Play Reading: "When we are Married"
The Torrington Players are inviting audiences and would‑be performers alike to a fun, informal play reading night – a chance to try out a part, enjoy a classic script without the pressure of performance, and see whether being on (or near) the stage might be for you. These evenings are a great way to meet the group, build confidence and simply share a good story together.
The date: Monday July 6th, 7:30pm at Torrington Town Hall
Why Local Theatre Matters
On the value of live performance — and the rich theatrical tradition of North Devon
Great Torrington is fortunate to have a company that has been doing exactly that for over forty years. The Torrington Players are part of the cultural life of this town — part of its identity, its history, and its future. Every show staged, every workshop held, every new member welcomed is a small act of investment in the community that sustains us all. And in a region as theatrically alive as North Devon, that investment is part of something much larger than any single company or any single performance.
Spotlight: Oh! What a Lovely War
A landmark production — twice over.
Joan Littlewood's Oh! What a Lovely War is one of the most celebrated pieces of political theatre in the British repertoire. First staged by Theatre Workshop at the Theatre Royal Stratford East in 1963, it uses the songs, slogans, and statistics of the First World War to create a devastating portrait of institutional folly and human sacrifice. It is funny, angry, heartbreaking, and technically demanding — not an obvious choice for a small community theatre company. The Torrington Players staged it anyway. Twice.
About NODA — and Why We're Members
The National Operatic and Dramatic Association: supporting amateur theatre since 1899.
The Torrington Players are proud members of NODA — the National Operatic and Dramatic Association — the UK's largest body representing amateur theatre. Founded in 1899, NODA supports over 2,500 member societies across the country, providing guidance, resources, training, and a community of shared purpose for groups just like ours.
Spotlight: Talking Heads (2004)
An Evening of Alan Bennett — and a Regional Award for Excellence
In September 2004, the Torrington Players took on one of the most demanding challenges in British theatre: an evening of Alan Bennett's Talking Heads. Four monologues. Four actresses. No scenery to hide behind, no ensemble to lean on — just a performer, an audience, and the words.
Spotlight: The Good Doctor (2012)
A Comedy with Heart — and a NODA Review Worth Reading
Neil Simon's The Good Doctor isn't a play in the conventional sense. It's a series of short stories — comic, bittersweet, sometimes absurd — linked together by a single narrator: The Writer. Inspired by the tales of Anton Chekhov, Simon takes us on a tour of human folly, vanity, and tenderness, each sketch a small gem of observation about the way we live.
Silver Stage: Celebrating 25 Years of The Torrington Players
The Torrington Players’ 25th Anniversary in 2005 marked a quarter-century of community theatre in Great Torrington and was celebrated with a summer garden party that brought together members, friends and supporters from across the group’s history.
The Uncommon Room
An account as told by Stef regarding this unusual Production
ACTING SHEEPISHLY – 25th – 27th October 2007
William Blake in his famous poem poses the question “Little Lamb who Made Thee?” and I’m sure we can all hazard a guess at that. I just wish that when He was drawing up the blueprint for this bleating, fleecy and gambolling creation he had designed it without such an active and malodorous rear orifice!
North Devon Theatre Fringe Festival 2007
The photograph shows the team who represented the Torrington Players at the North Devon Theatre Fringe Festival on 29 and 30 June 2007. They presented a linked sequence of five monologues under the collective title Anyone Backstage?, written by Torrington Players member Stephanie Easton. The piece had already been performed at the Exmouth Regional Festival of One Act Plays in April that year, where it received three awards: Best Original Play, Best Characterisation (for Mary Brodie) and Best Actress (for Rosie Balfour).