Formation 1946 Membership 150 | Location Reading, England Chair Penny Wenham | |
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Type Theatre and Registered charity Website www.progresstheatre.co.uk | ||
Away from home trailer by working progress theatre company at the 24 7 theatre festival
Progress Theatre is a local theatre company at Reading, Berkshire in England with 'a reputation for excellence'. It is a registered charity and it is a member of the Little Theatre Guild (LTG) and the National Operatic and Dramatic Association (NODA).
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History
Progress Theatre was established in 1946 with the aim of presenting new and challenging work.
Its first production was staged in 1947 in Palmer Hall, West Street, Reading. It moved to its present location, The Mildmay Hall, The Mount (near Reading University) in 1951.
In 1964, after a fund raising campaign, the freehold of the building was bought. After modernisation, the theatre now seats 97 people.
Kenneth Branagh, who was a member of the theatre in the 1960s, became Progress Theatre patron in 2011.
Educational role
In the 1950s a Student Group for 14- to 18-year-olds was set up. A charitable organisation, "The Progress Theatre" was established in 1962 with the object of promoting education in performing arts in Reading and the surrounding area. Since 2009, the Progress Youth Theatre consists of two groups for 15- to 18-year-olds and groups for school years 4 to 6 (ages 8 to 11), 7 to 8 (ages 11 to 13) and 9 to 10 (ages 13 to 15). The groups give a public performance each year.
Present day
The theatre has a membership of around 150 people and puts on a regular menu of classic and contemporary theatre. All of these productions are managed by volunteers.
The theatre also staged a summer open-air Shakespeare season in the historic ruins of Reading Abbey. These productions were managed in partnership with Reading Borough Council. In 2007, the event was expanded to form the Reading Abbey Ruins Open Air Festival. Due to the ongoing restoration of the abbey, in 2011 the event moved to the gardens of Caversham Court, the site of a Tudor manor house on the banks of the River Thames.
Past productions
Progress has presented contemporary plays since its founding and the first performances in England of The Good Woman of Setzuan by Bertolt Brecht and The Shadow of a Gunman by Seán O'Casey were produced at the theatre in 1952 and 1958 respectively.
More recently, Progress has produced a series of Christmas shows based on popular children's books including:
Recent years have also seen productions of notorious plays such as Blasted by Sarah Kane while the more public-friendly yearly open-air Shakespeare season continues to prove popular.