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Our History

An archive photo of performers in costume from pre1950

Everybody has a story, and this is ours!

Chinnor Musical Theatre has been around in one guise or another since early on in the last century.

We've had a few name changes on the way, but our overriding principle has always been to put on the very best entertainment no matter what.

As you will see from these pictures, our shows were a huge affair, with great attention to detail, and large casts.  The picture of The Count of Como is dated March 1935! Of course in those days, there wasn't an awful lot to do in the evenings, so anyone who could sing, dance, or perform in any way, hightailed it to the rehearsals in order to join in the fun.

There would be countless people willing to help us backstage as well as on stage - just look at the costumes and props these performers had.  They would have spent many evenings sewing and altering clothes.  Sets would be crafted by the builders of the day, in sheds and farm buildings, indeed anywhere they could find space.  

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We didn't have the benefit of microphones in those days, so actors were taught how to project their voices to the back of the room.  Lighting, although electrified, was nothing like the LED lights we have today, and were incredibly hot.

A vintage black & white image of The Court of Como

Timeline

1935 - 1979

1980 - 2001

2002 - 2016

2016 - 2020

2021 - 2023

2024 onwards

Early pictures (like those above) show Chinnor Amateur Operatic Society in full bloom. We performed shows relevant to the time, which are extremely rare nowadays, and our style was very much of an operatic persuasion, with the odd Music Hall show thrown in for good measure.

In our second iteration, a change of name to Chinnor Operatic Society.  Still doing operettas and Music Hall, but now introducing the more popular musicals of the time, such as The Flower Drum,  The Merry Widow, and Die Fledermaus. It was also a time of change as we introduced the musicals of the time, such as Carousel, Fiddler on the Roof, Annie Get your Gun, and Anything Goes. 

We changed our name once again to Chinnor Musical Theatre as we were no longer staging anything operatic. We were putting on West End and Broadways shows with big budgets. We were a force to be reckoned with locally, and our shows had huge casts and audiences to match, however, with the coming of more and more technology and hobbies galore, we found ourselves with dwindling audiences and our performers found themselves with other things to do. Some of the shows we did were  Oklahoma, Sweet Charity, and Barnum (for which we won a NODA award). In the latter years, we sadly found ourselves having to write our own shows to save money, and while these were successful, they could never draw the kind of audiences we were used to. Like many other amateur companies, CMT struggled, and we couldn't continue putting on three shows a year. We also lost our performance space and had to re-locate several miles away, which was like starting again. Our performances dwindled to nothing and CMT became dormant until 2016.

In 2016, a few former members of Chinnor Musical Theatre came together with the ambitious goal of reviving the group from its dormant state. With very little money in the bank and only a handful of members, we faced an uphill battle. However, our determination to bring CMT back to life kept us going.

The journey was anything but easy. One of our biggest challenges was gaining access to Chinnor Village Hall. Despite our best efforts, we encountered significant obstacles that made it clear we weren't entirely welcome there. For example, when we managed to perform an Old Time Music Hall show in the hall, we were unable to use lights or sound because we weren’t allowed access to the venue until the evening of the performance. Despite these limitations, we thoroughly enjoyed putting on the show and were encouraged to keep trying.

To continue our efforts, we wrote and performed Tribute in Cuddington, where we found a more supportive environment and an appreciative audience. This was followed by another original production, All Kinds of Everything, which was similarly well-received. However, ongoing difficulties with the Village Hall meant we couldn’t prepare adequately in Chinnor, forcing us to work elsewhere.

Eventually, we returned to the Village Hall and staged some self-penned shows. Unfortunately, without local support, audience numbers remained low, and we struggled to break even. Our limited finances were quickly dwindling, but we refused to give up. Despite our best efforts to drum up interest, we faced an uphill battle that felt insurmountable.

By 2020, we decided to take a bold step and produce a full-scale named show, Hot Mikado. We poured all our remaining resources into this production. Then, in March, the world came to a standstill as the global pandemic hit. With no performances possible and no clear end in sight, we were left with no choice but to confront the heartbreaking reality that CMT might not survive.

At the end of 2021 a small group of us met once again to decide the future of CMT. We were so sad that our previous efforts had come to nothing and that we were again having to consider dissolving the Society.  We still had the rights for Hot Mikado, but neither the money nor the cast to put it on. We approached Joseph Weinberger's, the right-holders, and asked if they would consider refunding our money, and they kindly agreed to pay us a large percentage of the initial payment.  We've decided to give CMT one last go, and have been working really hard to provide a firm foundation to build on. We launched a series of workshops, covering singing, acting, and dancing.  We have a new Chair, Chris Ebbs (whose parents were huge players in the Society until the '90s, and even in the early 2000's). Since then we've performed two major shows - Christmas with the Starrs in  Bledlow Ridge, and Director's Cut in CuddingtonBoth were written and directed by long term member, Kim Wilcox, and were favourably received. We even managed to make a small profit for the first time in years. We are hoping to grow the society gradually and produce bigger and better shows, and to get our name out there, we have decided to perform in spaces other than Chinnor. 

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On January 1st, 2024, we proudly rebranded as Chiltern Musical Theatre. Due to ongoing challenges and a lack of support, we made the difficult decision to move away from performing in Chinnor Village Hall. Instead, we sought new venues in the surrounding area, such as Cuddington and Bledlow Ridge, where we received a warmer welcome.

After much searching, we are thrilled to have found a venue that meets all our needs to stage more professional productions. Starting with Avenue Q in 2025, our main shows will be performed at the Thame Players Theatre. We’re excited to build on our recent successes and foster strong, supportive relationships with the Thame community as we continue to bring high-quality musical theatre to the heart of Oxfordshire.

We work extremely hard to make our shows entertaining, but struggle finding the funds to put on major shows due to the high cost of licensing rights. We are desperately seeking funding so we can attract bigger audiences with more named shows.  We are always looking for new members, but with so many other calls on people's time, it's hard to bring in the new blood we need.  If you are interested in helping on or off stage or would like to help us by sponsoring or helping to fundraise, we would love to hear from you. You can contact us by email: chilternmusicaltheatre@gmail.com

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