Putney Arts Theatre - Get involved

GET INVOLVED

There are lots of ways to get involved at Putney theatre comany

Like most theatres we are closed at the moment but there are still plenty of ways to get involved. Here are just some of the things we have been up to.

1. Social Events

We are hosting a series of brilliant social events. Most of these are hosted on Zoom and/or Facebook but we are also looking into how we can branch out into other media. Our monthly quizzes are very popular and great fun. Members are sent details of how to access these.

2. Workshops

We have also held monthly workshops on a range of topics including writing and acting in the zoom age. Again you need to be a member to access information about these.

3. Monologue Nights

From April to July we hosted a series of monologues on the PTC Facebook page (which is a closed group). In all there were over 60 of these and they provided opportunities for acting and directing. Due to performance rights, we can only share the rights free ones on Instagram, Twitter and through email. See some of our monologues here:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeELcC_2tS0MgayV9q1imsqLdRIrkqGsD

4. The Magistrate

We produced a whole rehearsed reading online too. 'The Magistrate' by Arthur W. Pinero, went live on youtube in September and can be found at the link above.

5. Truth and Dare

Our new writing showcase this year, 'Truth and Dare', planned as a live event, became an online ticketed event on zoom in July. The actors, directors and tech crew all rose to the challenge and learnt a lot about this new way of performing as a result. Over 100 of our members and friends and family were able to see the performance.

6. Twelfth Night

In the brief period when we were able to put on an outside performance, we put on 'Twelfth Night' in the Old Burial Ground near the theatre over a weekend in September. The directors, cast and crew did an amazing job in a very short period of time, the weather held and a great afternoon was had by all.

We are planning other events over the next few months to provide creative opportunities for our members. We would love you to join us (or re-join and support us)!

Performing

Putney Theatre Company produces between around 10-12 shows a year, plus other activities such as rehearsed readings.

Auditions for all Putney Theatre Company productions are open to all adult members. However, you don't need to be a member to audition - you just need to join if cast in a production.

Most shows usually include several new members. Please note that all actors also pay a £25 acting fee per production on top of annual membership of £20 per year.

All productions and auditions for all up and coming Putney Theatre Company shows are always advertised on this website.

Auditions

Front of House

Every production requires around 20 - 30 volunteers to ensure our audiences are safe, our bar and box office are staffed and our productions run smoothly.

We expect all members of PTC to help with at least two shows per year, and lots of members help out at more than ten per year.

We need five people at each main stage show and four people at each studio show to be designated as front of house to meet our health and safety obligations. One of those is a licencee who is the person responsible for ensuring the safety and wellbeing of the audience at the show.

One of them is also a fire officer, responsible for ensuring that the play is watched at all times by someone dedicated to acting quickly should a fire be spotted, and evacuating the audience in a fast, safe manner.

If you are interested in helping out please get in touch!

The bar of Putney Arts Theatre

Stage Management

Stage Management is a fantastic way to really get involved in a play if you're not keen on being on the stage itself, or if you're great at organising and managing complex projects.

It also one of the key roles in any production, and we are always on the lookout for talented stage managers to help make our productions even better!

We're really keen for students and professionals looking for more experience to get involved, and have seen many of our members go onto careers in the industry. If you'd like to get involved then contact us.

Prop Sourcing & Design

Prop sourcing, design and creation is a core part of the production process, and ensures that our production values are sky high, as well as historically accurate.

It also one of the key roles in any production, and we are always on the lookout for talented Props Team Members to help make our productions even better!

We're really keen for students and professionals looking for more experience to get involved, and have seen many of our members go onto careers in the industry in both film and theatre, including Pinewood Studios. If you'd like to get involved then contact us.

Directing

There are opportunities for both new and experienced directors at Putney Arts Theatre. We are always looking for people with ideas for shows whether in the studio or main theatre.

We also stage regular rehearsed readings, performing a play with scripts after an intensive weekend of rehearsal to an audience of members and friends. These are an ideal opportunity for new directors to try out ideas or gain experience.  We also have showcases, new writing and devised pieces in a format with several short pieces in each performance. If you would like more information or to put forward an idea for a play or reading you would like to direct, please contact us.

We have opportunities for new directors with assistant director posts on some shows, and also with our new writing projects overseen by an experienced director.

Producing

The Producer is one of the most important roles in the production team. They are the person in charge of the budget, as well as being responsible for ensuring the production meets its key timelines for delivery of marketing & publicity materials, and ensuring that the show is promoted to its full potential.

The producer is also the eyes and ears for the wider PTC team on the production crew, ensuring that any issues are resolved quickly, and any possible problems are identified early on.

Producers are normally experienced PTC members who have previously stage managed or directed with us, however we are keen to hear from those who have outside experience of producing so we can widen our skills.

Set Building

PTC is incredibly lucky to have our own two amazing theatre spaces, our studio and our main stage theatre. Find out more about these spaces here:

We also have our own workshop, wood store, scene dock and a lot of stock materials, which allow us to produce high quality sets in short time periods.

We're really keen for students and professionals looking for more experience to get involved in our set building projects, and have seen many of our members go onto careers in the industry. If you'd like to get involved then contact us.

Set & Production Design

The Set Designer or Production Designer role provides a visual creative vision as well as the practical solutions to the staging challenges that every production faces.

PTC is incredibly lucky to have our own two amazing theatre spaces, our studio and our main stage theatre. Find out more about these spaces here. Our designs have produced some amazing examples of sets that are truly spectacular and we continue to develop our facilities to allow us to accommodate even more ambitious ideas.

We're really keen for students and professionals looking for more experience to get involved and have seen many of our members go onto careers in the industry. If you'd like to get involved then contact us.

Operating Lights & Sound

A great way to get involved with a production if you want to get to know the space is to operate our lighting and sound.

Working off a script, in the tech box, you sit watching every performance and hitting the cue button at the right time to ensure that the lights, sound or AV cue at the right time.

It's a very exposed role, but is hugely important - you have the power to turn off the lights! But it's not that scary or technically difficult to do, and we're always looking for more people to get involved with this.

If you'd like to get involved then contact us.

Lighting Design

Whilst lighting design is an area that requires technical skill and knowledge, it is something that you can learn! And if you're interested in this area of theatre, then PTC is keen to hear from you.

We have our own two amazing spaces, one an intimate studio space, and the other our main stage theatre, both with great facilities.

If you're interested in getting involved then let us know.

Sound Design

Sound design is about providing the soundscape for the production. This can range from searching out the best sound effects, to finding the right music for a particular moment, through to composing music for an entire production.

We are always keen for musically talented people, and those who are great at the technical sides of sound production to get in touch and let us know how you'd like to get involved.

Costume Design & Sourcing

Costume design and sourcing is all about being creative, thinking creatively and taking the directors vision into reality. PTC has a small costume store, but most of our costumes are designed and made, or sourced from local other stores or hired in from bigger providers.

Therefore this skillset involves lots of creativity alongside organisation and even a bit of negotiation to ensure we get the best costumes possible. If you'd like to become involved with this team then let us know.

Hair Dressing

Every production requires the actors on stage to be presented with the right style for their character, and hair dressing makes a huge difference to the production design overall.

If you're skilled in this area, or would like to learn then get in touch, we've got a number of skilled members keen to share their skills and develop more members over time.

Make Up

Some of productions involve significant make up requirements. This can range from creating realistic wounds, through to creating a complete look for a range of characters, through to ensuring that the make up is historically accurate.

If you're someone that is interested in this area of the theatre then please do get in touch with us, as we are really keen to develop our work in this area, and would love to hear your ideas on how we could improve!

Marketing & Publicity

If being involved in backstage roles, or front of stage roles isn't for you, and you'd prefer to work in the background, then we are also looking for members to help with our marketing and publicity.

We have this website to keep updated, photos to take, videos to create and social media profiles to stay up to date. Plus a lot of other tasks besides to ensure we promote our productions to their full potential. There's so much fun stuff to do, we'd love for more people to be involved!

Photography on this website is provided by numerous members over the years. In particular we would like to thank: Ben Copping, Martin Jessop, Rich Evans and Steve Lippett who have contributed so much to capturing our productions in such amazing quality.

This website was built using Wild Apricot by Digitommi Ltd.

CONTACT US

Tel: 020 8788 6943

company@putneytheatrecompany.org.uk

www.putneytheatrecompany.org.uk

Charity No. 1157482