Join Us
Become a Falcon Player
So…You’d Like to Join the Falcon Players?
The Falcon Players meet most Wednesday evenings on the first floor of the Brush Sports and Social Club, Fennel Street, Loughborough (just behind The Rushes Shopping Centre). You are more than welcome to come along, say hello and find out more.
There's no pressure to join us if you pop along.... honest!
Thank you for showing an interest in membership of the Falcon Players. Hopefully, these notes will give you an insight into who we are, what we do and how we do it, and will answer many of the questions that you might have.
A bit of background…
The Falcon Players were established in the late 1950’s as the amateur theatre group of the Brush Sports and Social Club. The Brush Company was (and still is) based at the Falcon Works on the east side of Loughborough, hence the title. Over the years, the membership of the group has widened, and whilst a few Brush employees are still actively involved, the group is now independent and membership is open to all. The Falcon Players have become one of the leading amateur theatre groups in the area, and whilst primarily Loughborough based, draws its membership from across Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Staffordshire.
As a group, the Falcon Players concentrate on producing comedy, farce and drama with a comical edge. We currently perform three plays each year, in February, June and October, at The Cope Auditorium, Epinal Way, Loughborough.
The group meets every Wednesday (except during play weeks and the Christmas/New Year break), at the Brush Sports and Social Club, Fennel Street, Loughborough, from 8.00pm onwards. There is on-street parking available nearby. Meetings/rehearsals are usually held in one of the upstairs rooms at the Brush Club. The group also has its own workshop, based in an old ‘tin chapel’ on Storer Road in Loughborough.
An annual membership fee (currently £10.00) is charged, to help offset costs of printing and postage of newsletters and other administrative costs. Membership runs from June through to May the following year and reductions are made for members joining part way through the membership year. A reduced subscription rate of £2.00 per annum is applicable to Youth Members aged 14-17.
The play produced…
The cycle of producing a play can take up to eighteen months, from the first tentative thoughts in the producers mind through to the final curtain coming down to rapturous applause on the Saturday night. The producer(s) will have put in a lot of preparatory work on ‘their’ play whilst other shows are in production, but eventually the time comes to cast the play. For each production, there is always an informal ‘read through’ night which is open to all (without commitment!), at which portions of the play are read and the producer can lead a discussion in terms of what they are looking for and also issue audition pieces. Auditions will take place the following week, and are open to all paid-up members of the group. The cast is usually announced on audition night, and for those not lucky enough to get a part, there are other roles to fill including properties (‘props’) and continuity (‘prompt’). The stage/technical crew will be sorted out by the stage manager during the following weeks. The producer will issue a call sheet, which will list rehearsal dates – for the few weeks immediately before the play additional rehearsals will be arranged, usually for a Tuesday or Thursday night. The call sheet will also list workshop dates, usually on Sunday mornings, for set painting and building. These are open to all, but scruffy clothes are compulsory! The set designer may also arrange additional workshop dates for sorting out, new construction work and so on.
Tickets are sold through the Loughborough Town Hall Box Office, and all members are encouraged to help with publicity and sales promotion. A publicity day is arranged for each play, and posters and leaflets are taken round Loughborough. Other members can help in circulating publicity material over a wider area through libraries/ leisure centres etc.
Play week…
In the weeks leading up to a production, roster lists will appear on the notice board for ‘get-in’ and ‘get-out’ and for Front of House Duties.
‘Get-in’ (Saturday before the opening night) and ‘get-out’ (Sunday after the show has finished) are the days that we move in to and out of the theatre at the beginning and end of play week. Moving the set in and out is heavy, tiring work and as many members as possible are invited/press ganged into helping spread the load.
Get-in starts at the workshop at 8.30 a.m., with the set designer leading the move to Stanford Hall, with the aid of a hired lorry. On arrival at Stanford, the lorry is unloaded and the set built during the day, with the principal construction completed by mid-afternoon. Some work may also be done on the stage lighting during the Sunday.
A walk-through will be held either on the Saturday afternoon or Sunday morning, which will be the first time that the cast go through the play on stage. This can be fairly chaotic as construction and technical work will be taking place at the same time, and tempers have occasionally known to become a little frayed at this point! Activity usually draws to a close at around 3.30p.m. on 'get-in' day.
Sunday afternoon is usually technical rehearsal, where either the producer or stage manager may stop the action, in order to resolve problems as they emerge. Monday night is final dress rehearsal night, with everything running ‘for real’; members not otherwise involved in the production are encouraged to attend to give support to the cast and crew. Also, induction for new volunteers for front of house duty will usually take place on the Monday night. A photo call will be arranged for the Monday night, to which the local press are invited.
A few rules and regulations apply during play week to ensure the smooth running of performances. These include:
- All cast and crew to be at the theatre by 7.00 p.m. at the latest.
Only cast, crew and the producer are allowed backstage on rehearsal and performance nights. - Other than the producer and auditorium stewards, members are not allowed in the auditorium on performance nights (unless, of course, they have bought a ticket!)
- Once you have made a commitment to the group, in any capacity, be there! Others will be relying on you for your contribution – in the event of an emergency, contact the stage manager or front of house manager, as appropriate. (Contact numbers will be posted during play week).
Front of house staff are required to be on duty for all show nights, to assist in:
- Selling tickets at the Box Office (assuming the show hasn’t sold out!)
- Programme selling
- Acting as stewards in the auditorium (with responsibility for emergency evacuation, if required).
On the Saturday night, after the final curtain has come down and the producer and cast have emerged from a congratulatory team hug, work will begin on stripping the set. An after show party is usually arranged, look out for details in the ‘green room’. These are usually held on a ‘bring a bottle and food’ basis.
Work on dismantling the set and moving out commences out at the theatre at 9.00 a.m. on the Sunday morning. This is ludicrously early (particularly if the after show party has carried on into the wee small hours…) the dismantled set is loaded into the lorry and returned to the workshop. The show is over and a sense of anti-climax prevails…until the following Wednesday, when it’s read through night and the process starts all over again.
Other bits and pieces…
Members are kept up to date with the latest information from the group through regular chairman’s newsletters. These include all the latest news, gossip, desperate pleas for help etc.
The Falcon Players hold an annual general meeting each year, usually on the first Wednesday after the June production. This is an opportunity to elect the committee, who deal with the administration and business management of the group during the following year, on behalf of the membership. All paid up members are eligible to stand for positions on the committee – details of the nomination processes are set out in the AGM notices issued each year. The overall conduct of group business is governed by the group constitution, copies of which are available from the Secretary. Any changes to the constitution have to be approved by the AGM. The committee also appoints a number of honorary officers, including front of house manager, stage manager, bookings manager, workshop manager and librarian.
The group maintains a wide-ranging library of potentially suitable (and indeed not so suitable) play scripts; members are encouraged to read and score these. Members’ views are taken into account in the planning of future productions.
The Falcon Players also have a thriving social side, with a variety of events and activities arranged by the Social Secretary. A separate social newsletter is produced for members detailing all the latest events.
Full details of the latest social events and other activities are displayed on the group notice board at the Brush Club. This includes workshop dates, together with rosters for ‘get-in’ and ‘get out’ days and for front of house duties, so there are plenty of opportunities for new members to volunteer! Details of the latest winners of the members’ prize draw, (universally known as ‘the balls’!) are also displayed on the notice board. The group also maintains a website at www.falconplayers.org, which contains all the latest publicity material, together with some historical information about past performances. A members only ‘Green Room’ facility is being developed on the website to provide the latest news and information.
The Falcon Players is a friendly group, and whilst there are many members of long standing, new members are always welcome. Involvement in amateur theatre can be a rewarding pastime, offering many new challenges and experiences; anyone wishing to make an active contribution to our work will be warmly welcomed into the group.
Still interested in joining the Falcon Players ? We would love to see you at one of our rehearsals, either come along to the Brush Club on a Wednesday night or contact Chris Marlow on 01509 415272.