The Warehouse Theatre
Ilminster
ONE ACTS 2025
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My Best Friend - This is a high energy drama with a splattering of comedy that you certainly don’t want to miss! Bee and Em have been best friends for thirty years: they're on holiday in rural France, away from the demands of work and family. But just as they're setting the clocks forward, in steps Chris, a blast from their school days past. As the evening wears on, the three women joke and fight with one another just like the old times. They bond. But time plays tricks with memory and some wounds are just too deep to heal. Old tensions and wounds emerge and revelation after revelation of painful truths surface as the play builds up to a very surprising and shocking ending.
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Red Handed - Joel comes home early from work one day to find an unexpected visitor in the shape of Henry
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Gilly's Gem - Gilly's Gem' is a comedy set in a block of flats in London. Millie and Peggy, both live-in cleaners, are best friends and rely on each other for support when dealing with their lady bosses.
WADHAM SCHOOL PRESET THE YOUTH VERSION OF
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SPAMALOT
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Lovingly ripped off from the classic film comedy Monty Python and the Holy Grail, this middle school adaptation of MONTY PYTHON’S SPAMALOT retells the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. The 2005 Broadway production won three Tony® Awards, including Best Musical, and was followed by two successful West End runs. The outrageous, uproarious, and gloriously entertaining story of King Arthur and the Lady of the Lake will delight casts and audiences as they search for the Holy Grail and “always look on the bright side of life.”
Gilbert and Sullivans H.M.S. Pinafore by Somerset Opera
Step Aboard for a Night of Musical Delight!
The Warehouse Theatre is leased to welcome back Somerset Opera for their touring production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s timeless comic opera, HMS Pinafore (or The Lass That Loved a Sailor), on March 20th at 7:30 p.m.
Join us for an evening filled with wit, humour, and music that has charmed audiences for generations. With unforgettable songs like “I’m Called Little Buttercup,” “When I Was a Lad,” and the rousing “He Is an Englishman,” this performance is a perfect blend of nautical romance and sharp social satire.
Directed by Sarah Helsby-Hughes and with musical direction by Sam Baker, this production promises to bring the brilliance of Gilbert and Sullivan to life in our lovely little theatre
​​Somerset Fellowship of Drama - COUNTY DRAMA FESTIVAL
The County Drama Festival is organised by the Somerset Fellowship of Drama (SFD) and is recognised as a Preliminary Round of the All-England Theatre Festival (AETF). It is for one act plays of between 20 to 55 minutes in length and involve at least two speaking roles. Every play is adjudicated publicly by a member of the Guild of Drama Adjudicators (GODA) and there are 11 trophies and shields to be won.
This year’s adjudicator is the award-winning TV, film and theatre director, Bob Tomson GODA. Many of his productions have toured the UK or run in the West End, in fact all over the world and you have probably seen one of them. His production of Willy Russell’s ‘Blood Brothers’ has won every major British theatre award, recently completed a record 25-year run in London, and was nominated for three Olivier Awards. His other long running musical successes are ‘Scrooge’ and ‘Evita’. He is currently director for Ghost the Musical which is touring the UK this year! It is an honour to welcome him to this year’s County Drama Festival.
The winner of the preliminary round can opt to go forward and represent Somerset in the Semi-final of the AETF and in successive rounds to the English Final and eventually British Final. The Warehouse Theatre has been the host for this event for several years and this year we would like to welcome Taunton Thespians, The @2K Theatre Company, IES, Clevedon School, Mendip Players, MADS Youth Group, CUDOS Adult and Youth Group and D&M productions who are bringing a wide variety of plays to the festival.
The County Drama Festival 2025 promises to be the best one yet and a real celebration of local drama. Come and support friends, family and your local drama group. Don’t miss it!
Bill Bryson’s smash-hit memoir ‘Notes from a Small Island’ spent three years on the Sunday Times best seller list, sold over two million copies and was voted the best book that represents the UK.
Tim Whitnall’s hilarious stage adaptation was first produced at The Watermill Theatre,
Newbury in 2023.
The stage adaptation of the original travelogue weaves around the character of Bill Bryson, an American expat, who, over several decades, takes the audience on a charming and affectionate tour of Britain, from its picturesque villages to its quirky landmarks. Along the way he encounters colourful characters, unravels the mysteries of British culture and delivers a witty, unforgettable exploration of this small island.
KES
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Billy, a disaffected young boy, has problems at school and at home: he's neglected by his mother, beaten by his brother and bullied on all sides. He adopts a fledgling kestrel and treats it with all the tenderness he has never known. Slowly, he begins to see for the first time what he could achieve if only he tried.
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Rebellion is nigh in Matilda JR., a gleefully witty ode to the the anarchy of childhood and the power of imagination! This story of a girl who dreams of a better life and the children she inspires will have audiences rooting for the "revolting children" who are out to teach the grown-ups a lesson.
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Packed with high-energy dance numbers and catchy songs, Matilda JR. is a joyous girl power romp. Children and adults alike will be thrilled and delighted by the story of the special little girl with an extraordinary imagination.
