates and times of shows are listed below!

Rehearsals are well underway for the 2014 pantomime ‘Alice In Jungleland’ details are being finalised for the performances, and all the information will be online in the next few days!

For now here is a gallery of pictures of the rehearsal process so far!

Rehearsals are well underway for Hawarden Players next pantomime ‘Alice in Jungleland’, written by our very own Fiona Burdsall and Kevin Dye!
This years panto will be taking place at the Hawarden Institute over the weekend of the 17th, 18th & 19th January
All the info regarding Matinees and prices will be confirmed here in the next few days, so keep checking hawardenplayers.com and the Hawarden Players Facebook page!

As another season begins, it was time to reflect upon the past 12 months in the am-dram world, at the Clwyd Community Theatre Association’s (CCTA) annual finals night.

On Sunday the 22nd September 2013, the Hawarden Players along side several other dramatic societies from the North East Wales area, met at the Shotton Social Club to celebrate each others efforts and achievements within amateur theatre locally. The Hawarden Players both of our shows from the past 12 months entered for adjudication based on performances in the 2012/13 season; Aladdin; the panto, and Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Stolen Suspender.

We were very pleased to be praised for how we dealt with a change in performance venues, with both shows of the season taking place in our new how the Hawarden Institute. We were commended on not just our performances,but also the technical aspects of a show such as costumes and staging.

We were very proud to receive several nominations for individual awards within the group, which were as follows in order:

• Ian Bandy was nominated for best supporting actor for his role as Emperor Chow Mein. Ian’s characterisation of the role, along side his vocal clarity and the amount of energy he brought to the stage throughout were prominently praised
• Fiona Burdsall was also nominated in the same category as Ian for her role as Amelia Prude in Sherlock Holmes, bringing out the maximum potential of her characters playful, flirty side, while creating great drama when Amelia’s real, more sinister personality was shown to the audience.
• Fiona went on to receive a second nomination of the evening In the category of best lead actor for playing Widow Twankey in Aladdin!  She was complimented on her consistantly outrageous dame behaviour, and her brilliantly garish costumes
• Dan Ellis was nominated in the best lead actor for his portrayal of Wishee Washee in Aladdin, specifically for his comic timing and his interaction with the audience.

The group were also very proud to receive several nominations and mentions for one of the adjudicators special awards:

• Fiona and Dan were praised for their performance of ‘A Song That Goes Like This’ and the amount of humour they managed to bring out within its performance during Aladdin
• Mike Gilliland and Deborah Dickinson for their duet of Everlasting Love as Aladdin and Jasmine, for both how it sounded and how they interacted with the chorus on stage during  the song
• Dan was nominated for his performance as Dr. Watson in the performance of Sherlock Holmes, specifically for how unorthodox it may have looked at face value having a quite a young Watson , but his performance allowed the audience to suspend reality for the evening and believe in his and Holmes’ partnership

It was in the ‘Adjudicators Special Award’ category that the highlight of the Hawarden Players evening took place:

Steve Burdall won an award for the set design and staging of Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Stolen Suspender.  He was complimented on how he had ‘ingeniously’ managed to create 4 different sets in a 2 act play taking place on a relatively small stage, with barely any wing space either side.  Steve who was aided in the creation of set, props, and helped backstage by Pete McCann came up with the design along side the shows director Debbie. All members of the group should feel a sense of pride in this award, as it really is a group effort getting set painted and all the elements of show visually ready for an audience, as shown in this video that was taken during one of our ‘get into theatre’ days

Again many congratulations to Steve, who’s consistent and unfaltering dedication to the group for many years has been such a strong point of our shows, and his work behind the scenes is second to none, and this reward is well deserved!  The Hawarden Players would also like to extend their congratulations to all other groups that had nominations, and won awards during the evening, and we are proud to be a part of such a strong, constantly improving theatrical community that North East of Wales currently has going from strength to strength!

As you can see, it’s been another hugely successful year for the Players.  We have returned home to Hawarden, with 2 shows that have had amazing attendance from the community, I don’t think we have had more nights ‘sold out’ and any one year before!  Feedback from audience members has been overwhelmingly positive, and we thank you for all your encouragement throughout the year, and hope to see you all at our next pantomime:  Alice In Jungleland, further details of which will be posted here and on our Facebook Page in the coming weeks!

The Hawarden Players have completed yet another hugely successful run of shows!  a few weeks ago the group performed Sherlock Holmes and the case of the stolen suspender. Audiences braved the heat (we always seem pick the weekends with extreme weather dont we!) in their droves, and joined us for our night of fun and frivolity at the Hawarden Institiute.

The laughs came thick and fast from start to finish, and we had a huge turnout for all three nights – including 2 complete sell out shows on the Friday & Saturday – which in itself is something the group are very proud of and would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who attended!
Photos of the show in dress rehearsal are available in our gallery and here is a small video showing you just some of the tasks that take place during a ‘get in’ the weekend before a performance:

So, moving forward, what is next?
Well after a well deserved break for the summer holidays, the Hawarden Players already have 3 dates for your diary!
The group are holding a welcome evening for prospective new members to come and meet the team on Tuesday 3rd September at the Hawarden Institute, Glynne Way, Hawarden at 8pm.  We are looking for anyone over 16 who wishes to tread the boards, or help out in a backstage or technical capacity! If you want to be a part of the fun, be it onstage, or behind the scenes. pop in to see us any time between 8pm – 10pm and we will welcome you with open arms!.

On the 10th September, there will be a first read-through of our next show – a brand new pantomime, written within the group. This years original panto is entitled ‘Alice In Jungleland’ is being written by Fiona Burdsall and Kevin Dye and promises to bring a brand new twist to the classic story!

Finally on September 17th, it will be the night of Auditions for Alice In Jungleland, again taking place at the Hawarden Institute at 8pm.

Please feel free to come along and see what all the fuss is about. We can guarantee you the warmest of welcomes and the friendliest of faces to chat to and enquire about the group.

Here are those dates again:

• Welcome Evening: Tuesday 3rd September – 8pm, Hawarden Institute
• Panto Read-Through: Tuesday 10th September – 8pm, Hawarden Institute
• Panto Auditions: Tuesday 17th September – Time TBC, Hawarden Institute.

We hope to see you all very soon!

The month of July is upon us, which means only one thing… our production of Sherlock Holmes and the case of the Stolen Suspender is merely days away from performance

Scripts are down, props are being collected and costumes are being tested, as final rehearsals take place.
The show promises to be one of the groups best to date, with the laughs coming thick and fast from the opening seconds of action.

Who has got their hands on Amelia Prude’s valuable garments?  Why does Inspector Lestrade always want to better Sherlock Holmes?  Why is Mrs Balding limping like that? and just what does Sherlock suggest every man should do first thing in the morning to help themselves see more clearly?

To find out the answers come along to one of our performances of ‘Sherlock Holmes and the case of the Stolen Suspender’ taking place on the 18th, 19th and 20th July 2013.  Tickets are on sale right now from our Tickets page, or by calling 01244 531085, or from Sweet Memories, within the Daleside garden centre in Hawarden.

And just to wet your appetite, here are some pictures from the rehearsal process so far:

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